The Henry G. Fix Post 23 meeting was held on Thursday, October 1st. The meeting was opened by Commander Rob Meyer. 18 members were present. It was held in doors with social distancing in place. No special guests or new members present. The minutes of the previous meeting were presented and approved. Bills were approved for payment.
Service Officer Jon Schmidt reported that a get-well card had been sent to Ron Bly. The membership report was given by Nancy Grady and reported that the membership is currently at 124. Our goal for this year is 210 members. Nine additional memberships were collected at the meeting taking us to 133 (63% of our goal).
Americanism Officer Bob Bennett reported that the school decided to conduct the Veteran’s Day program virtually. No in person program will take place due to Covid-19. So far, there has been no students signed up for the Legion Oratory contest. Oratory contests must be completed by Posts by January 10th. There was no Legislative Report. No baseball report for this meeting.
The Post Constitution and By-laws continue to be reviewed and documents updated by Commander Rob Meyer. The decision was made to do a Legion breakfast in December for the community. The Post will encourage masks worn and social distancing. Individuals not feeling well will be encouraged not to attend. There will be an option of “to go” meals for those wishing to pick up meals. The breakfast will be french toast and biscuits and gravy.
Jim Kurtz and Andy Lyngen gave an update from the District 7 fall meeting. Our Post received 3 awards related to membership goals for 2020, and the Americanism Award for Post activities with the community. The 2020 Commander, Adjutant, and Membership Chair all received pins for meeting the membership goal. Andy Lyngen from our Post was elected as Vice Commander for District 7! District Commander Rod Smith encouraged individuals to attend District and County meetings and Legion involvement.
Jim Kurtz discussed the amount designated for the Ralph Schreurs Flag Memorial. The new flag poles on Main Street are metal, so no flag mounts are needed. A committee was established to inventory flags, and develop a plan to use of funds from the memorial fund.
The next Post meeting will be Thursday, November 5th at 8 pm with a meal served at 7 pm. Post Commander opened discussion on Veteran’s Day events. After significant discussion it was decided that the Post would host a traditional Veteran’s Day program with a full meal, speaker, and observance. Paul Evenson gave updates on the progress of the South Dakota Veterans Cemetery from the September 14th meeting. The flag poles and landscaping are complete. Deputy Secretary Aaron Pollard discussed the need for Honor Squads to be available, as it is expected the initial months will be very busy. There is currently a list of individuals waiting to be interred once the cemetery is opened. Post 23 will be very active in honoring our local Veterans. Beth Welch brought up the poor condition of the raffle balls and asked that 500 new balls be purchased. A motion passed to purchase the replacement raffle balls.
The raffle drawing was held by Beth Welch. Winners this month are Delmyn Johnson, Randy Pierret, Ron Luke, Doug Viet, and Nancy Grandy. They will each receive $150. The meeting was closed with the traditional ceremony at 9:05 pm.
UPDATE 10/27/20:
Veterans' Day Events Canceled
The American Legion Post 23 is canceling its Veterans' Day Events in Garretson (meal and award ceremony) on Wed., Nov. 11, 2020 due to the resurgence of COVID-19. We are still planning to have a Legion Meeting on Thurs, Nov 5, 2020 with a meal at 7 p.m. and meeting at 8 p.m. We request that members attending please wear a mask when not eating or able to maintain social distancing.
