Sunflower Legionnaire

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The American Legion - Today’s Voice for Today’s Veterans & MilitaryKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF THE AMERICAN LEGION April/May/June 2017 VOL LXX NO. 4

Department Convention Set for Topeka May 19-21

This year’s Kansas Legacy Run (KLR) will be held on June 8 through 11th, 2017. The run this year will be held mostly in Western Kansas. The run will start on June 8 at Post #180 in Great Bend. We will be leaving Great Bend heading toward Rush Center where we will jump onto Highway 183 and head north into Hays. We will have a brief stop at VFW Post #9076 where we will be greeted by the members of both American Legion Post #173 members as well as VFW Post #9076 members. Members of the community are always wel-come to come greet the riders. After our stop in Hays, we will travel north up Highway 183 and turn west on Highway 36 with a stop in Norton. Post # 63 and their American Legion Riders will be providing lunch. Hopefully at this stop we will have a special guest for every-one to meet. The community has also been invited to come out and meet the riders on this years run. The members at Norton are really pushing this. After leaving Norton, we will continue west with a stop at Oberlin and the American Le-gion Memorial in the northeast part of town. We have been in communication with Oberlin Post #70 and the American Le-gion Riders and hope to have a good turnout in Oberlin. We will leave Oberlin and head west to Atwood where we turn south and end the day at Ameri-can Legion Post #363 in Colby.

Day 2 will start bright and early. We will pull out of Colby at 7:30 AM and head south on

2017 KANSAS LEGACY RUNBy Terry Harris SAL/ALR Liaison

Highway 25 and then west on Highway 40 to Sharon Springs turning south to Tribune. We will stop and lay a wreath at the Greely County Veterans Memorial. We will then turn back east and stop in Scott City for fuel. Heading south out of Scott City we will turn and head west on Highway 50 towards Lakin. At Lakin we will turn south and make our way toward Ulysses Post #79. In Ulysses we will lay a wreath at their veterans memorial and stay for lunch. The Ulysses Post has really worked with us on this event. Thanks Com-mander Rodriguez. I appreci-ate you! We will leave Ulysses and head toward Post #205 in Sublette. We will stop there for a meet and greet and a cold drink of water then leave south on Highway 83 and end the day at Post #80 in Liberal. Let me take a minute here to thank all the posts on these 1st 2 days of the run. It’s been great talking with all of you and I for one am very excited to meet you all in person. I hope we can get a lot of the members of your communities out to support the run. We are always willing to take any donations to support the National American Legion Legacy Scholarship Fund.

Day 3 will start in Liberal, again at 7:30 AM, and head up US Highway 54 to Meade. With a brief stop in Meade to top off fuel tanks, we are look-ing forward to meeting the folks from Post #92. After leav-ing Meade, the plan is to head across Highway 160 all the way to Highway 183 with a stop in Coldwater to lay a wreath at the Veterans Memorial on Main Street. Leaving Coldwater we will go north to Greensburg with a fuel stop there. We will then proceed north on Highway 183 to Kinsley for lunch. Leav-ing Kinsley we will continue on Highway 183 to Highway 156 and turn south on Highway 283 at Jetmore. We will stop at the American Legion Memorial south of Jetmore on Highway 283 for a wreath laying cer-emony. We will then ride south to Highway 400 and a stop at the Kansas Veterans Cemetery

STATE ORATORICAL CONTEST HELD IN MANHATTAN

The State Oratorical Con-test sponsored by the Kan-sas American Legion was held on Saturday, March 11 at Pearce-Keller Post #17 in Manhattan. The eight final-ists representing their Dis-trict were required to give an 8-10 minute prepared oration on the United States Consti-tution. The contestants were required to give their pre-sentation without any notes, podium, papers, or micro-phones. They were judged by a panel of six prominent citizens from the Manhattan area. The contestants were judged on several aspects of their presentation including originality, skill in selecting examples, logic, knowledge of subject matter, voice and diction, word selection, and body action and eye contact.

After their prepared re-marks the contestants were required to speak on one of four assigned topics selected by National Headquarters. One topic is chosen by draw-ing from the four choices and each contestant speaks on the same subject. The contes-tants were required to speak three to five minutes on the assigned topic. This year’s assigned topic was Amend-

ment 17.All contestants recited

their orations skill and enthe-usausm. The Judges had the difficult task of choosing the top contestants that would re-ceive top honors and money for college.

The 2017 State Champion is Louie Peres from Stillwell representing District 2. Louie will represent Kansas during the National contest in India-napolis April 21-23. He will receive a $750 scholarship from Kansas Deparment, plus additional scholarship money from National de-pending on his performance in the National Contest.

The second place award of a $500 scholarship went to Carson Smith from Wichita, representing District 5. The third place finisher was Jenna Weis from Little River, rep-resenting District 7. She will receive a $250 scholarship. Fourth place went to Graham Gibson from Topeka, repre-senting District 1. Graham will receive a $150 scholar-ship.

In addition, Emporia State University and Tabor College also offer scholarships to the first four winners in this year’s contest.

The 2017 State Oratorical Contestansts front row (L-R) are Graham Gibson, Louie Pires, Matthew In-man, Alexander Baldwin. Back row (L-R) are Carson Smith, Elvaro Escobedo, Jenna Weis, Micha Still.

Ramada Hotel, 420 E. 6th Street, in Topeka will serve as the site of the 99th Annual Convention of The American Legion Department of Kansas. Joining the Legion in Conven-tion will be the American Le-gion Auxiliary and the Sons of the American Legion who will hold their own indepen-dent Conventions in addition to two joint sessions involving all three groups.

Now is the time to make housing reservations by calling the Ramada toll free at 1-800-432-2424. Room rates for the Convention are $92 and in-cludes a full breakfast buffet.

The Convention is expected to feature a number of speak-ers including American Legion National Vice Commander Doug Boldt from Nebraska and S.A.L. National Vice Com-mander Kenneth Yanke from Colorado, several of this year’s Youth Champions, and Kansas’ Fire and Policeman of the Year.

Various awards for Ameri-canism, Children & Youth, Post Histories, Post Service Officers and will also be pre-sented. A highlight of the Con-vention will be the drawing for this Spring’s Sweepstakes with special prizes available should any of the thirteen winners be present during the drawing on Sunday.

The Convention will (Continued on Page 3)

Douglas L. Boldt, National Vice Commander

Page 2 - The Sunflower Legionnaire April/May/June, 2017

COMMANDER******

Robert Munson215 W. 18th St.

Pittsburg, KS 66762620-202-2959

VICE COMMANDER******

Terry Marr6131 S. Ellis St.

Wichita, KS 67216316-640-4633

tnmarr@aol.comA great time was had by

everyone at the Mid-Winter Forum in Olathe, and I want to thank everyone for your support. I have made my an-nouncement that I am a can-didate for your Department Commander for 2017-2018. I appreciate your support and will appreciate your vote at our Department Convention May 19-21 in Topeka.

I had the pleasure of attend-ing the American Legion Wash-ington Conference in Washing-ton DC the end of February. We met with our Congressmen and Senators from Kansas and let them know our concerns for our veterans, their families, their healthcare, and benefits. There were 14 resolutions we asked them to support and vote into law.

Membership is everyone’s responsibility. Our National Commander has challenged each one of us to recruit at least one new member. I have done my part as well as many other Legionnaires across the state. Each one of us has received a call from the National Vice Commander for the Midwest Region, Doug Boldt of Ne-braska. We are all proud of our organization and welcome new

members and ideas.The Department Oratorical

Contest at Manhattan Post 17 was awesome. All 8 Districts had a contestant and represen-tation. District 2 had the win-ner with District 5 as runner up. All contestants did a superb job and all are winners!

We did A Soldier’s Wish presentation to 3 Veterans from Wichita State University on Mar 14. These individu-als received laptop computers and accessories. Subway has partnered with The American Legion and Soldiers Wish to make these donations possible to worthy veterans.

I will attend all 8 District conventions and will have a great time meeting and talking to your members at each one. Our District Conventions are an avenue for our leadership to get to know our members and for them to get to know us. We are all approachable! Don’t hesi-tate to walk up to us, introduce yourself, ask questions, give your concerns, and tell your story!

I look forward to seeing ev-eryone at Department Conven-tion!

FOR GOD AND COUN-TRY

Greetings! First of all, it has been an honor and privilege to serve as your commander this year. Again, thank you all for your support! It has been a great year for me; however, a very busy one.

