Important LA Vet Vote!

WE NEED ALL VETERANS TO ATTEND THAT POSSIBLY CAN!!
PASS THIS AROUND TO YOUR VETERAN FRIENDS.
Wed., 04-Nov.
6:30PM
Chaminade High School auditorium
Enter off the Saticoy St. gate (West of Woodlake Ave.)
This will be a debate forum between the VA and their contractors -vs- the Legion/DAV and the 11 Neighborhood Councils that stand with the Veterans against what the VA and their contractors propose for Sepulveda VA.

Reason we need ALL VETERANS TO ATTEND: New Directions will be busing in 30-40 of their patients from W. Los Angeles lock-down drug/alcohol rehab unit to speak in favor of and on behalf of New Directions.

Attached is the agenda for the West Hills Neighborhood Council meeting at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, November 4. The Sepulveda VA issue is no. 09-0036, under New business. The meeting will be held in the Chaminade College Preparatory auditorium, 23260 Saticoy St., West Hills, CA 91304 across from Fields Market Shopping Center. If you need directions, go to www.mapquest.com and follow instructions.

Veteran and board member, Wally Perfect, is asking that every Veteran and Supporter of Veterans attend this meeting since we need to pack the auditorium with opponents to the proposed ACOF/ND apartment complex at Sepulveda.

Following is the format as I understand it.

Wally will introduce a motion and Resolution in opposition to the ACOF/ND project asking that the Leases be rescinded, buildings 4 and 5 be re-commissioned as medical buildings, the hospital rebuilt and Sepulveda restored to the full service medical center it was designated to be, just starting with buildings 4 and 5.

ACOF/ND will speak first for 5 minutes and there will be a 2-minute rebuttal. (They don't yet know who will be speaking in their behalf.) I will speak in opposition to the project for five minutes and they will have a 2-minute rebuttal. Then there will be public comment and we ask that every Veteran/opponent put in a speaker card, even if you do not wish to speak. If you don't want to speak, just check the box marked "I do not wish to speak but want to be recorded as and check the box marked "Opposed" and write under that "to project." .

We think the moderator will at some point also ask the audience if they are for or against the project and that's when the numbers will count because the board will probably vote according to the way the audience responds.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at peggy8960@aol.com or Wally Perfect at
wallyperfect@aol.com

We're coming down to the wire Folks and this battle is really heating up so we need your help now more than ever..

Thanks and hope to see you there.

DD-214 Online Access!

Please pass onto other vets.

It's official, DD-214's are NOW Online.

The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) has provided the following
website for veterans to gain access to their DD-214's online:
http://vetrecs.archives.gov/



This may be particularly helpful when a veteran needs a copy of his
DD-214 for employment purposes. NPRC is working to make it easier for veterans with computers and Internet access to obtain copies of documents from their military files. Military veterans and the next of kin of deceased former military members may now use a new online military personnel records system to request documents. Other individuals with a need for documents must still complete the Standard Form 180, which can be downloaded from the online web site. Because the requester will be asked to supply all information essential for NPRC to process the request, delays that normally
occur when NPRC has to ask veterans for additional information will be minimized. The new web-based application was designed to provide better service on these requests by eliminating the records centers mailroom and processing time.

Please pass this information on to former military personnel you may know and their dependents.

HT: Duane Buckley, CDR, Post 826

Operation Gratitude Care Package Weekend!

It's hard to describe what an incredible, well, operation Operation Gratitude is. It started in a California woman's living room and today it is so large the Post Office has assigned it its own zip code. They went from scraping to fill a few cartons a month to the point where this December they will ship their 500,000th package. They're a registered, fully deductible charity. NO ONE makes a penny off it. EVERYONE involved is a volunteer. It's a totally apolitical group; they're not interested in politics, just in reminding the deployed troops that they are not forgotten. Check out their site to see what you can do to get involved.

Vietnam Memorial Rolling Wall

The convoy rolled in from Van Nuys Airport escorted by LAPD, motorcycles from the Legion Riders of the American Legion, and the Patriot Guard, along with a parade of classic cars led by KTLA's veteran reporter Stan Chambers:

The wall is an 80% scale replica, exact in every detail, of the original Memorial in DC. This is the first time it has visited California. The names of our American dead are arranged by year, from 1959 to our withdrawal.

Peace Officer/Firefighter of the Year Awards