Newsletter Articles

Retired Navy Captain Mike Montgomery was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for “heroism in aerial flight on Dec 5th, 1971.” But that doesn’t begin to tell the story of his historic ditching of a P-3 Orion sub-hunter in Subic Bay. It was the first successful ditching of that aircraft, and it’s still talked about today.

Capt. Montgomery’s dramatic and electrifying tale puts you in that airplane with his crew as they struggle to overcome a cascading series of engine failures and systems malfunctions, leading – very quickly – to …. well, you’re just going to have to be there and hear it for yourself.

Come, hear and see what it’s like to make Navy history, with photos of actual damage

Captain Montgomery is a long time resident of Edmonds, where he has operated a disaster planning consulting firm for many years. He is also a frequent contractor for FEMA, in disaster recovery operations all over the country.

Distinguished Flying Cross, P-3 Orion sub-hunter in Subic Bay, Retired Navy Captain Mike Montgomery

Welcome our newest Member, William Fox

VFW 8870 New Member, William Fox

Bill Fox is from Oak Park, Illinois. He enlisted in the Army in 1966 and served until 1972. He was a rotary aviator. He served in Vietnam May 1968 – May 1969 in C/3/17 Cav. He Jlew armed LOH’s in search & destroy missions in support of the 25QR ID Tay Ninh area. Bill later Jlew VIP Huey’s in Germany with 5QR Corps Aviation. Awards include the Air Medal and Bronze Star. He is now an accountant and resides in Edmonds with wife Dana. They have twin daughters and 2 granddaughters.

New Member, News, Newsletter Articles

Millions More Vets to Be Able to Shop Exchanges Online

Effective Date of Change: Veterans Day 11/11/17

After two years of study and debate, the Department of Defense has made a policy change, effective next November, to allow 16 million honorably discharged veterans to shop online for discounted military exchange products.

Months of preparation are needed to make e-shopping portals more robust and to allow the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) time to create software for verifying veterans’ status using Department of Veterans Affairs records. For details visit: https://www.shopmyexchange.com/veterans

From an article published on The Military Advantage Blog, 01/17/17.

discounted military exchange products, Exchange online, Veterans online shopping privilege

Post Recognizes Local Winners of National VFW Essay Contests

At the January Post meeting, we recognized several local students as winners in the annual National VFW Essay contest. One of those honored, Edmonds-Woodway High School student Olivia Olsen, won first place for the third year in a row.

Youth Essay Contest

The theme for this year’s Youth Essay contest for grades 4 and 5 was “Why Are Men and Women Who Serve in the Military Special?” Winners were Finley Gonzales, a 4th grade student at Endeavour Elementary School and Margaret Moon, a 5th grade student at Mukilteo Elementary School. Runners up at this grade level who also attend Mukilteo Elementary School were Joel Brannon, Abbey Summerville, and Audrey Stewart. Two 5th graders, Trevor Coble and Ethan Jacobsen, who attend Brier Elementary School, were also selected as runners-up. Margaret was presented with a $100 scholarship from the Post, and each runner up received a $25 scholarship.

Patriot’s Pen Contest

This contest is open for Middle school students in grades 6, 7, and 8, and the theme this year was “The America I Believe In.” The winning entry was submitted by Mohuwa Wahid, of Explorer Middle School. Mohuwa follows her sister, Lara, previously a two-time winner in this competition. She received a $100 scholarship. Sara Hatab of Olympic View Middle School was named runner-up. She received a $25 scholarship.

Voice of Democracy

Edmonds-Woodway 11th grader Olivia Olsen garnered 1st place honors and a $100 scholarship in the Voice of Democracy contest. This essay contest is open to high school students in grades 9-12. While the Youth Essay and Patriot’s Pen competition requires a written essay, the Voice of Democracy competition requires the submission of an audio essay. This year’s topic was “My Responsibility to America.” Lara Wahid, a 9th grade student at Kamiak High School was awarded runner-up honors.

Each of the students who won their respective contests, read their essays to the nearly 80 parents, family members, and VFW members who were in attendance at the Jan. 10 meeting.

The post’s student essay competition is coordinated by Fred Apgar who also serves as post chaplain. The winning entries have been forwarded to Washington State VFW for consideration at the district and state levels.

National VFW Essay Contests, patriots pen, vfw essay contest, voice of democracy, youth essay

Vietnam: The War That Killed Trust

Excerpted from an essay by Karl Marlantes published in the New York Times Jan.7, 2017

The legacy of the war still shapes America, even if most of us are too young to remember it. Vietnam changed the way we looked at politics. We have switched from naïveté to cynicism. One could argue that they are opposites, but I think not. With naïveté you risk disillusionment, which is what happened to me and many of my generation. Cynicism, however, stops you before you start. It alienates us from “the government,” a phrase that today connotes bureaucratic quagmire. It threatens democracy, because it destroys the power of the people to even want to make change.

I live near Seattle, hardly Donald J. Trump territory. Most of my friends cynically deride Mr. Trump’s slogan, Make America Great Again, citing all that was wrong in the olden days. Indeed, it wasn’t paradise, particularly for minorities. But there’s some truth to it. We were greater then.

It was the war — not liberalism, not immigration, not globalization — that changed us.

The Vietnam War ushered in the end of the draft, and the creation of what the Pentagon calls the “allvolunteer military.” But I don’t. I call it the all-recruited military. Volunteers are people who rush down to the post office to sign up after Pearl Harbor or the World Trade Center gets bombed. Recruits, well, it’s more complicated.