We had a great turnout for the Mid-Winter Forum held in Olathe. We were honored to have special guest Denise Rohan and her husband Mike. Denise is the leading canidate to be our National Command-er for 2017-2018. Thank you Post 153 for hosting this year. We really didn’t mind the out-houses too much!

The Kansas legislative meeting was held on February 8 at the Capitol Plaza. We had several attending to meet with our representatives to discuss issues with the VA and to pre-pare for our trip to Washington DC.

Then on to Springfield, IL to the Lincoln Pilgrimage where we meet with the National Commander Charles Schmidt. We toured the Lincoln Library with Charles on Saturday. Then on Sunday, Auxiliary President Claudia Satterlee and I had the Honor of laying a wreath on Lincoln’s Tomb.

The National Wahington DC Conference was held Febru-ary 26 through March 1 at the

Washington Hilton. We had Several from Kansas attending and on Tuesday we went to vis-it our Congressmen and Sena-tors to present our resolutions in person.I believe we had very positive results.

The Kansas Oratorical Fi-nals were held in Manhattan, What a great bunch of teenag-ers! They were all winners to me. Congrats to Louie Pires from 2nd District as our win-ner. Good luck at National.

The Olathe Post 153 hosted a 98th birthday party for The American Legion. The 100th birthday of The American Le-gion is in two more years and national would like for every Post to plan a centennial cel-ebration.

The next two months will be filled with upcoming District Conventions. I plan to visit each District. I am hoping that everyone attends their conven-tion to support your District.

I hope everyone is planning to attend the Department Con-vention in Topeka on May 19th to the 21st. I am looking for-ward to seeing everyone there.

Again, it has been a privi-lege to serve as your Depart-ment Commander this year. I say goodbye in the old Navy addage: Fair winds and follow-ing seas. God bless.

TERRY WARNER FOR DEPARTMENT VICE COMMANDER

My name is Terrence (Ter-ry) Marr and I am announcing my candidacy for the Ameri-can Legion Department of Kansas Commander for 2017-2018.

I am a life member of Post 408, Derby-Haysville, Sons of the American Legion member and Legion Rider. I earned my eligibility in the American Legion by serving in the US Air Force and retir-ing as a Master Sergeant (E-7) after 24 years of active duty service. I currently serve Post 408, Derby/Haysville on the Executive Committee and as Judge Advocate.

I served during 3 war peri-ods; the invasion of Panama and during the Lebanon/Gre-nada war. I am a Gulf War veteran and deployed during Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Desert Calm, and the liberation of Kuwait.

I currently serve as the De-partment Vice Commander and previously served as a Post Finance Officer, Adju-tant, Commander, District Ex-ecutive Committee, District Vice Commander, and District Commander. I have served the Department of Kansas on the Land Committee, and have served on the National Security Commission, Aero-space Committee for the past 6 years.

My goals as Department Commander are to increase public awareness and commu-nity knowledge of the Ameri-can Legion and its programs, increase membership, help Kansas reach 100% member-ship, and help achieve our Department Goal of 45,000 members by 2019. We need to reach out to our Guard, Re-serve, and Active Duty mili-tary bases and let these men and women know that they are eligible for membership.

I believe in and am commit-ted to the American Legion principles and am willing to take on the additional respon-sibilities as your Department Commander for 2017-2018.

I have the support of my family, my post, and my Dis-trict. I would greatly appre-ciate your support as well. Consider me for your Depart-ment Commander, and vote at our Department Convention in Topeka, May 19-21.

TERRY MARR FOR DEPARTMENT COMMANDER

I earned my eligibility by serving in the United States Army from 1965 to 1972.

I believe it is time for the American Legion, Department of Kansas, to embrace the 21st Century and start appealing to younger Veterans and start us-ing the American Legion Fam-ily to increase membership and service and respect to our Vet-erans.

For too long we have held onto antiquated procedures, although with good intentions, trying to build and maintain an organization using our old methods. The younger Veteran has felt left out and has not de-sired to be part of an outdated organization.

However, we can’t throw out programs and procedures that are working. We need to

update and refocus our time and effort on what does work. We need to draw upon the Sons of the American Legion and the American Legion Auxiliary as a plus and embrace and help them help us.

We need to work together as a team and stop our infighting and leave our inside politics at the door. We are all Veterans, and our main goal is to serve the Veterans and their families. When we start doing this as a team and eliminate the personal desires, we will start to work to-gether as a team and our mem-bership and outreach to our Vet-erans will greatly improve.

Remember, we all should be “Blue Hats” helping our Veter-ans.

I respectively request your vote and support.

DAN WILEY FOR DEPARTMENT VICE COMMANDER

Dan Wiley, Leavenworth Post #23, announces that he is a candidate for the office of De-partment Vice Commander for 2017-18.

Dan earned his eligibility by service in the United States Air Force. He is a Kansas Life Member and has been a mem-ber of Leavenworth Post #23 for 25 years. Dan has served at all levels of The American Le-gion from local to national.

Dan served in various offices in Leavenworth Post 23 includ-ing Commander and Executive Committee and has served the Leavenworth County Veter-ans Day Parade Committee for over 20 years, including 12 years on the committee and 2 separate terms as chairman, and has been the emcee of the parade for the last 10 years. He has served the Leavenworth National Cemetery Complex

Memorial Day Observance for the past 10 years and as em-cee for the Vietnam Memorial Travelling Wall.

Dan served as District Judge Advocate and Department Judge Advocate for 4 years un-til being appointed by the Gov-ernor in 2009 to a position with the State of Kansas where he could no longer give legal ad-vice and could not continue to serve as Judge Advocate.

Dan has served the last 7 years as the Department Chair-man of the Flag Education, School Awards, and County Government Day Commit-tee, and served as a judge for the District and Department Oratorical Contests in various years. He has attended numer-ous Department Conventions dating back to 1995 and Lead-ership Colleges dating back to

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The Sunflower Legionnaire April/May/June, 2017 - Page 3

DEPARTMENT SERVICE OFFICER******

Dan Bartlett2200 SW Gage

Topeka, KS 66622800-574-8387 ext. 54489

Dan.bartlett@med.va.gov

Hearing aid technology has improved tremendously over the past 10-15 years making hearing aids the best they’ve ever been. Within the Eastern Kansas Health Care System, the audiology department pro-vides hearing aids to Veterans, and this last year alone, over 5000 aids were issued. There is no cost for hearing aids through the VAMC to those Veterans who qualify.

Each campus in Eastern Kansas has Audiology services available. In addition to pro-viding hearing aids, complete diagnostic hearing testing to identify or rule out medical is-sues, is available as well as test-ing available to patients with Vestibular or balance concerns. Both campuses provide direct access, meaning Veterans do not need to be referred by their provider. On the Leavenworth campus, Veterans can call di-rectly to the Audiology clinic to be scheduled for a hearing test. On the Topeka campus, Veter-

ans can walk into the clinic and be seen that day for a hearing test.

Once hearing testing is com-pleted, the Audiologist will discuss the results with the Veteran. If hearing aids are recommended, the style and options available would be de-cided and hearing aids would be ordered. Once delivered, the maintenance and upkeep is discussed, with repairs and bat-teries covered for the life of the hearing aids.

To answer questions or schedule an appointment in Leavenworth call (913) 682-2000 ext 2211. To contact Topeka, (785)350-3111 ext 52269. Program manager, Dr. Sue Hogan would be happy to answer any questions you might have.

Whether or not a Veteran is interested in hearing aids, a regular hearing test completed every one to two years is rec-ommended for good hearing health.

Audiology Services in Eastern Kansas VA Medical Center (VAMC)

By Dr. Sue Hogan, Program ManagerAudiology/Speech Pathology

Hello Area West Districts 5 thru 8. I am once again run-ning for the position of Area West Vice Commander. I have held this office for the past two years. I would like to continue to be your spokesman in De-partment as the Area West Vice Commander. I have enjoyed the friendship made the past several and making new friends. I have appreciated the support and trust you have given me over the years as your Area West Vice Com-mander. For you NEW members in the Area West, below is my eligibility in the American Le-gion.

I Joined the United States Army Reserves in October of 1969 and served until October 1975 earning the rank of Sargent First Class (E7) in three and one-half years. I joined the Ameri-can Legion in 1998 at the Ameri-can Legion Olin Cole Post #392 in Bazine, Kansas. I became Post Commander in May 2007 and still Post #392 Commander. I served as 8th District Sargent of Arms (2010), 8th District Vice Commander (2011), 8th District Commander (2012-2015) and Area West Vice Commander for the past two years. I have the support of my post and my wife Linda of 48 years in April.

