The Henry G. Fix Post of the American Legion Post 23 had their 100-year celebration on Saturday, July 6, 2019.
The open house began at 1 p.m. with Legion members showcasing their war and service time memorabilia from their collections. These memorabilia included notes, posters, books, scrapbooks, photos, firearms, helmets, and field equipment, uniforms and medical gear. Also there was a large chunk of the Berlin Wall and a piece of the barbed wire fence from the Korean demilitarized zone. Also, the newly printed Post #23 history book was available for perusal and sale.
Outside tents had been erected for additional space for guests and a large inflatable bouncy house with slide was set up as a play area for youngsters and was extremely popular.
The program at 4 filled the dugout. South Dakota State Commander Fred Nelson of Spearfish South Dakota addressed the gathered legionnaires, families and citizens.
“The Henry G. Fix Post #23 of Garretson has an excellent reputation,” Nelson said. “Often, members have held regional and state offices and it’s clear to everyone how active this post is in your community. Other posts nationwide can look at the Garretson Post #23 and say, they do things the right way here. Keep up the good work!”
Post #23 commander Brian Siemonsma gave the crowd a summary of the Legion’s 100-year history. The American Legion has always been a force for progressive citizenship, founded with the same ideals that our governance should be- by the people, for the people. The Legion helped establish the VA hospital system across the nation as well as veterans’ services that were non-existent before. The Legion had female members in its ranks before women were granted the right to vote and supported such causes as the civil rights movement so that all of their members and US military veterans would have equal rights under the law no matter their race or creed. From sponsorship of the GI bill, that created the American middle class, to the lobbying for the recognition of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as a legitimate medical need of our soldiers, the Legion is devoted to citizenship and to make sure our government remembers that it serves the people first.
Next the Singing Legionnaires of Sioux Falls Post #15 performed, and they quite honestly stole the show with a medley of traditional patriotic songs, along with some from musical theater, and had people standing and singing along.
The burger feed community dinner followed, and there was such a large crowd that they ran out of food!
The Legion baseball tournament was canceled as the Garretson Legion teams had all done very well this season, and had regions the next day, so at the request of the coaches the Legion agreed that the players should rest up and be ready to play the next day. A good call since the teams did well, with the 14 U team qualifying for state!
At dusk, the Legion hosted their annual 4th of July fireworks celebration, just a few days late to also commemorate their 100 year celebration. It was excellent as always.
On behalf of the community of Garretson, we want to thank everyone at Post #23 for their support of the community, and their lifetime work as citizen patriots and humble servants of the people. May your good work continue for the next 100 years, and beyond.
