Vets’ Corner
May 2021
On Monday, May 31st @ 11AM, we will be conducting our Memorial Day Program at the CCC Veterans Memorial. Everyone is invited to attend.
If you have attended any of our ceremonies in the past, I’m sure you have noticed our Color Guard. These patriotic and dedicated ladies are all residents of CCC. I can’t tell you how much they are appreciated; our programs just wouldn’t be the same without them. They are looking for some new members. You don’t have to be a Veteran or the spouse of a Veteran, just have the willingness to serve for a few hours for special occasions. If you are interested, please contact Bonnie Andersohn @ 399-2812. She is the Color Guard Captain and will be happy to provide you with all the details. We are also still looking for a talented individual who can play a snare drum to provide a marching drum beat to accompany our Color Guard and Honor Guard. (Snare drum is provided) If interested, call Rick Whitmer @ 399-2019 or Billy Schools @ 748-4427.
Memorial Day is a very significant day in the lives of all Veterans. It is much more than a day off from
work or the start of the summer vacation period. It is a day set aside to honor all of the men and women
who have served this great country and made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms that we enjoy to this
day. Originally named Decoration Day, Americans from both the North and the South took the time to
decorate the graves of soldiers who gave their lives during the Civil War. Three years after the Civil War
ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union Veterans – The Grand Army of the Republic
(GAR) – established Decoration Day as a time for the Nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with
flowers. Maj. General John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day be observed on May 30. It is believed this date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country. It remained this way until 1971 when Congress declared the last day in May as Memorial Day and a National Holiday. On this day, all Americans are asked to take a moment of silence and reflect on what Memorial Day means and stand up and honor the men and women who have served their country and paid the ultimate price.
If you are a Military Veteran and reside in CCC, WE WANT YOU to join us and help us support this
great community. We meet on the 3rd Monday of each month in the Magnolia Room @ 10:45
AM. Please consider joining us, it’s a small commitment but an important one. I encourage you to visit the Veterans Section of the CCC Website, new material is added each month and it is becoming a good resource to get answers to your questions and concerns on Veterans affairs. If you know of any resident Veterans who are ill or hospitalized, please contact our Chaplain, Susan Horsman @ 399-2590.
As always we have American Flags (3X5) and Memorial Bricks for purchase. Contact any of our
members or call me @ 399-2019.
For God and Country
Rick Whitm
April, 2021
Mark your calendars, Monday May 31st @ 11AM. We will be conducting our Memorial Day Ceremony at the CCC Veterans Memorial. The safety and well-being of all of our residents is very important to us so we will be following whatever Covid protocols are in place at the time.
If you have attended our ceremonies in the past, the first thing you probably noticed was our Color Guard, made up of some very patriotic and dedicated ladies who reside here in CCC. We couldn’t do what we do without them. They are looking for some new members.
You don’t have to be a Veteran or the spouse of a Veteran, just have the willingness to serve. If you are interested, please contact Bonnie Andersohn at 399-2812, she is the Color Guard Captain and will be happy to give you all the details. We are also looking for a talented individual who can play a snare drum. This will be to provide a marching drum beat to accompany our Color Guard and Honor Guard at special events. Again, you do not have to be a Veteran or the spouse of a Veteran; just have the willingness to help us. If interested call Rick Whitmer at 399-2019 or Billy Schools at 352-748-4427.
There are two Military events that occurred in the month of April that are meaningful to all Veterans, and signify Duty, Honor and Country, especially as we approach Memorial Day.
The first, April 16 and 17. The battle for Hill 255 in 1953, later made world famous in a 1959 movie, known as Pork Chop Hill. This was the site of 2 of the bloodiest battles of the Korean War, claiming the lives of 347 American Soldiers and Marines and 1,036 wounded. The battles for this hill were later deemed to have no strategic or tactical value.
The second is April 29 and 30. On these two days in 1975, Operation Frequent Wind took place in South Viet Nam. In just less than 20 hours, 81 helicopters evacuated more than 1,000 Americans and 6,000 South Vietnamese to Aircraft Carriers waiting offshore as NVA tanks were surrounding the Presidential Palace in Saigon. This marked the unofficial end to US Military involvement in the Viet Nam War. Please remember our Veterans on these days. Freedom comes with a price.
If you are a Military Veteran, WE WANT YOU to be a part of us and help us support CCC. We meet on the 3rd Monday of each month in the Magnolia Room at 10:45AM. Please consider joining us.
As always, we have American Flags (3X5) and Memorial Bricks for purchase. I encourage you to visit the Veterans section of the CCC Website. New material is being added each month.
Any questions or concerns on Veterans Affairs or if you know of any Veterans who may need assistance, visit the CCC website or notify one of our members. If you know of any resident Veterans who are ill or hospitalized, please contact our Chaplain, Susan Horsman at 352-399-25590.
For God and Country
Rick Whitmer
March 2021
Our hotdog fundraiser for March 2021 is cancelled. Because of the
way this Covid is still spreading, and the fact that we have to handle and
distribute food in close quarters, we decided that it would be better for our
Veterans and our residents to cancel. We look forward to resuming our
fundraiser in the fall.
There are two dates in March that are significant to our Veterans.
