Disabled
American Veterans
Blind
Veterans National Chapter #1
WEB
SITE: http://www.davbvnc.com/
Editor: Dennis O’Connell
"IF I CANNOT SPEAK GOOD
OF MY COMRADE,
I WILL NOT SPEAK ILL OF HIM
OR HER."
OFFICERS
OF THE BLIND CHAPTER
Commander
Richard Bugbee (AZ)
Phone 480 986-0304
Email:
dadbug37@gmail.com
Senior
Vice Commander Dave May (OH)
1st Junior Vice Commander Carroll Prosser (SC)
2nd
Junior Vice Commander Gary Traynor (WI)
3rd Vice Commander James Hogan (CA)
4th
Junior Vice Commander Stephen Moffitt (RI)
Judge
Advocate & Immediate Past Commander Dennis O’Connell (NY)
Chaplain Rev. Tony Martino (IL)
Phone
847 736 2111
email: Deaconmart@wi.rr.com
Phone
904 291-0576
email: pkjax@kaminsky.com
If
you know of any member who is sick or deceased please inform one of the
officers whose contact information is listed above.
KEEP OUR CHAPLIN IN YOUR PRAYERS
Rev. Anthony Martino
25016 87th St
Salem, WI 53168
(262) 843-1450
WELCOME ABOARD TO THE NEW MEMBERS
Charles Brooks Kissimmee, FL
Carroll Prosser Surfside Beach, SC
Thomas Zampieri Rockville, MD
MESSAGE
FROM ADJUTANT/TREASURER
The
Disabled American Veterans held their National Convention in Las Vegas, NV. An
excellent event again topped off with the performance of Gary Sinise with his
Lt. Dan Band. This year there was a special appearance from Vice President
Biden.
Friday,
August 3, 2012 the Blind Veterans National Chapter #1 annual reunion held its
first business meeting at 9:00 am. At 4:00 pm the second business meeting was
held.
Roll
call of officers followed the opening invocation given by Rev. Tony Martino,
and the Pledge led by Adjutant Paul Kaminsky. Officers present were Commander
Bugbee, 1st Jr. Vice Commander Moffitt, 3rd Jr. Vice
Commander Hogan, Judge Advocate O’Connell, Chaplin Rev. Martino, and
Adjutant/Treasurer Kaminsky. Sr. Vice
Wallace, 2nd Jr. Vice Commander Burgess, and 4th Jr. Vice
Commander Farley were excused absent. Delegates present were Dennis O’Connell,
Steve Moffitt, Gary Traynor, and Jim Hogan.
Alternate delegates present Rev Tony Martino, Paul Kaminsky, and Richard
Bugbee.
Following
the reading and approval of the previous reunions meeting minutes, the
Treasurer’s Report was given. Following is the brief summary of the annual
treasury report:
Blind
Veterans National Chapter #1
Balance
Sheet
As
Of June 30, 2012
Assets
Total
Assets $ 127,974.22
Liabilities
& Securities
Equity:
Opening Balance Equity: $ 148,655.72
Income: $
15,551.84
Expenses: ($ 36,233.34)
Total Equity: $127,974.22
Total
Liabilities & Securities
$127,974.22
Several
business items were also discussed during the business meetings. Noted was that for the fourth consecutive
year the Chapter had met its membership goal and received a fourth flag pendant
from National Headquarters.
Commander
Bugbee assigned committee responsibilities to the members present as were
deemed necessary. Convention Committee Assignments: Dennis O’Connell (Primary)
Carroll Prosser (ALT): General
Resolutions; Gary Traynor (Pri), Dave May (ALT): Legislation & Vet Benefits: Steve Moffitt
(Pri), Richard Bugbee (ALT): Nominations; Rev Tony
Martino: Constitution & Bylaws; Jim
Hogan: Hospital and Voluntary Services;
Paul Kaminsky: Credentials. All Primary and Alternate attended all
assigned committee meeting and all convention business meetings.
The
following individuals were elected or re-elected to the noted office position:
Commander: Richard Bugbee (Arizona) (Re-elected)
Sr.
