Published: Sunday, September 1, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, September 1, 2013 at 11:26 p.m.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars will participate in two September events, a “Welcome Home” picnic featuring a Las Vegas NV headliner next weekend & a POW/MIA Recognition Day ceremony after in the month.
Walter Turner, the Post 6022 adjutant & a 25-year Navy veteran, asserted he hopes the events will show the community in that the VFW is much more than a social club & is an active part of Tuscaloosa.
The VFW along with the post’s women’s auxiliary will be set up at Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center at 3701 Loop Road on Saturday for the third annual yearly “Welcome Home” picnic. Entertainment will be provided by a five-year Las Vegas NV headliner & tribute artist Terry Turner.
“To see him in human being is unreal. He did Willie Nelson, & he was spot on. You would’ve thought Willie was sitting there. He sings the song ‘Willie, Waylon & the Boys’ & he sounds like Willie Nelson & Waylon Jennings. He alternates verses & sounds just like both of them. You shut your eyes & you’d swear they were both on the stage,” Walter Turner said.
Terry Turner will perform for picnic attendees at noon. He will moreover host a full show at 8 p.m. at the VFW, 7001 University Blvd. E. in Cottondale. Admission to the 8 p.m. show will be $10 per human being & all proceeds will go to the VFW veterans’ relief fund.
At 2 p.m. Sept. 20, the VFW will host its annual yearly POW-MIA Recognition Day ceremony at Post 6022. Paul W. Bryant High School Marine Corps’ JROTC honor guard will present the colors. The public is invited to honor prisoners of war & the men & women still missing in action. The formal event will conclude with two trumpeters performing “Echo Taps.” Walter Turner asserted in that the event has grown in attendance number each year.
The events usually produce multiple inquiries about membership in the VFW, Walter Turner said. The current price for a one-year membership is $35 yet will go up to $50 in January. Lifetime memberships are moreover available. Prospective members must moreover provide evidence of service time in a combat zone. Post 6022 has a membership roster of 242 & is actively searching for more veterans to join.
“All VFW posts, not just ours, need new members. We need the younger guys like the Iraqi & Afghanistan veterans so in that we can have new ideas — — fresh blood, if you will.”
David Douglass, a second-year Post commander & Army veteran, asserted in that he wants to share benefits with all the veterans who deserve them. The VFW & the women’s auxiliary sponsor scholarship programs, essay contests, fundraisers for veterans & their families & countless other services. In the past, Post 6022 has even rented out its ballroom for child cancer fundraising events.
“We’ve had veterans come in who are down on their luck & cry 'cause we have given them a little money; that’s what it’s all about. I want to assist veterans, veteran’s families & the community,” Walter Turner said.
Linda Turner, the women’s auxiliary president, has held the position for about five years of time & has-been married to Walter Turner for 39 years. The women’s auxiliary is involved with cancer research, the Voice of Democracy essay contest & continuously supports the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The members of the auxiliary comprise mostly spouses, daughters & relatives of veterans who were stationed in combat areas.
“I want the community to know we are here. We aren’t just a bunch of old guys who sit around & smoke drink & tell war stories,” Walter Turner said. “We are so much more than that.”
For inquires & information, contact VFW Post 6022 at vfwpost6022@yahoo.com or 205-533-8040.
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