On judgeship, compromise is needed
April 11, 2018
Errol Chouest
April 11, 2018The problem with celebrations like Veterans Day is that they tend to push into one corner awareness, acknowledgment and celebration that should be occurring all year long.
There are several timely local matters regarding veterans that merit celebration.
On March 8th the Lenox Hotard Legion Post 31 hosted presentation of the Louisiana Veteran’s Honor Medal to Violet Agnes Borowski. Homer Rodgers, Undersecretary for Louisiana Veterans Affairs, did the presentation. Ms. Borowski was born in 1922 and has been a member of the American Legion for 71 years. She was a graduate of Terrebonne High School and Southwestern Louisiana Institute. Upon graduation from college, she enlisted into the Navy as a WAVE, attended basic training at Hunter College, New York and served from June 23, 1943 to June 23, 44 as cartographer specialist.
Her story is one of many that bears telling.
A lot of stories relate to another local American Legion Post. The Raymond Stafford Post 513 in Thibodaux celebrated its 71st birthday Monday night. it was formed by concerned black veteran returnees from World War I and World II At that time — 1947 — the Legion was segregated. Those formed by black veterans received a “500” series number.
The Legion is no longer racially segregated. And Post 513 is open to all members, of course. There have been twenty-three different commanders since the Rev. Louis Streams Jr. first took command in 1947. The first female commander, Deborah Winston, was installed in 2012.
It was named after Raymond Stafford, a Lafourche Parish native and the first black soldier from Lafourche Parish to die in WWII military action.
Lenox Hotard, for whom the Houma post is named, was a native of Bourg who served during WWI. He is now 24 forever, and rests at Arlington National Cemetery with so many other heroes.
The Lenox Hotard post will be hosting the American Legion’s Mighty 3rd District spring conference the weekend of April 27. The weekend’s events will be open to all American Legion members and any other veterans.
The majority of the conference will occur at the Holiday Inn, 1800 Martin Luther King Blvd. Meals will be provided throughout the weekend for a small fee. There will be speakers addressing topics of interest to veterans.
There will also be a special memorial at the Regional Military Museum on Barrow Street at 7 p.m. April 27.
Service clubs like the American Legion have done a lot for veterans over the years, although many have seen their memberships fall due to lack of interest by younger vets.
Hopefully, the events in Houma toward the end of this month will be cause for some veterans who never thought of hooking up with the legion or similar organizations to make new friends and explore what the American Legion has to offer.
It’s nice to see how in recent years so many people have recognized the sacrifices our veterans have made. And those sacrifices are not limited to those injured. The rigors of military life and its effects not just on veterans but on their families are many.
What is especially nice about these events — the Thibodaux party this past week and the coming conference among them — is that they offer an opportunity for celebration. Veterans have much to be proud about. Celebrating and showing that pride in an event created by and for veterans can be especially rewarding. For more information on the coming district celebration, contact Lee Shaffer at Lshaffers@aol.com or call 985-804-2265. You can also find more information, conference registration forms, and schedule of events at www.lalegion31.org.
Events like this bring us closer to a realization that in reality, every day is veterans day. And every day, in terms of our thoughts, perhaps should be.