I will work on and help any post that needs help with its membership or any other prob-lems that arise. Membership is the life blood of the American Legion. I will continue to work keeping the control of the Kan-sas Department of the American Legion with the Department Ex-ecutive Committee as prescribed in the Constitution and By-Laws.

I hereby ask for your vote at The Kansas Department of the American Legion convention at Topeka in May. Thank you for your past support and

God Bless the American Le-gion and The United States of America.

GARY FOOS FOR AREA WEST VICE

COMMANDER

My name is Eszter Blair and I am announcing my candidacy for the American Legion, De-partment of Kansas, Area East Vice Commander for 2017-2018.

I am a member of Leonar-dville Memorial Post 40 and have been a Legion Member for 14 years. I earned my eligibility in the American Legion by serv-ing in the US Army from 1974 until 1980, first in the Women’s Army Corps (WACs) and then regular Army. From 1980 until 1985 I was with the Army Na-tional Guard. During my time I was stationed in California, Germany, Arizona and Georgia.

At the Post level I have worked as Post Finance Offi-cer and Post Adjutant, a posi-tion I still hold today. I am also a member of Memorial Unit 40 and the American Legion Riders Chapter 40, Leonard-ville. I currently serve as the 4th District Assistant Adjutant and have previously served as District Executive Committee-man, District Vice Commander for two years and as District Commander for two years. Ad-ditionally, I am a member of the Twenty and Four, Escelon 35, The Honor Society of Women Legionnaires.

For the past three years my husband David, also a Legion-naire, and I have worked close-ly with the Warrior Transition Battalion (WTB) at Fort Riley, helping out at the Soldier Fam-ily Assistance Center (SFAC), cooking for them during the Wednesday evening Pointman Dinners, having them spend weekends at our home being a “normal’ family and listen-ing. These are the soldiers and veterans that we have recruited into our own post as well as posts across this nation as they go home to return to civilian

ESZTER BLAIR FOR AREA EAST VICE COMMANDER

lives.I am employed by the De-

partment of Defense at Irwin Army Community Hospital, the Big Red One Support Hospital. For the past 14 years I have seen firsthand what our soldiers and their families are going through and I know that we, as a Legion Family, need to make sure that they get the respect and help they need.

Four years ago, as the 4th District Vice Commander, I worked hand in hand with Commander Gene Sayers and brought the 4th District to 100%. For the past 3 years, Me-morial Post 40, Leonardville, has grown from 13 members, and being close to being shut down, to over 100% every year. And we are still growing. We are currently at 114% with 49 members, and we are not done.

I would like, as Area East Vice Commander, to be able to help Area East’s Districts to work on membership, not just new recruitment but also reten-tion. The past couple of years, with the double dues increases and the controversy about life membership, has taken a toll on morale and esprit de corp. As your Area East Vice Com-mander I would work closely with my District Commanders and Membership Committees to think outside the box and find new ways to keep as well as draw in new membership.

I have the support of my hus-band David, my family both blood and extended, my Post, and my District Commander and his staff. I request and would appreciate your support and vote as well at our Depart-ment Convention in May.

In the words of the Big Red One: NO MISSION TOO DIF-FICULT, NO SACRIFICE TOO GREAT, DUTY FIRST!

My name is Clint Williard, I’m from the 3rd District my Post home is Post 10 in Winfield.

I’m announcing my candidacy for Department master-at-arms for the 2017-2018 year.

I served in the US Army from 1986-1997 therefore earning my eligibility in the American Le-gion and I’ve been a member for 13 years.

I started my service in 2003 at Post 104 in Harper KS, where I served as Post Vice Commander and Commander each for one year.

I transferred to Post 10 in Win-field in 2011 where I served as 2nd Vice Commander, and then Commander for 3 years. I’m a member of the funeral detail, col-or guard, and the Legion Riders where I served as Road Captain for one year. I’ve participated in parades, funerals, send-offs, and homecomings.

At the District level I’ve served as committeeman, Vice Commander and as District Commander. I’ve served as chairman on two committees,

CLINT WILLIARD FOR DEPARTMENT MASTER-AT-ARMS

civil preparedness and Eisen-hower Pilgrimage.

At the Department level, I’ve served as Department Master-at-Arms for the 2016-2017 year. I’m a member of the centennial membership committee.

Should I get the opportunity to become one of the depart-ment Master-at-Arms again for the great state of Kansas, my first priority will be to protect the American Flag and place her in a place of honor and respect at all times. Furthermore, all Depart-ment level meetings will be kept in order and I’ll be available to help the Commander and Vice Commander when called upon.

Membership will continue to be a priority as I serve the De-partment of Kansas. Just as it should be with every single Post and Legionnaire throughout the state of Kansas.

I do have the support of Post 10. I hope to see everyone at the up-coming Department con-vention in May at Topeka and I would appreciate your vote and support, thank you.

Hello and greetings to all De-partment of Kansas members. My name is Larry Hall. Most of you know me as Pete. I an-nounced at Mid-Winter Forum in Olathe that I would be a can-didate for Department of Kan-sas Master at Arms. I earned my Legion eligibility in the United States Army and Kansas Na-tional Guard from 1966 – 1972, obtaining the rank of Staff Ser-geant. I am currently Post Com-mander of Post 205 in Sublette and have been commander for four years. Before that I was Vice Commander for three years. I am presently Com-

mander of the Eighth District following a year as District Vice Commander. I have been very active in my Post and District. I am still employed full time but can and will take the time required to satisfy any and all requirements for this position. I have been to Leadership Col-lege in Concordia several times and have attended the Leader-ship School in Indianapolis, In-diana. I attend various Legion functions around the State and will attend National Conven-tion. I ask for your support for the office of Master at Arms and sincerely thank you very much.

LARRY HALL FOR DEPARTMENT MASTER-AT-ARMS

conclude on Sunday with a Me-morial Service followed by the election of Department Officers for the 2017-2018 membership year. All Legionnaires are en-couraged to attend the Conven-tion as a delegate, alternate, or guest. Post Adjutants will be mailed pre-registration materi-als on April 15 (pre-registration is preferred, however “walk-ins” are always welcomed). To attend as a delegate or alternate contact your Post Adjutant to inform them you wish to repre-sent your Post.

DEPARTMENTCONVENTION

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FIRST DISTRICTCOMMANDER

A. C. BYRD14187 Nottingham Dr.

Leavenworth 66048913-727-1472

VICE CMDR. JAMES SNYDER

10899 Blue Spruce Dr.Ozawkie 66070785-865-8393

SECOND DISTRICTCOMMANDER

SCOTT WILLIAMS6634 Noland

Shawnee 66216913-322-1968

VICE CMDR. RICK MILLER

1709 E. Sheridan Bridge LaneOlathe 66062913-393-1474

THIRD DISTRICTCOMMANDER

LARRY LANGHORST704 S. D St.

Arkansas City 67005620-442-0232

VICE CMDR. DENNIS KRAMER

PO Box 739Winfield 67156620-222-1425

FOURTH DISTRICTCOMMANDERRANDY FRANK

211 Floral Dr.Hillsboro 67063

563-419-1474VICE CMDR.

DAVID BLAIR403 Dixon Ave.Green 67447785-447-0220

FIFTH DISTRICTCOMMANDERRICK LOWERY

2201 S. Anna St., #10Wichita 67209316-347-6503

VICE CMDR. DEE DEE DANIN3032 N. TEE TIME

Wichita 67205316-644-1363

District IV Family,As we move forward in the

American Legion’s journey to the 100th Birthday let’s re-member who and why the Le-gion moves forward.

Veterans, service members and communities came to-gether in 1919, and the Legion evolved from a group of war-weary veterans of World War I into one of the most influential

Hello First District Family,This year is moving way too

fast and I am having trouble keeping up with events. I want to thank my officers for keep-ing everything moving along and keeping me out of trouble.

The First District Annual Convention is in Lansing on April 21-23, 2017. Your Post has received the “Call to Con-vention” and all the other in-formation you need by now. It is going to be a good conven-tion and you will enjoy being there. If your post can’t have a full delegation attending please make sure that at least one del-egate attends. You can be that delegate. Make your reserva-tions early. The deadline for getting a Saturday night dinner is April 17.

The First District Oratori-cal Contest was conducted on February 18 at Topeka Post 1. There were five students com-peted and First Place went to Graham Gibson, a home school student from Topeka. Second Place went to Olivia Miller of Leavenworth High School and Third Place to Patrick Bircher of Lansing High School. Many thanks to the Legion and Aux-iliary of Post 1 for hosting the contest and the dinner they pro-vided following the contest. A District Executive Committee meeting was held following the oratorical contest.

