Free dues - VFW looks to get Iraq war veterans to join

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Free dues - VFW looks to get Iraq war veterans to join
By ADRIANA JANOVICH
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC


Yakima's Veterans of Foreign Wars post is looking for some new blood.

So it's inviting all the military personnel returning from Iraq to join for a year, dues-free.

"If they just got back from Iraq, we'll pay their dues for the first year just to encourage them to join," says Roy Greenfeather, commander of VFW Post 379.

He's hoping the offer attracts members of the following recently returned Yakima units: the Army Reserve 737th Transportation Company, Army Reserve 907th Engineer Detachment and 181st Support Battalion's Bravo Company, part of the Washington Army National Guard's 81st Armor Brigade. Members of the Pasco-based Alpha Company of the 1st Battalion, 303rd Armor Regiment, also of the 81st Brigade, are also invited. Many of that unit's soldiers live in the Yakima Valley.

Regular dues cost $30 a year, but decrease as veterans get older.

And in Yakima, Greenfeather says, "We're all getting older and need some fresh ideas."

Post 379, the largest VFW post in the state, had 1,485 members last year. This year, Greenfeather expects that number to have dropped by 50 or more members.

In 2004, the Yakima post performed military honors at 112 funerals, more than any other post in the state. About 1,200 American veterans die each day; the majority of them are World War II veterans.

Greenfeather says younger members will help bring vitality and new ideas to the group, dispelling the notion that the VFW is "a bunch of old folks sitting around drinking and telling war stories."

In fact, the VFW raises money for cancer and provides phone cards and care packages for soldiers serving overseas. It also helps with veterans' funerals and local parades.

"We're a large part of the community, and we support a number of community activities," Greenfeather says. But, "We do need some fresh ideas and younger blood."