By LOIS KINDLE
lekindle@aol.com
American Legion Post 246 will celebrate The American Legion’s 107 years of honoring its century-plus service and dedication to Veterans, their families and the community. The post will host a 107th Birthday Social at its March 20 meeting.
The gathering will take place at the SCC Community Hall, 1910 S. Pebble Beach Blvd., Sun City Center. All Veterans, their spouses and/or caregivers are invited.
Founded in Paris in March 1919, the Legion has grown into the nation’s largest Veterans service organization. Its creation was sparked as World War I ended, when hundreds of thousands of American troops still stationed in the European Theater awaited transport home, raising concerns about morale, discipline and the risks of a large idle military force.
Lt. Col. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. proposed forming a new Veterans’ organization, dedicated to supporting and advocating for the more than 300,000 World War I Veterans returning with physical and mental disabilities. The government offered little support at the time.
“It was clear after World War I, support for Veterans was sorely needed, so a group of American officers got together to start an organization to fight for them, regardless of their rank,” said Ret. Army Col. Paul Wheat, Post 246 commander and Vietnam Veteran. “Basically, they didn’t want a repeat of the lack of support for Veterans that was seen following previous American wars.”
Since its founding, the Legion has continued its mission of helping Veterans by securing billions of annual Veteran’s benefits; awarding major grants through the Child Well-Being Foundation; providing millions in disaster assistance funds; and establishing future leaders through Boys State, Boys Nation and their auxiliary counterparts.
The 2019 LEGION Act expanded membership eligibility to all honorably discharged Veterans who have served on federal active duty since December 7, 1941, as well as current active-duty personnel and qualifying National Guard and Reserve members.
About American Legion Post 246
Post 246 has served the Veterans of the greater Sun City Center area since 1966. It currently supports three local high schools with JROTC American Legion medals and Florida’s Boys State paid tuition and assists the newly chartered Wimauma Civil Air Patrol Squadron. It also has a close working relationship with the Tampa Bay Scouts of America.
“We are currently expanding support for a Veterans Health Valor Program, which supports our Veterans in Hospice,” said Post member and spokesman Steve Burrill. “Post 246 takes the lead in organizing our community’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony and participates with other military Veteran organizations in our community’s Memorial Day Ceremony.
Post members will be at Fun Fest on March 14, serving more than 350 Strawberry Shortcake dishes and hundreds of Sloppy Joe or Sloppy Dog meals to the community.
“We thrive because we serve both the memory of those who served and the families who support them,” Wheat said. “This 107th birthday is a perfect opportunity for our Sun City Center community to come together, share a slice of cake and honor our shared history of service.”
Local Veterans interested in joining the post’s activities can find eligibility and membership information at https://www.legion.org/, attend meetings on the third Friday of every month at 9:30 a.m. at Community Hall, 1910 S. Pebble Beach Blvd., Room 3, Sun City Center, or call Wheat at 813-391-7309 or Burrill at 813-485-5055.
COURTESY PHOTOS
Some of the hundreds of thousands of American troops still stationed in the European Theater after the end of World War I await transport back home in front of the Gare de Lyon train station on the right bank of the Seine River in Paris in 1919. The American Legion was founded in March 1919 to advocate for their rights.