To begin with, the KWVA—any veterans organization—is about many things in addition to filling
out claims, visiting VA hospitals and accumulating VA/VS hours. Tell America, for example, is a worthy orientation
of many of our KWVA chapters. However, the KWVA is not like other big veterans organizations in a
fundamental way: we were incorporated as a 501 (c)(19) organization rather than a (c)(3) or (4) organization.
There are several other fundamental practical differences: a) we do not have a million plus
members; b) as a consequence of “a,” the average age of our members of 72+; and, c) we do
not have a “Federal” Charter.
MEMBERSHIP/DUES/MAGAZINE We only have 17,000+/- members, versus
the 1+ million (consequently tens of millions of $$) of the American Legion, for example. Our national dues
are only $20/year, cheaper than the organizations with millions of members. Our dues go for printing and
mailing the best veteran’s magazine in the world—and the only one in the US exclusively for Korea veterans.
And well-intentioned (maybe) chapters, in many areas, still want a rebate of their members’ dues on top
of receiving The Graybeards.
Publishing and providing The Graybeards costs between $240,000 and $280,000
a year. Membership dues are expected to bring in $220,000 a year. We spend many thousands a year
in just collecting dues. Those postcards and stickers cost $6,000 each year.
The supplier is asking us to purchase $10,000 of the plastic membership cards this year—their stock is running
out. We pay a membership clerk $17/hr—budgeting $30,000+ a year for member services—and overspend the budget.
There is little money in the KWVA to do anything. Just the proposal to become a Veterans Service Organization
with every chapter certifying a Service Officer can easily amount to $100,000 right off the top, plus the
annual retraining and clerical duties that would come along with the task. My conclusion: no task in the
KWVA merits the description “it would be so simple!”
FUND RAISING/ACCOUNTABILITY/CHARTER AND OTHER THINGS I have
just returned from a meeting where these economic facts of life were dismissed by simple admonishments to
“just have a raffle.” We do not know if that is a good suggestion or not. Just because it was done before
does not make it a good thing to do now. For one thing, there are no records accounting
for hundreds of thousands of dollars from previous raffles, Quartermaster sales, coin sales, and the like.
The IRS may be most interested in that problem in a non-profit organization—even non-profits are
accountable!
Another problem with depending on raffles to pay the bills (bear in mind that the
dues only pay for Graybeards, and for collecting the dues) is that the congressional
authorities considering whether or not to issue a federal charter would have to be assured of a better business
plan than running raffles to stay in business, which is no plan at all; it is a prescription for failure.
The KWVA is not a state lottery corporation—or at least it will not become one during my term!
AGE Our members average over 72 years of age (the last time
a check was made). While many—if not most—of our spirits are willing, most of our bodies are weak. We are
better at scoping out plans for what others ought to do rather than doing those same things ourselves. This
is not a criticism of those members who realize this fact of life. It is an honest evaluation of the present
situation where 17,000 members +/- keep the bare handful of elected and appointed officers and the elected
directors busy 24 hours a day, seven days a week, if they can. Memberpower (as in “horsepower”) is a
critical shortage.
It has been an on-going shame and disgrace that the KWVA has not signed up any more than 17,000
of the 3 to 5 million veterans in America who are eligible for membership. The disgrace is that we
appear to act as though we don’t care about any of the 3 to 3½ million post 1953 veterans, that they “aren’t
real veterans.” I have heard that disgusting comment. What a crock! These fine veterans, post 27 July 1953,
have also stood the lonely watches on freedom’s frontiers in Korea during the peace maintenance campaign
of the Korean War—America’s longest war, a war which has still not ended.
Sadly, we haven’t even appeared to have shown a sincere interest in the 1 to 1½ million veterans of the
Korean War’s 1950-1953 defense, counterattack, and stabilization phases, either.