Membership is still lagging behind and anyone who hasn’t paid their dues for 2017 should get it paid IMMEDIATELY so your membership doesn’t ex-pire on June 30, 2017. Each member needs to get one new member and First District will be the top District in Kansas again.

Every member should think seriously about becoming ac-tive in your post. Step up and run for an officer position or head up a committee, there is enough work for everyone. It depends on you as to what your Legion Post becomes. Don’t leave everything for the other person to do, you can do it as well as him or she can. Our fu-ture is up to you.

Hello 5th District.2017 is upon us and I hope

that everyone had a very Mer-ry Christmas and a safe New Year’s Eve. Membership has al-ways been the big push for the whole state of Kansas and this year 5th District finished out 2016 in 4th place. Not quite as good as last year but I am still proud of the work that all of 5th District has done to achieve 4th place in the standings. I am sure that with 2017 there will come many new challenges for all of us to face but together we will meet each and every one as an American Legion Family. All post commanders remember that if your members have not renewed their membership for 2017 then they will not be al-lowed in the post until they have a current 2017 card.

February will be here soon and with it comes Sweetheart day A.K.A. Valentines Days and just want to wish all a very Happy Valentine’s Day. Re-member that if a member has not renewed his or her member-ships by January 1st then they are delinquent and if after Feb-ruary 1st

membership dues are not paid then the member is sus-pended and can only be rein-stated after paying their dues and by a Post vote. Everyone’s membership in the American Legion is so very important when it comes time for our Na-tional Commander to go up to Congress and fight for our Vet-erans rights.

April 1st will be upon us be-

Thank you 3rd District posts for your support this year! Membership between Districts is still close. We still need to reach out a little harder on get-ting those final renewals. Let’s give the state commander a 100% effort on membership.

I hope to see everyone in Topeka at the state convention. I would like to thank Chanute Post 170 for their work in host-ing the 3rd District Convention. I wish the best to the new of-ficers in continuing the success of the 3rd District.

I would encourage all 3rd District posts in supporting our local youth in the many Legion activities available. Let’s sup-port Legion Boys State, Girls State, Cadet Law, Legion Base-ball and the numerous other activities the American Legion provides. Finally, let’s continue working membership. These last members are important to the American Legion. Our na-tional officers fight hard for the American Legion membership goals, as well as benefits that we all deserve. If you have not renewed your dues, please do so. Together we can help The American Legion continue to grow, but only by your support.

The Second District Con-vention is over and new of-ficers for 2017-2018 have been sworn in, also delegates for the National Convention in August 2017 have been elected.

There’s a flag retirement ceremony scheduled for April at Post 48 in Garnett. There will be a biscuits and gravy breakfast from 7:30 AM until 10:00 AM with the retirement ceremony starting 10:00. All posts are encouraged to bring worn flags that need to be re-tired to Post 48, volunteers are needed for the disposal.

The Department Conven-tion will be held on 19-21 May in Topeka at the Ramada Inn. Make room reservations now to ensure your room. There will be a Department Executive meeting on Fri-day, 19 May. Posts Adjutants remember the Children & Youth and Post Officers Re-port is due before convention.

Leadership College will be held in Concordia on June 2, 3, 4. District, Post Com-manders, Vice Commanders, Adjutants, and service offi-cers are encouraged to attend this valuable training.

Boys State will be held starting June 4 in Manhattan at K-State University. Ap-plications should be in by 1 April. Tuition remains at $325.

Cadet Law will start 4 June in Salina, KS and will be con-ducted by the Kansas High-way Patrol.

The District picnic former-ly know as Camporama will be June 10 at Garnett City Park. This is a family friend-ly event and is a lot of fun.

This will be my last sun-flower article as District Commander. I want to thank the District for allowing me to serve as Commander and the best to the incoming of-ficers.

fore we know it and that is the date for 5th District Conven-tion, which will be held at Post 24 in McPherson and I hope to see Delegates from all the posts in 5th District there. This is the time for you to vote for the 2017-2018 District officers and your vote is important.

I want to say Thank You to all of 5th District for your sup-port this last year and if there is anything that I can do to help you or your post please do not hesitate to call or email me and I will be there to help. I also have other post officers that are willing to come to your post if you need help I.E. Service Of-ficer or Adjutant to help with membership.

nonprofit groups in the Unit-ed States. Membership swiftly grew to over 1 million, and lo-cal posts sprang up across the country. Today, membership stands at over 2.4 million in 14,000 posts worldwide

Over the years, the Legion has influenced considerable social change in America, won hundreds of benefits for veter-ans and produced many im-portant programs for children and youth.

“Be the Voice and not the echo…Echo’s lose their strength”.

SIXTH DISTRICTCOMMANDERCHAD LOWELL

1811 N. 132nd RoadConcordia 66901

785-262-7141VICE CMDR. PAT HEWITT

595 D St. Phillipsburg 67661

785-543-7668

It’s that time of year which conventions are starting. 6th district convention will be Sat-urday April 8th in Concordia. We will be starting at 8am with the memorial service and than joint session. The last 5 years convention attendance has been low. We need to people to step up and start getting involved. Our membership in district has been dropping. We need to get out and try to recruit the young-er veterans. Show them what the legion is about. Also if you have members that haven’t re-newed yet you need to go see them and ask them why. I hope to see you all at convention April 8th.

SEVENTH DISTRICTCOMMANDER

TERRY WARNER505 Washington St.

LaCrosse 67548785-259-9193

VICE CMDR. MARK RADKE

1785 Avenue VSterling 67579620-204-8508

Greetings 7th District Amer-ican Legion Family. I was priv-ileged to travel with Tom Wall-smith, Doug Evans, and Terry Harris, all members of the Sons

The Sunflower Legionnaire April/May/June, 2017 - Page 5

(Continued on Page 6)

EIGHTH DISTRICTCOMMANDER

LARRY ‘PETE’ HALLPO Box 216

Sublette 67877620-271-8483

VICE CMDR. LARRY OCHS

PO Box 1460Syracuse 67878620-384-6142

DETACHMENTCOMMANDER

******Tom Wallsmith1245 Co Road V

Levant, KS 67743785-443-6095

AUXILIARYPRESIDENT

******Claudia SatterleeP.O. Box 329

Winfield, KS 67156620-221-9491

Since my last communica-tion things have slowed a bit. I’ve attended the Mid-winter forum in Olathe at Post 153. There were some challenges that weekend but the Fam-ily once again rallied and proceeded with a productive event and still had fun. I was pleased to see a good turnout for the S.A.L. meetings and feel that they were productive and educational. That was fol-lowed by the Legislative Con-ference in Topeka which I felt was well attended. As a first timer I was impressed with the entire proceedings and hope to attend more in the future. That was also my first trip to our Headquarters and re-ally enjoyed meeting the staff whom I normally only talk to through phone calls or e-mail. It’s nice to put a face with a voice. Recently I was invited to attend the presentation of Josh Dogs to school children of deployed soldiers in Ogden, Kansas. What a moving expe-

rience that was. There were 21 young boys and girls who re-ceived their own Josh Dog and were thrilled. We had one out of its box so they could see and touch it and the reactions were awesome. One young girl com-mented that our Josh Dog had a flat head whereupon Alternate NEC Doug Evans explained that he had been in his box for a long time but would recover with lots of hugging and cud-dling. In the upcoming Salute will be an article from Detach-ment Master at Arms Terry Harris covering the Josh Dog experience. I encourage all of you to read that as it’s well writ-ten and gives more information about the Josh Dog program. Conventions start in March so my schedule of travels once again escalates. I look forward to seeing a lot of the Family as I visit District Conventions. Un-til next time be safe, remember our commitment to Veterans and keep working on Member-ship.

This year has flown by and May and Department Conven-tion is just around the corner. I can not wait for the District Conventions to start as I look forward to visiting Districts 3, 7, 8 and 4 this year. Keep working on those member-ships please, we are about 1,112 members behind where the Department of Kansas was with membership at this time last year. It saddens me to say that the Department will be taking in several unit charters this May due to those units who have not maintained 10 members. Those Units have been given the opportunities over the last two to three years to bring their membership up to 10 as required by the Na-tional Organization. This De-partment DOES NOT want to loose any members, we want

to retain all of you and recruit more. You can never have to many American Legion Auxil-iary Members to help run all of the important programs we have in taking care of our vet-erans and their families.

Just attended the Junior Con-ference in McPherson March 11 and those young ladies did a wonderful job. Thank you to all the auxiliary members who stepped up to help make the weekend a memorable ex-perience for all those Junior members who attended. We are all praying for the quick and speedy recovery of Junior Chairman Ferne Anderson’s husband who fell off the roof of their home on Thursday before the Conference and has several fractures.