Vice Commander: Dave May (Ohio)
(Elected)
1st
Jr. Vice Commander: Carroll Prosser
South Carolina) (Elected)
2nd
Jr. Vice Commander: Gary Traynor (Wisconsin) (Elected)
3rd
Jr. Vice Commander: James Hogan
(California) (Re-elected)
4th
Jr. Vice Commander: Stephen Moffitt
(Rhode Island) (Elected)
Judge
Advocate: Dennis O’Connell (New York)
(Re-elected)
Chaplin: Rev. Anthony Martino (Wisconsin) (Re-elected)
All officers were installed Monday
August 6, 2012 and the Chapter’s Installation Breakfast. Honored guest National Commander’s and
Adjutant’s Association Adjutant/Treasurer Dave Tanenbaum conducted the oath of
office services.
The closing
event of the DAV National Convention was an evening where we attended
the presentation of our new National Officers. We then had dinner followed by entertainment.
Plan next year to attend in Orlando, FL from August 10 - 13 2013 (Hilton
Orlando, 6001 Destination Parkway), and enjoy a terrific and well planned
event. In closing following is our new DAV National Officers for 2012 - 2013:
The
newly elected National Commander Larry A. Polzin (California). The other national DAV line officers elected
are Sr. Vice Commander Joseph W. Johnston, 1st Jr. Vice Commander Ron Voegeli,
2nd Jr. Vice Commander Ron Hope, 3rd Jr. Vice Commander Moses A. McIntosh Jr.,
and 4th Jr. Vice Commander David W. Riley. Michael E. Dobmeier was re-elected
as National Judge Advocate, and Ronald R. Ringo Jr. was elected National
Chaplain.
Hope
to see you next year!!
VA
CEMETERIES UPDATE:
We’ve
all been taught the consequences of the U.S. Civil War since childhood. How it
led to the emancipation of slaves, solidified state and federal rights, and
further made the case for women’s suffrage. But the unprecedented carnage of
the war also transformed the attitude of how the nation honors its military
dead; a tradition now indelible to the American spirit. That was the premise
behind a talk given by Harvard University President Dr. Drew Faust at VA
central office in Washington. Through her research, Dr. Faust found that the
Civil War fundamentally changed the way our country handled death on the
battlefield. Both the Union and Confederacy were ill equipped to bury fallen
troops in a dignified manner, and death notifications sent to families were
informal and happenstance, if they happened at all. Unmarked and hasty graves
littered fields and farms near battlefields where hundreds of thousands of men
struggled and died. Humanitarian ideas and the dignity of the human spirit were
transformed in the crucible of war, and an emerging sense of responsibility for
our war dead led to drastic shift in government obligations.
Edmund
Whitman, an Army officer and a quartermaster during the Civil war, led the
effort. Whitman inspected cemeteries and battlefields across the south from
1865-1869, examined informal records, and conducted interviews to find out
locations of fallen troops. He oversaw the regiment of over 100,000 Union
soldiers. About 300,000 were reburied in 74 national cemeteries, which now fall
under the purview of the National Park Service. As Dr. Faust noted, it was
Whitman’s mission to put human faces and human cost to the war, and to
recognize the sacrifices of so many of our own. His work helped to establish
the notion that those who fell in battle are o be honored, and it’s our duty as
citizens to remember and cherish that. It’s difficult to fathom the damage of
the war. An estimated 600,000 soldiers from both sides were killed; if the war
were fought today with the same casualty rate, six million would lay dead. But
it’s also hard to imagine a time when the care of our slain troops was an
afterthought—an annoyance to both troops in the field and folks in the halls of
government. It’s now one of VA’s most sacred obligations, but it took a war of
staggering magnitude for our nation to realize it had a duty to honor the dead
as much as they honored us. For a video on VA’s Sacred Trust which covers many
details of the National Cemetery Administration and its service to our nations
Veterans plus how burials are conducted refer to
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81ESNHb9_YQ.
To determine eligibility for burial refer to the attachment to
this
Bulletin title, “National Cemetery Burial Eligibility” or
http://www.cem.va.gov/CEM/pdf/IS1_Jan_2011.pdf.