Sunday, June 10, 2012

THE O'CONNOR-REGENWETHER VFW POST 3633 (VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS POST IN MAQUOKETA) CELEBRATED IT'S 75TH ANNIVERSARY
YESTERDAY.    IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL WEATHER DAY.   AROUND 50 PEOPLE WERE PRESENT AT MOUNT HOPE CEMETERY FOR AN 11 A.M. PROGRAM
HELD AT THE GRAVE  OF W.C. RANKIN OF MAQUOKETA, FIRST COMMANDER
OF POST 3633.    HE SON JIM, IN HIS UNIFORM, WITH THE HELP OF HIS
WIFE MARILYN, PLACED A WREATH AT WILL RANKIN'S GRAVE.   REV. RUTH ANN SCOTT GAVE A VERY NICE ANNIVERSARY ADDRESS...RED HENTON
PRESENTED A COUPLE PATRIOTIC SONGS ON HIS HARMONICA...THE MAQUOKETA LEGION POST FIRING  SQUAD WAS PRESENT FOR THE
GUN SALUTE NEAR THE END OF THE 25-MINUTE PROGRAM WHICH ALSO INCLUDED VFW COMMANDER TOM WATTERS READING OFF THE NAMES OF ALL 47 CHARTER MEMBERS.   
IT WAS MY PLEASURE TO SERVE AS M.C.   I  HAVE BEEN
A PROUD VFW MEMBER FOR OVER 40 YEARS.
AFTER THE CEMETERY SERVICE, THE EAGLES CLUB LADIES SERVED A
DELICIOUS BEEF AND HAM DINNER AT NOON (FREE TO ALL MEMBERS AND SPOUSE) AND THEN THE ANNIVERSARY PROGRAM FOLLOWED WITH
SPECIAL INVITED GUESTS MAKING PRESENTATIONS AND COMMENTS.
THE IOWA VFW COMMANDER PRESENTED COMMANDER TOM WATTERS WITH
A SPECIAL 75TH ANNIVERSARY CERTIFICATE FROM NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS.
THE MAIN ADDRESS (AND VERY WELL DONE) WAS GIVEN BY MAQUOKETA MAYOR DON SCHWENKER, A 20 YEAR VETERAN HIMSELF.   MANY THEN MADE COMMENTS ABOUT THEIR MILITARY DAYS AND THE VFW.   AROUND 100 
IN ATTENDANCE EACH RECEIVED A FREE ANNIVERSARY PEN AND THE
PROGRAM ENDED SHORTLY BEFORE 2.    A VERY NICE DAY FOR THE 
VFW POST IN MAQUOKETA.    OUR THANKS TO ALL WHO ATTENDED AND MADE IT A VERY SPECIAL DAY.     MANY PHOTOS WERE TAKEN AND SOMETIME IN THE WEEK AHEAD, OUR LOCAL VFW WEB PAGE WILL  HAVE A VIDEO OF THE CEMETERY SERVICE AND MANY, MANY  PHOTOS TAKEN AT BOTH THE CEMETERY AND AT THE EAGLES CLUB.      TO SEE THE VIDEO AND PICTURES, JUST "GOOGLE" MAQUOKETA VFW AND BRING UP THE WEB PAGES.
DENNIS VOY