Congratulations to those

I send greetings to all Eighth District Legion mem-bers. I hope this finds you all well. We are now at the end of March and have now entered spring so that means it is time for annual post elections and time to new guys for leader-ship in our posts as well as old leadership to keep the Ameri-can Legion going strong. I strongly encourage people to run for office because the Legion needs strong partici-pation from all who can and will help. It is also time for

of the American Legion, to Og-den Elementary School where we got to pass out Josh Dogs to school children who has a par-ent that is deployed overseas.

This was a Sons of the Amer-ican Legion event this time and myself being a dual member I got to participate and work with part of the American Le-gion Family. For the first time in a long time I was able to ex-perience and see how much can be accomplished by working together as a Legion Family.

I will remember the chil-dren’s smiles.

By the time you are reading this we should have started a Sons of the American Legion at La Crosse Post #33. We had our first organizational meeting on March 20. I was surprised and pleased by the amount of inter-est in our community for a Sons Squadron.

Our Vietnam Veterans are now becoming our senior citi-zens and the smaller posts are finding it difficult to help Veter-ans and be an asset to our com-munity. This is why we need the American Legion Family.

We must, as an organization, offer our younger Veterans something to get excited about and look for new ways to serve our Veterans and their families. When we start doing this, our organization will start growing again.

Thank you for letting me serve you as your District Com-mander these last two years.

(Continued on Page 8)

(Continued from Page 4) LEADERSHIP COLLEGEJUNE 2-4

This year’s American Legion Leadership College will take place at Cloud County Community Col-lege in Concordia June 2-4. There is another event go-ing on during the time of the ALLC, so please con-tact Department NOW if you need housing other than what is available at the college.

This year National is offering Leadership Edu-cation And Development, (LEAD) which is a one day training session designed to provide professional devel-opment training for mem-bers at any and all levels. Every member who attends the LEAD sessions will receive a special pin from National Headquarters.

A representative from National will present an overview regarding Veter-ans Affairs & Rehabilita-tion. A special presentation on Public Relations will also be included.

Internal Affairs & Mem-bership will delve into the finer points of Post Op-erations. The process for developing effective Post membership teams will also be addressed.

The American Legion, Auxiliary, and SAL mem-bers over the age of 21 are invited to attend the Col-lege. An enrollment cou-pon is provided below for your convenience. Cost

of the College increased this year, $45.00 per person which includes Friday dinner, Satur-day breakfast, lunch, and Bar-b-que dinner at Concordia Post 76, and Sunday breakfast. In addition the enrollment fee includes air conditioned dorm housing at the College——at-tendees must bring their own sheets, pillow, pillow case, blanket, bath soap, towels and personal items.

Check in for the College begins at 3pm on Friday, June 3. Dinner will be available from 5 until 6pm followed by a meeting of the Department Executive Committee. Ses-sions for all attendees will commence at 8:15am Satur-day and 9:00am Sunday, June 3 and 4 with a break for lunch on Saturday and conclusion of the College on Sunday no later than noon.

Dan Bartlett, Department Service Officer, will hold a refresher course Saturday on the eight most frequently used VA forms.

Of course the annual migra-tion of the O-Poop-Pah-Doo will gather at the local Pizza Hut for its evening of fun im-mediately following the DEC meeting Friday.

Please check the appro-priate box in the registra-tion below regarding hous-ing. We cannot guarantee housing will be provided if you do not check the box in-dicating your need for hous-ing at the College.

ENCLOSED IS MY $45 REGISTRATION FOR THE AMERICAN LEGION LEADERSHIP COLLEGE

JUNE 2-4____________________________________________Name____________________________________________Address____________________________________________City, State, Zip

Member of___________________________________ Post, Squadron, Unit (circle one)Post Service Officer Training ________ Yes or No

LEADERSHIP COLLEGE REGISTRATION

Mail to: Department Headquarters 1314 SW Topeka, Topeka, KS 66612

YES, I will need housing at the College

NO, I will not need housing at the College

Page 6 - The Sunflower Legionnaire April/May/June, 2017

(Continued from Page 2) ADJUTANT’S BRIEFSBy Department Adjutant Jimmie L. Foster

The Membership year of 2016-2017 is coming to an end very rapidly!

WE, as a Department, are well behind last year’s num-bers. A concerted effort to ei-ther make personal telephone calls to those Members that has not renewed or at a last resort actually going out and knocking on their door to find out if they are sick, down and out, or have actually forgotten to renew their Membership needs to happen.

Department First Vice Com-mander Terry Marr and ALL Eight District Commanders and District Vice Command-ers are available to assist, all you have to do is ASK!

The 2017 Mid-Winter Fo-rum was well attended. Olathe Post 153 did a fine job in host-ing the venue. They had one little problem, but everyone worked around that.

Leading Candidate for Na-tional Commander Denise Rohan and her husband, Mike from Wisconsin was on hand; as well as Jeff Stoffer and Holly Soria from the Commu-nications and Media Division at Our National Headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana. They gave excellent updates to the 100th Centennial Year coming up in a couple of years.

The Legislative Reception was held in Topeka on Feb-ruary 8 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel. A bunch of Legislators had RSVP’d, but a lot of them did not attend. Those that did attend stated that there were three functions going on at the same time, and the Speaker of the House held a vote and many were there for that. We may need to look at either scaling back or trying to reach our Legislators in other meth-ods in the future.

A group of American Le-gion Family Members at-tended the Washington, D.C. Conference in late February, and visited with the State of Kansas’ United States Sena-tors and Congressman dis-cussing Veterans Issues with them or their Staff. All of the Legislators was very attentive and assured us that they held Veterans and their Families near and dear to their heart. I believe, you can be proud of your elected Senators and Congressmen from Kansas.

The 2017 Department Ora-torical Contest was held at Manhattan Post 17 and the eight orators were ALL Win-

ners!Louie Pires from the Sec-

ond District was selected as the ultimate winner, and will represent the Department of Kansas at the National Con-test in Indianapolis, Indiana from 21 to 24 April 2017. I believe, he will do us proud.

The Cadet Law Enforce-ment Academy in Salina and Kansas Boys State held at Kansas State University in Manhattan are just around the corner from 4 to 9 June 2017. Make sure you have submit-ted your applications, either paper or on-line, to get signed up for these great American Legion Programs.

The Department Conven-tion of Kansas American Legion will be held from 19 to 21 May 2017 in Topeka, Kansas. National Vice Com-mander Douglas Boldt from the Department of Nebraska will be Our National Guest. Also attending will be Rolan-da Herron, Assistant Member-ship Director from Indianapo-lis, Indiana; and Louis Celli, the National Veterans and Rehabilitation Director from Washington, D.C., will up-date everyone in attendance on the ins and outs related to Veterans and their Families.

Right after that, the 2017 American Legion Leadership College will take place in Concordia from 2 to 4 June. The Registration fee will be $45.00 for your Room and Food. A General Session will give us updates from the Kansas Gaming and Li-quor Licensing Agencies, a Post Service Officer Class, a Post Commander and Post Adjutant’s Workshop will be presented to those interested. Mike Rohan from the Depart-ment of Wisconsin will be the Moderator for the Workshop, so PLEASE plan to attend.

Don’t forget that the Kan-sas Sunflower Legionnaire is now published quarterly. If you are required to submit articles, PLEASE adjust your thought process to the quar-terly mode. This help expe-dite the layout and getting the newspaper to the printer in a timely manner.

If anyone has any questions pertaining to Membership or any of the fine programs within The American Legion PLEASE do NOT hesitate to call the Department Head-quarters for guidance or clari-fication.

BUCKLE UP, LIGHTS ON & LIVEThe Kansas Amer ican

Legion, in cooperation with the Kansas Department of Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n a n d t h e Governor’s Office will make an effort to reduce traffic accidents and fatalities over the Memorial Day weekend. This year’s program is scheduled for Friday, May 26.

T h i s e n d e a v o r i s i n conjunction with the beginning of Memorial Day Weekend, and the theme is “Ditch the distractions, not the car! Just Drive.” The goal is to remind motorists to use their seat belts and headlights throughout the weekend. Observation of all traffic laws, take plenty of rest stops on long trips, watch out for other motorists and motorcyclists, and to drive safely are also stressed.

Complete information for

this NO COST program has been mailed to every Post and is available from Department Headquarters. Legion Family members are asked to spend an hour or two at major intersections on May 26 to hand a brochure describing the reasons to drive safely to each motorist as they stop for a signal light or stop sign. Some Posts choose to place the brochures in service stations, rest areas, convenience stores, and super markets, etc. All efforts are to be coordinated with local and area law enforcement officials.

