American Legion Greer Post #11 held its monthly meeting on September 18th with 31 Legion members and two SAL members in attendance. A round of applause was given to tonight’s cooks, our own American Legion Auxiliary members The winner of the Queen of Hearts drawing was Jerry Seiner who drew the six of diamonds.

Jennifer Lhotak, a new Post 11 member, gave a very interesting presentation of her deployment with the Air National Guard. Accompanying her tonight were her husband, Brad, her mother-in-law, Jan Lhotak and her daughter, Jazlyn. Also in attendance for the meal were the Girl State’s three representatives and their families.

Chaplain Don Kotab then gave the invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by all followed by the Preamble to the Constitution of the American Legion. Commander Clayton Rados then called the meeting to order.

Minutes –Adjutant Dave Isebrands read the minutes of our last meeting. The minutes were then approved as read.

Treasurer’s Report – Treasurer Dannie Gruenewald gave the treasurer’s report. The treasurer’s report was approved as presented.

Americanism – Americanism Officer Don Kotab received the Americanism packet from the state and will proceed to stay in contact with the school regarding the various opportunities for the students.

Service Officer – Service Officer gave his report.

Baseball – Baseball season has ended and Jerry Seiner gave his report. Gate attendance was down and we incurred a lot of out of pocket expenses. There was some discussion about maybe having some fund raisers done by the players to help defray the expenses for next year.

Legion Riders- Road Captain John Fuchs gave an update on the Post’s Annual Sunday Motorcycle ride. The weather was somewhat uncooperative and the initial route was changed. The Riders who participated had a great ride with lunch at the Meridian Corner.

Bingo – Bob Kucera discussed having nine Bingo sessions before Christmas this year as weather could be a problem. John Crisman, Paul Kucera and Clayton will be the callers with Bob providing popcorn and coffee. We will need to have volunteers offering their help as well.

Veterans Service Officer – Veterans who use a DS Logon username and password to access VA websites and mobile apps must switch to a login.gov or ID.me account by September 30, 2025. For assistance contact your Veterans Service Office.

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The Orange Heart Award is a medal created by a non-profit organization, the Orange Heart Medal Foundation, to honor Vietnam veterans affected by Agent Orange exposure, recognizing their “inconspicuous wounds” similarly to the Purple Heart. While not an official Department of Defense award, it is privately funded, and the foundation aims to raise awareness and provide a tangible symbol of appreciation for veterans who suffer from Agent Orange-related health conditions.

Old Business – We were honored to have SD State Commander Kevin Hempl here for the Labor Day Parade. The Labor Day lunch stand sales were down somewhat due to weather and the Martay celebration but still remained profitable. Jenna Krcil was given a US flag to be flown at the 4-H building in Lake Andes.

There was a District 8 meeting in Irene on September 7th with Clayton, Paul, Bob and John attending. Americanism Officer Don Kotab received a special citation for his work regarding Americanism. There will be a special town hall meeting on October 14th in Huron. Dan Wiley is our new National Commander and hails from Kansas. It was stressed at the District meeting to have each Post do some special recognition activity next year as our nation celebrates its 250th birthday.

Treasurer Danie Gruenewald and Clayton met again with Amanda Bechen as they attempt to put our issues with the 990 tax forms behind us.

New Business – A Thank You was read from the family of Jay Monfore. Barry and Kathleen also sent a monetary donation. A Thank You was also read from the family of Annamae Costello.

Jerry Seiner brought up the need for four new tables to be used for the Labor Day lunch satnd as the old ones were worn, heavy and needing attention. Discussion ensued and we determined that we could just use four of the tables from our meeting hall rather than purchase new ones at this time.

The monthly drawing winner was John Stone who donated his winnings back to the Post. Don Kotab gave the final prayer and we closed in due form.