Miscellaneous Stuff

Recognizing a Stroke:

I will continue to forward this every time
it comes around!

New Sign of a Stroke---Stick out Your Tongue

STROKE:
Remember The 1st Three Letters.... S.T.R.
 

My nurse friend sent this and encouraged me
to post it and spread the word. I agree.

If everyone can remember something this simple,
we could save some folks. Seriously..

It only takes a minute to read this...

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke
victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the
effects of a stroke... totally. He said the trick
was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and
then getting the patient medically cared for
within 3 hours, which is tough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE

Thank God for the sense to remember the
'3' steps, STR . Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to
identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness
spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer
severe brain damage when people nearby fail to
recognize the symptoms of a stroke .

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a
stroke by asking three simple questions:

S * Ask the individual to SMILE.

T * Ask the person to TALK
and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently)
(i.e. It is sunny out today)

R * Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

NOTE: Another 'sign' of a stroke is this:
Ask the person to 'stick' out his tongue..If the
tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the
other , that is also an indication of a stroke.

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks,
call 911 immediately
and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this e-mail
sends it to 10 people; you can bet that at least one
life will be saved.
 

May 20, 2006

Decorating veterans graves with United States flags

for Memorial Day

In 1868 after the Civil War, the 30th day of May, was is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land.  In this observance no form or ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.  Today this observance is known as Memorial Day.

The each military fraternal organization in the Joint Veterans Council (JVC) of Pottstown, will decorate the graves of all the veterans buried in the cemeteries they were respectively assigned, with United States flags.  The JVC is comprised of;

American Legion Post #244 of Pottsgrove was assigned decorating the 1,840 military graves in Highland Memorial Park.  On May 20, 2006 with heavy support from local Scouts, the flags decorating task was completed successfully.  The legionnaires present were support by Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts from;

September 2006

Presenting Certificates of Appreciation

to the Scouts & leaders who decorated

veterans graves with United States flags

for Memorial Day 2006

at St. James Lutheran Church

"photos coming soon"

Boy Scout
Troop 10
Limerick, PA 19468

Mark Hadfield, Zach Hadfield, Zach Zimmerman,
Nick Kemner, Brian Tatum,Cody Marchese, Even Tumelty

"photos coming soon"

Cub Scout
Pack 230
Limerick, PA 19468

John Grosso, Ben Grosso, Sean Tatum
Dylan Marchese, Crystal Marchese, Jason Brock
Eric Brock, Tammy Brock, Ben Felice
Dante Felice, Jared Glaser, Tyler Thatcher

"photos coming soon"

Boy Scout
Troop 129
Pottstown, PA 19464

John Kelly, Zach Kelly, Jim Burkhart, Bobby Burkhart

A special thank you to our posts 'Scouting Co-ordinator' Doug Hawkins
for an outstanding job getting all these organizations to participate.

"The Community Connection"

weekly Newspaper - November 18, 2005

article about Veterans Day ceremony at Pottsgrove High School

"The Community Connection"

weekly Newspaper - October 21, 2005

article about American Legion Post #244 Pottsgrove, PA

©Berks-Mont Newspapers 2005
 

http://www.zwire.com/site/printerFriendly.cfm?brd=2694&dept_id=553000&newsid=15431370

"The Community Connection"

weekly Newspaper - September 30, 2005

article about American Legion Post #244 Pottsgrove, PA

Honoring local veterans

By:Antoinette Colon

Connection Staff

"One of the greatest honors to those who have served in the military, in times of both peace and war, is to have a military funeral at their burial. This should not be forgotten," said Charles R., 9th district Deputy Commander of the American Legion Post #244.

All former military members, any veterans regardless of whether they were in reserves are eligible for a military burial. The only members that would not be eligible are those members that received a dishonorable discharge.

R. said, "Many veterans don't get the military funerals they deserve because loved ones aren't aware that they are entitled to them."

The Post #244 offers their honor guard unit that consists of forty-five to fifty people for funerals. R. explained, "Many funeral homes don't offer a military funeral." The military usually executes the funeral service, but due to a shortage of military it has become increasingly harder to meet the demand.

At this point, the post has fourteen buglers and thirty-five-honor guard.
However, R. added that they are always looking for more. R. said, "Anyone interested in joining to help on occasion can. We are looking to triple those numbers over the next year."

R. said, "Sooner or later, there will not be enough personnel to keep with the demand for military funerals. The AP3 program helps to increase the number of people available to offer the funeral services. There have been complaints over the past few years, due to the lack of personnel."

The United States Department of Defense has helped to alleviate the strain by instituting a program called AP3 certification. The program helps train volunteers through cd-roms and training videos, while providing support on-line for questions or clarifications on proper military burials. This program also offers funeral kits to be given to the funeral homes.

The post also offers help with obtaining bronze markers for the families of soldiers. R. said, "The first thing to do is to think ahead by obtaining a copy of the discharge papers before a person dies. The papers are necessary to receive the military funeral." It can take from 4-6 weeks to receive duplicate discharge papers. R. said, "The post can help those who need to get copies of the discharge papers.

With Veteran's Day approaching, R. said it was important to note there will be a Veteran's Day ceremony held at the Pottsgrove High School on Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. Any local veterans interested in participating for the certificate ceremony can participate. There will be awards, a ceremony to honor returning veterans with the participants to include the local police and fire departments.

 

©Berks-Mont Newspapers 2005

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=15307302&BRD=2694&PAG=461&dept_id=553000&rfi=6

"The Community Connection"

weekly Newspaper - September 2, 2005

article about American Legion Post #244 Pottsgrove, PA

Post helps local veterans get the benefits they deserve

By:Antoinette Colon

Connection Staff

Serving the country as a member of the Armed Forces is considered an honorable deed of patriotism.

