American Vets Post 2 marks Veterans Day
David C. Dolby Sussex AMVETS Post No. 2 held its annual Veterans Day ceremony Nov. 11 in Long Neck, where keynote speaker Rep. Jeff Hilovsky, R-Long Neck, said the state is moving toward establishing a cabinet secretary for veterans affairs.
Hilovsky, a retired U.S. Air Force veteran, said a Sept. 6 meeting convening the leaders of veterans organizations resulted in a call to action. The largest union in the state is the teachers union, Hilovsky said; with 14,000 members, the union has a lot of power.
However, Hilovsky said, Delaware has nearly 70,000 veterans and probably another 35,000 dependents.
“And yet we have not lined our boots up in the same direction,” he said. “There's a lot of people who do a lot of wonderful things, and yet we do not have the voice that the teachers union does.”
Since that meeting, Hilovsky said, leaders are moving in a deliberate way toward a cabinet secretary for veterans affairs.
“If that happens, the game changes for veterans because we will have a voice at the table,” Hilovsky said.
Hilovsky said he will be a co-prime sponsor of a bill to increase the military pension exemption for federal taxes over the next several years to $25,000 and will work to offer the Veterans Directed Care program in Delaware, which is one of 10 states that does not currently have the program. More than 11,000 Delaware veterans are eligible for that program right now, he said.
Commander Dave Heffline said veterans serve not for fortune or fame, but for their love of country.
“Veterans Day is not just a day for veterans,” he said. “It's a day for all Americans to remember why they were fighting, and to continue protecting our freedom and the freedom of the future generations.”
In recognizing America's prisoners of war and those missing in action, AMVETS Department of Delaware Commander Tom Jones said 78,000 Americans are still unaccounted for from World War II; 8,100 from the Korean War, 120 from the Cold War, 1,810 from the Vietnam War and three from the Gulf War.
Sons Commander Les Paulson said it is wonderful to see the spirit of patriotism growing in the country once again.
“It is popular to publicly express love for our good country, great country,” he said. “That patriotic spirit has spread to Americans of all ages. Children wear patriotic clothing, teenagers put flag bumper stickers on their cars, college students hang flags in their dorm rooms/windows, and adults fly flags at their places or place patriotic lawn ornaments in their front yards.”
Ladies Auxiliary President Trudy Fisher Moore said the 580-member-strong organization is focused on veteran causes, and has supported veterans with financial and in-kind support to national and local organizations.
