Our December 5th Chapter Meeting is Set!

December 5th General Meeting is set The Valley Forge chapter’s next meeting is set for December 5th from 12:00 to 3 PM. We will gather at the Desmond Hotel, 1 Liberty Blvd, Malvern, 610.296.9800 (http://www.desmondgv.com/index.htm ). Social hour starts at noon, the meeting will begin promptly at 1 PM with dinner served at 1:30. Jim Gerlach, U.S. Congressman from the 6th District will be our guest speaker. During the event we will be presenting our annual Liberty Bell award and scholarship to an ROTC and JROTC cadet from one of the schools in the area. Come on out, see comrades that you haven’t seen in a while and meet new ones. You’ll have a great time! Bring your spouse AND bring a friend or a potential member See everyone on the 5th! Keith Rodwell 610.594.9471

Chapter Leader’s Symposium at Hershey Lodge: My thoughts

Chapter Leader’s Symposium at Hershey Lodge September 11 – 13, 2009 My thoughts As one of the “new kids on the block” I was looking forward to spending a weekend of listening and learning about ways to improve chapter life from those who had been around awhile. And boy did I learn. I learned that pens don’t write fast enough for the recording all of the ideas and information that came out of the Recruiting & Retention workshops that I was involved in. Between Bob Kutulis, Frank Brown and I we have some key things which need to be accomplished in the next few years to make the Valley Forge Chapter better than it already is. We are going to make a concerted effort to get as many of our members to get out to our December meeting to explain all of the items on our plate. We’d like to build our membership and we have a number of ideas of how to get new members. Of course, in order to make our chapter into a more visible entity we need everyone’s help. Stand by for arm twisting by the board! Diane, my wife, was also in attendance in Hershey. She took the wonderful tour of downtown Hershey remarking especially about the architecture of the Hershey Hotel and the philanthropic efforts of Milton Hershey back in the early 1900s. (The only down side to the tour – for a person who is conscious of her diet – was the never ending offering of different kinds of chocolate. Even upon checking into the lodge you are given 2 large candy bars!) The events of the weekend went off with the expected military precision which was only surpassed by the super food. Keith Rodwell

Tid-Bits of Info from the President

TID BITS Want a week's vacation lodging for only $329? Go to http://veteransholidays.com. You're eligible to participate if you're on active duty, retired or honorably discharged or separated from one of the seven uniformed services (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, NOAA, and Public Health Service), on active duty, retired or honorably discharged or separated from the National Guard or Reserve, a current or retired employee of the Veterans Administration or Department of Veterans Affairs, or an employee or member of a participating organization with an assigned Veterans Organization Number (VON). Some folks I was with this past weekend in DC said they have done this several times and have nothing but rave reviews! It's cheap and it works! Want to read the Health Care Bill? http://docs.house.gov/edlabor/AAHCA-BillText-071409.pdf. Checklist eases process after death. A blanket checklist can be found at www.retirees.af.mil on the Library page. You can also go to the MOAA publications page: http://www.moaa.org/usergroup/usergroup_ad/pubs_infoex/default.htm What are the Keys to Continuing Military Benefit Eligibility for Survivors? http://www.moaa.org/usergroup/usergroup_ad/pubs_infoex/default.htm Find out the answer to this and many of your questions on the MOAA publications web page link.

September 5th Breakfast

September 5th Breakfast Topics amongst the 8 members present for this past Saturday’s breakfast spanned many, many years. V5 & V12 programs during WWII, flying during the Korean War, a short stop in Vietnam and up to piercing the veil of the newest destroyer class, called the Zumwalt class. (Wow! If you old tin-can sailors want to see a revolutionary hull, click here: http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/dd21/) Lots of stories were told recalling many a wonderful adventure of young, eager O-1s & 2s! Which led to the subject of our chapter’s new “Speaker’s Bureau". Get your story out to an ROTC or JROTC unit! The students will even come to you to record your adventures! Be part of the growing oral history – it’s important to them and you. Contact me to find out more (Krodwell@colvoce.com). Bob Kutulis mentioned the upcoming President’s Symposium that he, Frank Brown and Keith Rodwell will be attending this coming weekend in Hershey. He added some exciting news about the chapter’s general meeting in two weeks; the guest speaker will be Capt Marc Stanley, USN Ret., the senior instructor from Owen J. Roberts High School NROTC. It was good to gather around the table with Bob Kutulis, Sam Long, Len Humphreys, Frank Brown, Bob Clifton, George Henson and Dave Hyster. Let me see, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Six Navy guys and 2 from the Air Force! (Maybe it’s because us Navy guys had to get up early to sail with the prevailing tide.) Come on Army and Marine Corps! Join us for good chow and conversation! Next breakfast, October 3rd – put it on your calendar…and bring your spouse.