A coupon for ordering a supply of brochures is located below for your convenience. All requests must be ordered by the Post Commander or Adjutant, Unit President or Secretary, or Squadron Commander or Adjutant.

“BUCKLE UP, LIGHTS ON & LIVE” Please send _______fact sheets to:

Post/Unit/Squadron:______________________________________ Please indicate Post/Unit/Squadron No. Address________________________________________________

City__________________________________Zip______________Mail to:

Dept. Headquarters 1314 SW Topeka Blvd. Topeka, KS 66612

CHILDREN &

YOUTHDeeDee Danin

dddanin@hotmail.com

As was mentioned in my Mid Winter Report, a group of Boys State alumni are working together with a select group of Fifth District members, myself included, which are conducting a massive mailing, email/direct contact effort to recruit increas-ing numbers of Boy State can-didates.

Currently this program is simply a trial effort to increase attendees for a single district. The plan is to move on towards other districts in the future. Boys State is one of the most important programs in The American Legion, Children and Youth pillar. I have seen mas-sive increases which require all of us to dig down deep in our pockets, both Post and Indi-vidually to insure these special young men and women get a chance at success! We have un-til Mid May to have their funds submitted, so there’s plenty of time. They really need help!

As of the 11 Weeks to Room Assignment, District 1 has 17, District 2, 45; District 3, 15; District 4, 16; District 5, 29; District 6, 9; District 7, 10, and District 8, only 1.

There is also another listing of prospective attendees which applications may/not be sub-mitted. This listing came from PSAT and SAT mailing lists. These individuals will be given posts within their neighbor-hoods to contact. This listing is up in the air and may not prove useful, but be prepared.

Please consider financial sharing with other posts to get these kids their tuition. When contacted directly by a prospec-tive, NEVER turn them away because of meeting schedules or lack of funds. Doing this is does not reflect well on your posts. Have a Heart!

1996 when Leadership College was at Fort Riley and Legion-naires stayed in the barracks.

In October of 2010, Dan was appointed by the National Commander to serve on the National Magazine Commis-sion, now the Media and Com-munications Commission, and has served those commissions the past 7 years. The Media and Communications Commis-sion is responsible for all of the Legion’s printed materials, in-cluding The American Legion Magazine, and the Legion’s in-ternet presence. Dan has served on numerous Convention Com-mittees at 11 National Conven-tions.

Dan has the support of his wife, the endorsement of his Post, and the endorsement of the 1st District Executive Com-mittee and he asks for your sup-port and your vote at the De-partment Convention in Topeka May 21, 2017.

(Continued from Page 5)District Conventions around the State and we are less than two months from Depart-ment Convention which will be held this year at Topeka. I would very much like to see a strong turnout from this District. I would like to give a huge thank you to all Dis-trict Officers, District Execu-tive Committeemen, various Committee Chairmen, State Officers, and members of the Membership Committee as well as all Eighth District members who helped to make my year as District Com-mander a success. I would like to see every post work very hard on membership in the upcoming month (or two). Eighth District has been in first place since before the first of the year and it would be great to close strong and finish there. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart and God Bless.

DAN WILEYEIGHTH DISTRICT

The Sunflower Legionnaire April/May/June, 2017 - Page 7

+ TAPS +Luft, Vernon (Korea) ....................... WaverlyShaw, Larry (Panama) ..............Topeka #400 Orton, Allen (Korea) ................. Belle PlaineThouvenelle, Gerald (WWII) ............RussellHill, Glen (Korea) ........................ ConcordiaBreen, John (Korea) ..................... ConcordiaCook, Richard (WWII) ................ ConcordiaNicholson, Harvey (Vietnam) ........... OttawaBond, Forrest (WWII) ....................... OttawaMcClellan, Gary (Vietnam) .............. OttawaJohnson, Robert (Korea) ......................PaolaSaylor, Ted (WWII).......................... NewtonNaccarato, Sibio ........................... ColumbusCasper, James (Vietnam) ................ PittsburgBriney, Buell (WWII) ......................AtwoodStudyvin, Clarence (WWII) ................DerbyShaw, Richard (Vietnam) ................WinfieldOnken, Jim (Korea) .....................McPhersonSteiner, Anthony (Korea) ................. NewtonWolfe, Eugene (WWII) .......................MoranJones, Armun (WWII) .........................ColbyWhittaker, Norman (Vietnam) ............ColbyWinterscheidt, Gerald (Korea) .............PaolaMoore, Phil (WWII) .................... WellingtonWilliams, Jim (Lebanon/Grenada) ManhattanWarner, Alvin (WWII) ............... HutchinsonFowler, Morris (WWII) .............. HutchinsonLeiker, Edward (Vietnam) .......... HutchinsonLeiker, Clarence (WWII) ........... HutchinsonWelch, Joseph (Vietnam) .......Overland ParkSalyer, James (Vietnam).........Overland ParkJones, James (Korea) .............Overland ParkMcCawley, Lucelia (WWII) ......... ChapmanStottlemire, Charles (Korea) .............. OlatheMiller, Alvin (Vietnam) ................St. GeorgeHaas, John (WWII) ...........................GridleyBertram, Gary (Vietnam) ........... GreensburgBanta, Kenneth (Korea) ............. GreensburgWhittenborn, Roy (WWII) .....Arkansas CityBabcock, Phillip (Vietnam) ....... Garden CityKnudsen, Ronald (Vietnam) .............GardnerMcKee, Robert (WWII) ..................... OlatheRobinson, Larry (Vietnam) ..........ManhattanBarnhart, Kenneth (WWII) ........ HutchinsonMangels, Darrel (Korea) .............. HutchisonUlmer, Harvey Jr. (WWII) ......... HutchinsonHarders, Richard Sr. (Vietnam) .. HutchinsonFraley, Fred (Vietnam) ...........Arkansas CityBurgman, Harold (WWII) ........ LeonardvilleHudson, Gerald ............................. CherokeeGage, John (Korea) ................Arkansas CityPalmer, Patricia (Persian Gulf) Topeka #400Barnes, Robert (Vietnam) ...................SalinaEcclefield, Wayne (WWII) ................GarnettFicklin, Edward (WWII) ................ RichlandShirley, Dennis (Korea) ....................OberlinNeal, Varlan (WWII) .........................OberlinLeitner, Jerald (WWII) ......................OberlinCanto, Camillo (Vietnam) .................OberlinBaughman, Glen (Korea) ..................OberlinLuckeroth, Norman (Korea) .............. SenecaBrozovich, Robert (Korea) .......Topeka #400Mulligan, Thomas (Korea) .......Topeka #400Moffet, Wilmer (WWII) ...........Topeka #400Larue, Wilbur (WWII) .............Topeka #400Clawson, William (Korea) .......Topeka #400Haddock, Dean (WWII) ......................BeloitAshford, Kendall (WWII) .......................IolaAdams, Gerald (Korea) ..................FrankfortThorburn, Clifford (Korea) ..........ManahttanPegram, Calvin (Vietnam) .............. WaverlyWalton, William (Vietnam) ....... Kansas CityMcCune, Orville (Korea) ............. El Dorado

