Up-Coming Meetings and Events
Monthly Membership Meetings (Second Friday)
8 December 2017
Lt. Robbin Swales of the Olympia Salvation Army office will give a presentation on what the Salvation Army does, especially in Thurston County.
6:00 pm – Social
6:30 pm – Dinner
7:30 pm – Program
12 January 2018
LTC Brewer from Camp Murray will give a presentation on suicide prevention
9 February 2018
The Director of new USO at Joint Base Lewis-McChord will give a presentation on the new facility.
9 March 2018
Medic One will be conducting CPR training for Post members.
Post News
As the new Post Commander, I should have shared this information months ago. Having said that, I set two goals I wanted to achieve as your Post Commander. One goal is to increase attendance at our monthly meetings and make the meetings more interesting and informative. The second goal is to get more people involved in Post activities, especially the younger vets and their families, and to get the Post more involved in our community and county helping not only veterans and their families but families and kids in general. I need your help and participation in meeting these two goals. Please feel free to email or call me with your suggestions, ideas, or concerns. I can be reached at walkersolympia@comcast.net or 360.867.1839 any time.
As a follow to the Thanksgiving food baskets distribution, The Post, in partnership with the Thurston County Food Bank, picked up and distributed 82 baskets to 80 families at the 17 November veterans stand down.
The Post now has a website in addition to its Facebook page. Please check it out at:
http://centennial.legion.org/washington/post94
You can also follow Post activities on Facebook. Check it out and like us to follow events.
Our Facebook page is American Legion Post 94 Lacey Washington.
General Veteran and VA News
If you and your family use Tricare Select or Tricare Prime, there are changes coming January 1, 2018. Tricare standard and Tricare Extra are merging in to Tricare Select at that time. Make sure your information is updated in DEERS by visiting Tricare.mil/changes.
Women, Depression and Heart Disease
The Risks for Female Veterans
By Tom Cramer, Writer, VHA Digital Media
https://www.va.gov/HEALTH/NewsFeatures/2017/November/Women_Depression_and_Heart_Disease.asp
Are you a female Veteran who’s anxious or depressed? Then chances are you may be at a higher risk for heart disease.
Not exactly an uplifting thought, but it’s the conclusion of a recent study conducted by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Boston University School of Medicine. The study appears in the Journal of Women’s Health.
“We found that midlife and older women Veterans with depression had a 60 percent greater chance of having coronary artery disease than those without depression,” said Dr. Megan Gerber, medical director of women’s health at the VA Boston Healthcare System. “And that’s regardless of whether they smoked or not.”
Cardiovascular disease kills approximately one woman every 80 seconds
She added: “We also found that with each additional mental health condition — say anxiety, for example — your risk for heart disease goes up by another 40 percent.”
Gerber and her team studied the data of 157,000 women Veterans over the age of 45 to examine the relationship between coronary artery disease and the presence of one or more mental health conditions. (Coronary artery disease causes a waxy substance called plaque — cholesterol deposits — to build up on the inside of your coronary arteries. These are the arteries that supply oxygen-rich blood to your heart.)
"Our study suggests that women may be able to reduce their risk for heart disease by getting the help they need for depression or other mental health issues, along with traditional health and lifestyle interventions,” Gerber said. “This is good news for women Veterans enrolled in the VA health care system. That’s because here at VA we’re focusing more and more on women’s heart health. We’ve also entered into a unique partnership with the American Heart Association.”
The researcher noted that VA is also increasingly focused on treating the whole person, not just a collection of symptoms. “This means that if we’re treating you for depression, we’re also going to be taking a close look at your cardiovascular health, the stress factors in your life and your lifestyle choices in general,” she explained. “Everything’s connected.”
Gerber noted that women in general tend to be nurturers and caregivers, prioritizing the needs of others and often putting their own self-care on the back burner.
“Women take care of their spouses and children,” she said. “They take care of their grandchildren. They take care of their aging parents or siblings who have fallen ill. They do this out of love, but it can make for a stressful life. Prolonged stress affects your mental well-being and, ultimately, your physical well-being.”
The physician said she always talks to her female patients about the enormous benefits of exercise and other stress reducing activities.
“Women in the military have their exercise program automatically baked into their daily routine,” she observed. “But once they leave the military, routine exercise becomes optional and can sometimes fall by the wayside. That’s why I try to impress upon my patients the enormous importance of taking care of themselves…
“Good diet and regular exercise is a big part of that,” she said. “And so is emotional well-being.”
To learn more about health care and other resources available to women Veterans, visit www.womenshealth.va.gov
Need to talk with someone about how you’re feeling? Call the Women Veterans Call Center at 1.855.VA.WOMEN. All the representatives there are women, and many are Veterans themselves. They can connect you with the resources you need to start feeling better again.
Need immediate help? Call the Veterans Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255 (Press 1) or visit www.veteranscrisisline.net
Murphy’s Military Laws of the month
· The most dangerous thing in the combat zone is an officer, especially a 2LT, with a map.
· Every command which can be misunderstood, will be.
· Surprise is an event that takes place in the mind of a commander.
· Weather ain’t neutral.
· Uniforms only come in two sizes, too small and too large.
Adjutant’s Report
American Legion National and Department Headquarters voted to raise their dues by $5.00 each for a total of $10.00 starting January 2016 for a grand total of $50.00 per year. The Post voted to not raise its dues at this time.
Building Rental
If you were not aware, the Post offers both the post building and the pavilion for rent.
Building
Post Members
Non-Members
Post Building
$175.00
$325.00
Pavilion (available only on week nights)
$175.00
$325.00
Pavilion is no longer available for weekend rentals. The post has a Church renting it for both Saturday and Sundays.
There is a $200.00 refundable security deposit requirement as well. Please contact Larry Granish at 360.701.5921 or email at lgrani@comcast.net to reserve either facility.
Chaplain’s Corner
Contact the Post Chaplain, Otis Chapman, at lukie1964@gmail.com if you need assistance.
Service Officer
Do you feel that you have a residual health problem that is linked to your time in the service? Have you applied for benefits with the Veterans Administration and been turned down? If so, do not try to deal with the VA on your own. My name is Rose Hodgeboom and I am the Post 94 service officer. It is my job to help you navigate the benefits system. Call me at 360-491-3621 if you need assistance with a claim. The Legion also has a Temporary Financial Assistance program that could help you one time with paying your utilities, rent/mortgage, or other emergency needs. This is an American Legion Children and Youth program and to qualify you must have minor children in your home. If you feel you need help from this program let me know and I will be glad to help.
Post Officers for 2017-2018
Commander – Gary Walker
1st Vice-Commander - Bob Nakamura
2nd Vice Commander - Larry Douglas
Adjutant - Larry Granish
Finance Officer – Dave Hodgeboom
Sergeant at Arms – Kevin Lindsey
Chaplain – Otis Chapman
Veteran Service Officer - Rose Hodgeboom
Judge Advocate - David Hodgeboom
Post Historian – Donna Lowery