The first, March 25th is National Medal of Honor Day. Established in 1861, the Medal of Honor is the Nation’s highest and most prestigious medal for valor in combat that can be awarded to members of the armed forces. To date, 3,473 MOH have been awarded, 261 during the Viet Nam war.
The second date, March 29th, is National Viet Nam War Veterans Day. Our involvement in Viet Nam started officially on Aug 5th, 1964 when 2 NVA gunboats attacked 2 US Navy Destroyers. It ended on May 7th, 1975 by a proclamation from President Ford. Please remember our Veterans on these days.
I am pleased to announce that one of our members, Susan Horsman, has agreed to be the acting Chaplain for our association. One of her duties is to keep track of our members and other resident Veterans who may be sick and/or hospitalized. You can help by letting Susan know when this happens. She can be reached at 352-399-2590.
If you are a military veteran, WE WANT YOU to be a part of us and help us support our community. We meet on the 3rd Monday of each month in the Magnolia Room at 10:45AM. Please consider joining us. We are only as strong as our membership.
As always, we have Memorial Bricks and American flags available for purchase. Any questions or concerns on Veterans Affairs or if you know of any Veterans who might need assistance, visit us on the CCC Website or notify one of our members.
For God and Country
Rick Whitmer
February 2021
Sad news: On January 15th, 2021 we lost another of our CCC Veterans. William “Bill” Gray passed away at a family residence in Pennsylvania. Bill and his wife Rita moved back to PA due to health issues and to be with family. Bill was one of our founders and a driving force in planning and forming the CCC Veterans Association. As our first Commander he was
instrumental in the planning and building of the Memorial that we enjoy today. On the morning of January 18th,
2021, Ernie Meyers, our current Vice-Commander and good friend, passed away due to an illness. Ernie was
also a member of our current CCC Board of Directors. As I am sure that these two great men and veterans will be
welcomed in Heaven with open arms; they will be truly missed here by all who knew them.
As you drive around our community you can’t help but notice the American Flag flying in so many front
yards. It’s a heart warming site and a true sign of the patriotism of our residents. This really is a wonderful place
to live and play in our retirement years. I encourage all of you to visit our Memorial at the front of CCC. The Memorial was designed to honor and remember the Veterans who have lived here and all Veterans who have
served this great country. It’s a wonderful and quiet place to walk around and enjoy the outdoors, or just sit on
one of the benches and meditate.
If you are a Military Veteran, WE WANT YOU to be a part of us to help support our community. We meet on
the 3rd Monday of each month in the Magnolia Room at 10:45 AM. If you are not a Veteran and would like to
help, there are ways to do this also. For instance, helping hands at our Hot Dog Fund Raisers, special events
and Memorial Services. If you are interested, talk to or call any of our members. Please consider joining us. There
are many ways we can continue to help and serve our community.
As always, we have Memorial Bricks and American Flags available for purchase.
Any questions or concerns on Veterans affairs or if you know of any Veterans who might need assistance, visit
the CCC Web site or call me at 399-2019.
For GOD and Country
Rick Whitmer
January 2021
By the time you read this we will be into the new year. So, HAPPY NEW YEAR and welcome to 2021. We would like to thank all of our residents for their support of our Veterans Association and the events that we sponsor. With 2020 behind us our hope is to once again hold our Hot Dog Nights and the special events for Memorial Day and Veterans Day. However, all safety measures for the health and well-being of our members and residents will be considered before hosting any events. A huge Thank You to all participants and sponsors of our golf tournament held on Dec 5th. It was a great success and it appeared that everyone had a good time. The funds raised will help us with our mission of supporting Veterans issues and concerns here in CCC. In the near future (it may already be in place) our Veterans Association will have a presence on the CCC website. It will start small with a few pictures and some important information, but our hope is to build it into an important site for all residents and veterans to be able to access for issues about Veterans concerns. Our mission is to provide a forum for fellowship and support for all CCC resident military veterans and their families. To provide unity, well being and compassion. If you are a military veteran, WE WANT YOU to be a part of us and help us support our community. We meet on the 3rd Monday of each month in the Magnolia Room at 10:45AM. Our Honor Guard is the most visible part of our Association and we are looking for new participants to help with our special events and memorial services, but there are also other ways to help us continue to serve. Please consider joining us. We are only as strong as our membership. As always, we have Memorial Bricks and American Flags available for purchase. Any questions or concerns on Veterans Affairs or if you know of any Veterans who might need assistance, visit the CCC Website or call 399-2019. For God and Country
Rick Whitmer, Vice Commander
December 2020
I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to our December 5th golf outing. 50/50 tickets were on sale at the pro shop the week of Nov. 22nd and the week of Nov. 29th. The cost of the outing is golf members $13.00 and non members $27.00, starting time is 1:00pm. There will be a putting contest prior to the outing. We will meet at the Ball Diamond after for golf prizes and refreshments. Please furnish your own snacks. The sign up sheet is at the pro shop. For more information you may call Ray Strand, 414-587-1386 or Rick Whitmer at 352-399-2019.
Our next meeting is Dec. 21st in the Magnolia Room at 10:45am. We will have nominations, elections, and installation of officers. Please attend!!!
Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. God Bless our veterans. Veterans helping Veterans, Commander Roger Baker