The Vietnam War continues to define us, even if we have forgotten how. But it’s not too late to remember, and to do something about it.

Karl Marlantes, the author of “What It Is Like to Go to War” and the novel “Matterhorn,” was a Marine in the Vietnam War. His essay is the first of in a series about the Vietnam War by veterans and historians, being published on Sundays by the New York Times. It can be read in its entirety online at : https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/07/opinion/sunday/vietnam-the-war-that-killed-trust.html

Karl Marlantes, New York Times, Vietnam War

Veterans Day Poster Contest Open

The 2017 Veterans Day Poster Contest is now open for submissions from all artists. The selected poster will be distributed to all VA facilities and military installations, as well as serve as the cover of the official Veterans Day program at Arlington National Cemetery. The submission deadline is April 15. From the following link, Get additional submission details and submit your entry today.

Veterans Day Poster, Veterans Day Poster Contest

Introducing: Rotary 5030 Veterans Affairs Task Force Committee

Mission: Redeem Homeless Veterans from the streets of our communities, and assist Veterans for their Total Recovery, regardless of time.

RD=5030 Veterans Affairs Task Force Committee is a joint partnership with Rotarians, Veteran Service Organizations, Local Government, Health Experts and Citizen-Patriots who wish to improve the quality of life for US Veterans and their families. We will speak out on veterans’ issues and influence public policy to positively resolve an important community crises affecting all in our society.

We would like to invite interested Rotarians to participate in this new Partnership Task Force. Please, RSVP to reserve your seat as soon as possible.

RD-5030 Veterans Affair Task Force Committee meeting:
Wednesday, February 22, 2017
7-9 pm
Shoreline Community College
Student Union Building (SUB) Small Dining Room
Address: 16101 Greenwood Ave N, Shoreline, WA 98133

For additional information, please, contact Committee Chair: Army Veteran Raymond W. Coffey, Shoreline Rotary Club via phone: 206-510-8428 and/or email: [email protected]

Note: Several of our comrades in Post 8870 are active Rotarians. Our Post expects to have a representative at the Feb 22 event.

Homeless Veterans, Rotary District 5030, Veterans Affair Task Force Committee

Edmonds Veterans Plaza Bid Accepted!

Edmonds City Council Unanimously Approves Contract

At the December 13 meeting of the Edmonds City Council, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Director Carrie Hite announced the low bidder as K-A General Construction for $290,967.92. (This number does not include the seats, pavers etc, contacted separately)

The audience, including veterans attending the meeting, broke out in applause after the construction funding was unanimously approved.

Construction is scheduled to start in January, to be completed in time for a Memorial Day dedication ceremony.

Edmonds City Council, Edmonds Veterans Plaza, K-A General Contstruction

VFW – Legion Christmas Party a Smashing Success!

More than eighty Legion and VFW members and guests attended this year’s Christmas party on December 10. Those in attendance enjoyed an abundance of turkey, ham and assorted goodies and, at the same time collected a record number of toys for disadvantaged children.

VFW - Legion Christmas Party a Smashing Success!

Buck Weaver and Terry Traner were clearly enjoying the festivities.

The ladies behind the party: Terry Traner, Becky Murdock, Jay Abel

VFW Post 8870 Christmas Party

It Happened at the December Post Meeting

It was a busy, if efficient December Post meeting, with a fascinating speaker in the person of Col. Bill Reeder and presentations as shown below, following which a sizable contingent retired to the Edmonds City Council Meeting in support of the Edmonds Veterans Plaza vote, details of which are covered on another post. We should all be very proud of our active and dedicated membership.

Representatives of VFW (Terry Crabtree) and American Legion (Jim Collins) present checks to Mike Reagan to support Mike’s Fallen Heroes Project. Mike has drawn portraits of well over 4,000 of our fallen comrades to date.

Sarah Browne presented a check from Spaulding Ski Bus in memory of Jim Harkness. Jim’s wife Dorothy has long been part of the ski bus project and the Post long a beneficiary.

Our December Speaker, Bill Reeder, author of Through the Valley, in which he related his experience as a POW held captive in jungle prison camps as well as the “Plantation” and the “Hanoi Hilton”. At left, Bill receives a drawing of his Cobra attack helicopter from our resident artist, Mike Reagan.

Mike Reagan presented a portrait of Ken Hicks to his daughter, Melissa Hicks at the December Post Staff Meeting. Ken, a Vietnam Veteran, passed away in July. (Ken and your editor were inducted into the post at the same meeting)

American Legion, Bill Reeder, Col. Bill Reeder, Edmonds Veterans Plaza, Fallenn Heroes Project, Hanoi Hilton, Jim Harkness, Ken Hicks, Mike Reagan, Plantation, POW, Spaulding Ski Bus, Through the Valley, VFW Post 8870 meeting, Vietnam Veteran

Holiday Spirit from VFW Post 8870

To Benefit Active and Retired Military

Chris Edwards presented gift cards to Chaplain (Col) Marc Gauthier at JBLM. The Post donated $500 in gift cards to the Chaplain’s offices at JBLM, Naval Base Everett, and Coast Guard Station 16. In addition, $1000 in gift cards to Fred Meyer were donated to the Washington State Veterans Homes in Orting and Retsil.