Those military personnel who make it home are entitled to benefits by law. However, some veterans are unclear of the benefits available to them.

Local American Legion Post #244 is working to make those benefits easier to attain.

Charles R. is 9th District Deputy Commander, which serves Montgomery and Bucks counties.

R. is also the American Legion Post #244 commander. He recently shared his thoughts on the benefits of the post's contributions to the community.

R. explained how the post began its fund raising efforts.

He said, "We started last June, because of the need to get back to our grass roots in community service work. Rather than focusing on socialization, we focus our efforts on issues concerning local veterans. So, along with local representatives, we are helping veterans receive the benefits they are entitled to."

R. explained some of the disservice local veterans are experiencing today.
He said, "Some veterans were not given their jobs back upon returning from war, which is required by law."

Knowing and fighting for veterans' rights is just one of the many services of which Post #244 is proud.

Helping veterans begins with fund raising efforts for programs.

R. explained, "We have been raising money for veterans' needs. Whether it was food, or a ramp for disabled veterans. Fund raising has been made possible by the help of the local Wal-Mart and K-Mart. We would go to these stores, set-up stands and get the word out about the help we can offer."

In addition to the efforts at local stores, the post also takes part in health fairs.

R. said, "We set-up stands to get veterans to sign-up for healthcare. We also help them with healthcare claims. Filling out forms and everything."

Post #244 has assisted more than 100 veterans in applying for healthcare in the last year.

R. explained, "If a veteran is honorably discharged, gets into an accident and is too hurt to work, he/she is eligible for disability pension. We've seen some vets on the brink of bankruptcy, literally living week to week. They just don't realize where they can get help."

Unfortunately, many widows are not familiar with the benefits they can receive. R. said, "Many widows are not familiar that they are eligible for their partner's pension. They are struggling to get by and they don't need to be. The programs available to widows are a real blessing."

R. is a Service Officer, along with Ed Clark, for American Legion Post #244. They can be reached at American Legion Post #244 of Pottsgrove.

For more information, please call: 610-718-1708, or visit: www.post244pa.org.

©Berks-Mont Newspapers 2005

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=15146914&BRD=2694&PAG=461&dept_id=548223&rfi=8

Fellow Legion Members of Post 244, 

 A few months ago I was fortunate to be part of a group that went to the Pottstown Senior Center to hear a presentation about a program called SEPA VOAD (Southeastern Pennsylvania Voluntary Organization Active in Disaster).  That 1^st meeting lasted a little over an hour.  The following day a 6 hour course was offered to all of us interested in taking the program’s training.  During the training we were taught skills in First Aid, CPR, how to use an AED (defibrillator), followed by a Disaster Services Workshop.  

Since then we have been asked to help the Philadelphia Department of Public Health during a practice exercise on Bioterrorism Planning.  Next our group was asked to help out at the Pottstown YMCA to hand out “File for Life Packets” and information on “Making your Families Prepared for an Emergency”.  Then we had a training session at the American Red Cross in Philadelphia on “Weapons of Mass Destruction”.  Only six people took the initial SEPA VOAD training. At the first activity we were asked to help out at we had three members show, because two were working and one was sick. At the next event four members were present, one was working at the Senior Center and one was away. The last exercise was attended by five members, because one was celebrating her husbands Birthday.

We would like to get in touch with more folks in our area who would be willing to come out and join our SEPA VOAD group.  The training modules could be broken and made flexible enough to fit any schedule of the new members who are interested in getting involved.  Remember it is all VOLUNTARY and you will be only making a commitment to the time you want to or can give. If interested please call Charles Kropp at 610-326-4533.  Leave your name and telephone number on the answering machine and I’ll get back to you so we can set up a meeting.

Charles B. Dickinson

Msgt USAF

Stationed in U Taphao, Thailand from Oct 1974 to June 1975.

 When the war in southeast Asia was coming to an end, Charles was one of the few American military still in Thailand.  He was the Post Master for U Taphao.  As the base was been carried away by the locals, he slept on the counter of the post office for the last 3 weeks he was there, to insure that all the remains of military members were sent home and not lost.

 Charles and his crew were on the last American military plane out of Thailand, remaining behind were a handful of men who had to fly out on a civilian plane.  As he left he removed the post office flag, the last American flag to fly at U Taphao, Thailand.

 This flag was presented to American Legion Post 244 on June 23^rd 2005 by the last Msgt Dickinson’s wife.

Ed thanks Mrs. Dickinson

Lower Pottsgrove Twp Police Department

http://www.usacops.com/pa/p19464lp/

2199 Buchert Rd
Pottstown, Pennsylvania 19464
(610)326-1508

left to right:  Joan & Mark Alexander, Willard Bickel (back), John Strogus,  far right Larry McCann.

far left John Strogus, Willard Bickel (back),  State Senator John Rafferty, State Representative Thomas Quigley far right Larry McCann

1. Keith Place, Code Enforcement Officer, Lower Pottsgrove Township
2. Eric Sloan, Police Officer, Lower Pottsgrove Township
3. Sen. John Rafferty, Senator, Pennsylvania's 44th Senate district
4. Rep. Tom J. Quigley, Pennsylvania 146th House District
5. John Spadt, Lower Pottsgrove Township Commissioner
6. Tom Troutman, Lower Pottsgrove Township Commissioner
7. Elwood (Woody) Righter, Lower Pottsgrove Township Commissioner

Post 244 Officers Installation - September 2005

by

   l. to r. Bill Douglass, Chaplin - David Buck, Adjutant - Edward Clark, Finance Officer - Willard Bickel, Jr. Vice Commander - Bradley Fink, Sr. Vice Commander - Joan Alexander, Commander - Charles R.  

Boy Scouts of America

Eagle award ceremony

May 7, 2006