Rice, Walter (Korea) ................. Kansas CityVaughn, Jerry (Vietnam) ............ HutchinsonSchafer, Ted (Vietnam) .............. HutchinsonAnnuschat, Damien (Persian Gulf) .WinfieldCasoer L. C. (WWII) ......................WinfieldNewland, Harley (WWII) .............SedgwickKleppe, Marvin (Korea) ................. AtchisonLewellyn, Donald (Korea) ........... ConcordiaMaddox, Claire (WWII) ................... WichitaCase, Thomas (Korea)............. Junction CityLyne, Virgil (WWII) ...........................SalinaBeems, Harold (WWII) ............Topeka #400Swanson, Ernest Jr. (WWII) ...............JewellMarshall, Joe (Korea) ............................. ErieFisher, Raymond .............................. BucklinShields, Emerson (WWII) ................St. JohnMarsh, George ..........................Topeka #400Narvaez, Frank III (Vietnam) ...Topeka #400Haid, Delbert ............................Topeka #400Brower, Bennett (Korea) ..........Topeka #400Kennedy, Joe (Lebanon/Grenada) .SedgwickHiggins, John (Lebanon/Gr...) . Junction CitySajulga, Leon (Korea) ............. Junction CityShields, Dennis (Vietnam) ............WellsvilleCallahan, Marion (Korea) .............WellsvilleGreene, Kenneth (WWII) ............ OverbrookCross, Paul Sr. (WWII) ................St. GeorgeHaley, James (WWII) ...........................PaolaAchey, Harold (Korea) .........................PaolaPlatner, Marvin (Vietnam) ..........McPhersonMurphy, Patrick (Vietnam) ..............HowardIndermill, Roger (Vietnam) ..............HowardBartcher, Gary (Vietnam) .................HowardPhillips, Steve (Vietnam) ........................IolaCorke, Kenneth (WWII)) ..............GoodlandThompson, William (WWII) ............. OttawaWolken, Raymond (Korea) ............... OttawaNordeen, Henry (WWII) ................... OttawaHay, Donald (Korea) ......................... OttawaEhmann, John (Korea) ...............Topeka #58Corbett, Gerald (Korea) .............Topeka #58Stinchcomb, Charles (Vietnam) .......AtwoodBraun, Allen (WWII) ........................ NortonSchlegel, James (Korea) .....................HarperAdams, Cornelius (Korea) ..................SalinaVidricksen, Robert (WWII) ................SalinaFox, James (Korea) .............................SalinaHerman, Al (Vietnam) .............................IolaMartin, Lawternce .......................... PittsburgHugunin, Vince Jr. (Vietnam) ........ ShawneeWalker, John ....................................HanoverPelletier, Joe (Vietnam) .................Alta VistaKavanagh, Merle ............................... WalnutGreenwell, Ernest (WWII) ..............WinfieldReynolds, Martin (Vietnam) ...........WinfieldStroh, Orville (Korea) ................... EllsworthLarsen, James (Vietnam) ............... EllsworthPeterson, Winston (WWII) ...........ManhattanBarta, Alvin (WWII) ........................... LucasMettlen, Arvin (Korea) ........................ LucasPeterka, Eugene (Vietnam) ............... WilsonStump, Samuel (WWII) ............Blue MoundBockover, Cary Jr. (Vietnam)................. ErieDuncan, Denzel (WWII) .................EmporiaRussell, Floyd (WWII) ...............Long IslandMulroy, Eldon ....................................... GoffHunsberger, R. (WWII) ............. Garden CityEgbert, Donald (Korea) ................. CopelandMcBride, Ray Jr. .......................... ColumbusBlack, Robert ............................... ColumbusHopkins, Harris ............................ ColumbusVoorhees, Warren (Vietnam) ................AllenMueller, Paul (Vietnam) .....................Tampa

(Continued from Page 1)

Burke, Martin (Korea) ........................ColbyJohnson, Ron (Vietnam) ..................MulvaneBritting, John Jr. (Vietnam) .........McPhersonLingafelter, W. (Vietnam) ...........McPhersonMartin, William (Vietnam) ..........McPhersonFund, Larry (Vietnam) ................... WetmoreHundertmark, Harry (Vietnam) . Garden CityNorman, W. (Korea) ........................OzawkieTurnbough, Bill (Korea) .................OzawkieBarron, Mary (Korea) ..............Topeka #400Dial, Frank (Korea) ..................Topeka #400Kibbee, Bill (Korea) .................Topeka #400Fund, Larry (Vietnam) ................... WetmoreDaugherty, Donald (Vietnam) ..Topeka #421Sprinkle, Claud (WWII) ..................Hill CityKnopp, Charles ....................... Junction CityRies, Ronald (Vietnam) ........... Junction CityRoseberry, Douglas (Vietnam) ........ ChanuteBarnby, G. (Korea) .......................... ChanuteDarlington, Chester (WWII) .......... PittsburgHoward, Marvin (Korea) ............... PittsburgFitch, F. (WWII)............................. PittsburgKrehbiel, Carl (Vietnam) ..........MoundridgeFowler, Morris (WWII) .............. HutchinsonErhardt, M. (WWII) .......................... NortonBell, Floyd (WWII) .......................... SterlingRichter, Ira (WWII) ......................ManhattanWhite, Willis III (Korea) ..............ManhattanGleason, James (Vietnam) ...........ManhattanMathe, Donald (Korea) ..............Topeka #58White, Mary (Korea) ............................AlmaFitch, Warren (WWII) .................... PittsburgManis, Jack Jr. (Vietnam) ................StocktonSiskey, Albert (Korea) .................... AtchisonWilson, Lloyd (Korea) ................... AtchisonHurst, Van (WWII) ......................... AtchisonLloyd, John (Vietnam) ..........Baxter SpringsPahls, Edwin (WWII) ............... Cawker CityWatkins, Ralph (Korea).......................... ErieDotson, Lewis (Korea) .................Topeak #1Steele, Floyd (WWII) ............Baxter SpringsMyers, Gene (Vietnam) ........................PaolaTharp, Vincent (WWII) .................. AtchisonBlanck, Lee (Korea) .................Topeka #400Podlena, William (WWII) ................. WilsonHoldaway, Bob (WWII) .............. WellingtonGreer, Ronald (Vietnam) ................ ShawneeWiebe, Harold (WWII) ..................HillsboroStout, Charles Jr. (Korea) .............. CherokeeBishop, George (Korea) ...............ManhattanVanlerberg, Maurice (WWII) ......... ShawneeMartin, John (Vietnam) ................ LindsborgGillaspie, Leroy (WWII) ................ AtchisonMilbourn, Rex (WWII) ................ El DoradoRussell, Carrol (Vietnam) ...................CaneyDinsmore, Robert (Korea) ...... Wichita #256McGeary, Daniel (Vietnam) ........CoffeyvilleRush, Ralph (Vietnam) ...........Arkansas CityWarner, David (Vietnam) .................LansingGleason, Charles (Vietnam) ..........Alta VistaKarsting, Eugene (Korea) .......... KensingtonRumbaugh, Dennis (Vietnam) .. PhillipsburgFleury, Eldon (Vietnam) .................... SenecaTemple, Phillip (Vietnam) ........... BurlingtonLawrence, William (WWII) ............WinfieldStaton, Jim Jr. (Vietnam) .................WinfieldRollings, Walter (Vietnam) .............AndoverWalker, Eugene ...............................EmporiaFerguson, Arnold (Vietnam) ....Topeka #400Bryan, Ted (WWII) ..................Topeka #400Clawson, William (Korea) .......Topeka #400Olson, Earl (Korea) ..................Topeka #400Kronewitter, James (Vietnam) ..............Hays

E. BlaineSchoolcraftGrand Chef

de Gare du Kansas

HISTORIAN

JOE JOHNSTON

THIRD DISTRICTCMDR. DALE ALLEN19120 Kingman Rd., Chanute66720, 620-431-0268V-CMDR. Bert Kelley115 W. Willow, Girard, 66743620-724-4483

FOURTH DISTRICTCMDR. RALPH SNYDER332 SE 46th St., Topeka 66609785-862-6329V-CMDR. Geraldine Wang509 Wheatland Dr., JunctionCity 66441, 785-762-3732

FIFTH DISTRICTCMDR. DEBRA LYNCHPO Box 407, El Dorado 67042

316-978-3367

V-CMDR. Joe Hicks

636 S. Highland Dr., Andover

67002, 316-733-1558

SIXTH DISTRICTCMDR. TERRY WATKINSPO Box 211, Salina 67402785-825-9785V-CMDR. Mary Beth Valcoure409 E. 6th St., Concordia 66901785-243-4498

SEVENTH DISTRICTCMDR. JERRY JONES403 W. Ethel, Isabel 67065620-739-4728V-CMDR. Max AlberPO Box 261, Little River 67457620-897-6225

EIGHTH DISTRICTCMDR. PAUL SANFORDPO Box 117, Copeland 67837620-668-5521V-CMDR. Chris Stuckey103 S. Grand, Ness City 67560785-798-3782

FIRST DISTRICTCMDR. JIM TIMMONS98 Woodmoor Ct., Leavenworth66048, 913-651-5857V-CMDR. Rick Edwards607 N. 13th, Marysville 66508785-562-6886

PRESIDENT******

Myrna Rogers1135 Euclid St.Augusta 67010316-775-5552

COMMANDER******

Tom GreggPO Box 467

Ulysses 67880620-356-3297

VICECOMMANDER

******David Thomas

18676 Logan RoadLeavenworth 66048

913-682-4259

DEPARTMENTSERVICE OFFICER

******Damon Christensen

PO Box 192Concordia 66901

785-243-4330

SECOND DISTRICTCMDR. TOM EMERSON615 W. 3rd, Garnett 66032785-448-3718V-CMDR. Emery McKimmy9012 Elmhurst Dr., OverlandPark 66212, 913-649-5881

DEPARTMENTCHAPLAIN

Jim Akers����������(

Lyle LarsonPO Box 361

Inman 67546620-585-2480

DETACHMENTCOMMANDER

E. Blaine

Schoolcraft

Grand Chef

de Gare du Kansas

The nineteen twenties were called the “Roaring Twenties” and a few of the American Legion members kept them roaring. The Legion has never been invited back to Kansas City since the National Convention in 1921 and there have been some wild times in a few towns in Kansas at Department Conventions in the twenties.

