The Big Sandy American Legion Post 50 celebrated a big birthday on March 17. They were charted on November 19, 1919 and this year the twenty-five members plus the Women's Auxiliary celebrated their 98th birthday.
Fifteen men were charter members when the Post was founded. They were Clyde Eckhart, Ben Walden, Ralph Weidrope, Arthur Tucker, Hans Henniksen, Frank Lyons, Arthur Borg, A. F. Wall, L. F. Cormody, J. Bert Britenbucker, Will Bowman, Roy Arnold, K. D. Arnold, Morris Arnold and A. M. Randall.
Today the Post meets the second Monday of the month at City Hall unless there is a snowstorm or the like.
Dues for the twenty-five members are $35.00. Only $5.00 of the dues stays locally so the Post has to have fund raisers in order to accomplish their mission.
That mission is simple. It is to find ways to take care of veterans, widows and their families. The Government is supposed to be taking care of those people but is always short according to George Rice, who heads up Big Sandy Post 50.
"We step in where needed and when we have the money to help," added Rice.
"A lot of times we have no money to donate. We try to take care of the veterans here who need help and the Veteran's Hospitals along with the Veterans Home in Columbia Falls," continued Rice.
"We just sent the Veterans Home in Columbia Falls a thousand dollars. I had a buddy who just died and he always said that he was treated very well at the Veterans Home. They treated him like a member of their family," said Rice.
In the past there have been pancake breakfasts and fund raisers of all kinds put on by the American Legion Post 50 but none has been as successful as the Coyote Derby held in January. That brought in a lot of needed money to the Post.
"We send boys to the American Legion Boys State if we can find a junior or two who wants to go," said Rice.
Then there is the Women's Auxiliary. They have around twenty-five members as well and put on a chili feed for the Coyote Derby and helped serve a pulled pork dinner for that fundraiser as well.
The women have their day around Memorial Day when they put on the Memorial Day pot luck dinner and they sell Buddy Poppies to make money for the Post.
Each December at the Christmas Stroll, there is an American Legion table at the Crafters Show where the women sell baked goods, crafts and the like.
Since both the men's twenty-five members as well as the women's twenty-five members are scattered all over the United States, those keeping the home fires burning are very busy with their fund raising activities.
One thing that is really good about the Big Sandy American Legion Post is that young veterans have taken an interest in the Post and have really helped by lifting some of the load from the older members.
The American Legion in general is interested in many activities for veterans in general. The American Legion helps with veterans who need rehabilitation, they help with the GI Bill and veterans education along with combating the claims backlog. They provide homes for homeless veterans, an appeal board and a discharge review along with providing military honor guards for veterans who have died.
The American Legion provides help for national security, helps to comfort warriors and disaster preparedness along with border security and immigration, blue star banners and a vigorous blood donor program, and a full accounting of POW/MIAs.
Don't forget American Legion baseball which makes a huge difference in communities all over Montana and the United States.
The American Legion helps with the Boy Scouts of America, ROTC, education assistance and voter participation along with an all encompassing oratorical competition and junior shooting sports.
Watching out for children and youth is guided by strengthening the family unit, supporting organizations that help families in need and providing communities with programs for young people facing difficult challenges.
In a nutshell, the Big Sandy American Legion Post 50 along with the American Legion all over the United States is veterans helping veterans, families and communities.
Well done Big Sandy American Legion Post 50!