To entice the Department to have the 1925 convention in Emporia, the Chief of Police promised to throw the keys to the jail in the river. National prohibition went into effect in Janu-ary of 1920, but the conventions were usually very wet. Thankfully things have slowed a bit since the twenties.

Speaking of conventions, I hope to see you at the Department Convention 19, 20, & 21st of May. I don’t sup-pose it will be as wild as those in the twenties but I believe you will have a good time anway. And bring your history books.

for a wreath laying, then on to Post #47 where the riders will be released for the end of the day.

Day 4 will start with a ride through at the Fort Dodge Soldiers Home to show the Veterans our appreciation for their service to our great land. Leaving Fort Dodge, we will take Highway 400 to Mullinville where we will stop at the Veterans Memorial in the middle of town. Onto Pratt with a stop for fuel then up highway 61 to South Hutchinson. We will stop at the uncompleted Veterans Memorial in South Hutch and place a Memorial Wreath and see if we can get members of the community out to help support that new memorial. Leaving South Hutchinson riding east to Newton and Post #2 to end the 2017 Kansas Legacy Run.

If you are anywhere along this route, please, don’t hesitate to come out. We are always ready to see old friends and meet new ones. The ulti-mate goal of the KLR is to raise mon-ey for the American Legion Legacy Scholarship Fund. If you would like to turn in your Post, Unit, Squadron, or Chapter’s donation during the run, please meet us at one of the stops. We will also have a travelling trophy this year. The Post, Unit, Squadron, or Chapter that has the largest donation will be able to keep the trophy until the following year. If you need more information please visit www.kansa-salr.com or contact me, Terry Harris at flstfi_2005@hotmail.com. I will be glad to help in anyway I can. Hope to see you somewhere on the route of the 2017 American Legion Department of Kansas Legacy Run.

LEGACY RUN

Page 8 - The Sunflower Legionnaire April/May/June, 2017SU

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(Continued from Page 5)

KANSAS SUNFLOWER LEGIONNAIREJimmie L. Foster, Editor

Official publication of The American Legion, Department of Kansas and is owned exclusively by The Kansas Department. Published four times per year. Members’ supscriptions are included in dues, all other subscriptions $10 per year. Com-mander Robert Munson; Vice Commander Terry Marr; Area Vice Commander East Lynn Wichman; Area Vice Commander West Gary Foos; Adjutant, Jimmie L. Foster; Asst. Adjutant Jeff Bond, National Executive Committeeman Dave Warnken; Alternate NEC Gaylord Sanneman; Chaplain R. Glenn Pat-terson; Judge Advocate John O. Sanderson; Historian Joe Johnston; Masters-at-Arms Clint Vawter and Clint Williard. Department Headquarters:

1314 SW Topeka Blvd. Topeka, KS 66612, 785-232-9315Department Headquarters Email Addresses:

Jimmie L. Foster: ...........................adjutant@ksamlegion.orgJeff Bond: ...............................headquarters@ksamlegion.orgCharlotte Grim: ...............................finance@ksamlegion.org Margie Thibault: ............................ margiet@ksamlegion.orgMichelle Johnston: ..................membership@ksamlegion.org News deadline is the 15th of March, June, September and

December for the next issue.

THE AMERICAN LEGION VA HOSPITAL SERVICE OFFICERS

Robert J. Dole Regional VA Medical Center, WichitaLocal: 316-688-6814, Toll Free: 888-878-6881 Ext. 56814Dwight D. Eisenhower VA Medical Center, Leavenworth

Local: 913-758-4297, Toll Free: 800-952-8387 Ext. 54297Colmery-O’Neil VA Medical Center

Local: 785-350-4489, Toll Free: 800-574-8387 Ext. 54489

CHILD WELFARE FOUNDATION DINNER

MAY 20, 2017RAMADA HOTEL, TOPEKA, KS

Name_____________________Post/Unit/Squadron #______

Address___________________City___________Zip_______

Number of dinners to be reserved at $30.00 each___________

Beef or Chicken or VegetarianEnclosed is check in the amount of______________________

Or charge my VISA/Master Card number__________________

Expiration date_____________Security Code_____________

Mail to: Kansas American Legion 1314 SW Topeka Blvd. Topeka, KS 66612

CWF DinnerThis year’s Department

Convention will feature a din-ner as a means to raise funds for the American Legion Child Welfare Foundation. The din-ner will be held Saturday eve-ning, May 20 from 6:30 until 8:00 pm in the Grand Ballroom of the Ramada Hotel and Con-vention Center, 420 SE 6th Ave, Topeka.

The dinner will include: Tossed house salad, kabobs (beef, chicken, or vegetarian) one option only! On a bed of wild and long grain rice, rolls and butter, and assorted blend-ed cheesecakes. Cost is $30 per person and reservations must be received no later than Tuesday, May 17.

The purpose of the American Legion Child Welfare Founda-tion is: “To contribute to the

Sovereignty of God“To the King of ages, immor-

tal, invisible, the Only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” 1 Timothy 1:17

The above passage of scrip-ture is a reference to the Sover-eignty of God. Thee is only one God who created all things by His Spoken Word. The Eternal Word of God is found in the De-ity of Jesus Christ. (Gospel of John 1:1)

The concept of the Sover-eignty of God is full of Authority, Power and Majesty. There is an-other concept that is derived from this first concept of God, that is the Sovereignty of a Nation.

All who participate in The American Legion programs as-cribe to this principle, the Sov-ereignty of a Nation: The United States of America. Everyone who has worn the uniform of this great nation, is deeply indebted to the sacrifices of the million who have laid the foundation of This Great Nation.

There is an old phase that has been around for a long time:

“Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you; Jesus Christ and the American G. I. One died for your soul; the other for your freedom.” Author: Unknown

The concept is that “one” died that you might live a life in freedom; the other died that you might live an eternal life through God’s gift of salvation.

May all who read this, pause to honor the sacrifice of our ser-vice members and to remember; it is by God’s Sovereignty that Jesus Christ died for our Salva-tion this Season of Lent 2017.

I believe that as the Pream-ble to the Constitution of the America Legion states; For God and Country We Associate Our-selves... to support OUR nation in knowing the Sovereignty of America.

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DEPARTMENTCHAPLAIN

GlennPatterson physical, mental emotional and

spiritual needs of children and youth through the dissemina-tion of knowledge about new and innovative organizations and their programs.” “To make wider, more effective use of the knowledge already possessed by well established organiza-tions to the end that such infor-mation will benefit youth and be more adequately used by society.”

To make reservations for the Saturday, May 20 dinner please complete and return the coupon on this page to Depart-ment Headquarters, 1314 SW Topeka Blvd., Topeka, Kansas 66612. Reservations must ar-rive by May 17; or telephone your reservations to 785-232-9315. Payment is due no later than May 20 without exception.

The tournament will be held on July 15th, and 16th, at Golf and Wellness Golf Course, 600 W. 13th, Concordia KS. The tournament is a 36 hole stroke play tournament with 18 holes being played both days. Reg-istration desk will be open at 7:00a.m. and the starting time is a shotgun start both days at 8:00 a.m.

The tournament is for all American Legion Members, SAL, ALR, that are of 21 years of age and are in good stand-ing. (Everyone must provide a paid up membership card at time of registration.) All new as well as experienced golfers are

State Golf Tournamentwelcome.

The entry fee is $115.00 for the tournament. The entry fee covers all green fees and cart fees.

All trophies and cash prizes will be handed out at the con-clusion of the tournament on Sunday.

The deadline for entering this year tournament is July 7, 2017. All entries should be mailed to Carroll Peppersack, 805 N. Kansas Ave. Frankfort KS. 66427. If there are any questions you may contact Car-roll at Phone # 785-292-4665 or email him at lefthanders-den@netzero.net

who participated in the Ora-torical contest in Manhattan on March 11. I was not able to attend as I felt the need to stay and help the Juniors have a successful weekend was a greater one.

Looking forward to seeing many of you at Districts and Department Convention. Keep bringing in those member-ships to help make this an even greater organization.