This had to change! In my term it has changed, it is changing, and it will change even faster
in the days ahead. The ONLY future for the KWVA as an organization lies in the younger veterans,
as well as in developing and vigorously executing plans for auxiliary memberships for sons/grandsons, daughters/
granddaughters, and wives/widows of KWVA members.
Some do not/will not approve of my conclusions and emphases as I have shared them with you on this page—which
is their right. However, as the old hard-shell preachers have been known to say: “Lead, follow,
or get out of the way.” 17,000+ of our members have an opportunity RIGHT NOW to file to run for
Director (LEAD), to run for State and Chapter positions of leadership (We have discovered numerous chapters
without presidents or with presidents who are not members of KWVA! And other chapters with few or no national
members! LEAD)—Plenty of room to run and LEAD instead of sitting and bitching and criticizing and obstructing.
In another year, file to run for President, VPs, and four Directors. Now, if you don’t want to do any of
those things—or cannot physically do so in order to LEAD—then FOLLOW. If you don’t want to follow, then
GET OUT OF THE WAY. Everyone in this organization can follow: it becomes
a matter of whether we want to do so or not. As a minimum, everyone in this organization can follow by inviting
a younger veteran to join up, and show him or her that you mean it!
CONCLUSION (FOR NOW!) Last month I participated in a high-level,
unpublicized, conference, wherein I was asked to present my vision of the mission and future of the KWVA.
I started by presenting the published priorities on which I ran for office: audit (financial affairs),
bylaws restoration, redress for wrongs, reorientation of Graybeards, national charter, bylaws reform
(including reorganization of KWVA, and all related matters). *
I then told the group that in the months since I have been leading the organization (less than six)
I have come to realize that there is only ONE PRIORITY for the KWVA at this point
– SURVIVAL! The key to SURVIVAL is increasing our membership by recruiting ALL VETERANS OF KOREA,
and the key to recruiting ALL VETERANS OF KOREA is changing our focus from “THE FORGOTTEN WAR” to
“THE WAR THAT HAS NEVER ENDED, KOREA, 1950 to TODAY.”
One of the major reasons which caused the Korean War to become called THE FORGOTTEN WAR
has been our silent acceptance of the inference that the war ended in 1954. The facts are that millions
of soldiers, airmen, marines, sailors and others have served—and are yet serving—in the defense phase (peace
maintenance) of the Korean War. Since 1954 hundreds, possibly thousands, have been killed and injured
by the enemy... injuries causing deaths, crippling and maiming for life... and even the taking of American
and KATUSA personnel as prisoners.
Indeed, FREEDOM IS NOT FREE, and Americans have been paying the price of defending, maintaining,
and extending freedom in KOREA for over FIFTY YEARS. The US Government has recently recognized
this fact by awarding the Korean Defense Service Medal. The award of a campaign medal—which for the
KDSM remains until a date to be determined—is de facto recognition that a military campaign is still
underway.
Unless the current membership of the KWVA reorients itself to “THE WAR THAT HAS NEVER ENDED, KOREA,
1950 to TODAY,” and actively seeks out these younger veterans of KOREA, I could very likely
be the last president of the KWVA. No amount of other activity — hours, VA/VS, claims filed, monuments erected,
parades paraded, magazines published — will change that fact. With a reasonable influx of younger
veterans we can realize the Federal Charter, VA recognition and the ability to perform the expanded agendas
proposed in many areas by our chapters... not just for ourselves but for the younger members whom we have
recruited to take on our places.
My best wishes for a healthy, happy, successful NEW YEAR to all of you is accompanied by my fervent
hope that the membership will grasp the challenge that I see confronting us and set out together for a future
for the KWVA.
Cordially,
President
* The next update will examine these original priorities, where we are on accomplishing
them and discuss the only meaningful priority demanding our attention today: SURVIVAL.
LTD
| As President, I want to commend Jake Feaster, Past President,
Department of Florida, for the Chapter Contact Program which he—and Jim Doppelhammer, our webmaster—designed
and undertook to correct our membership, department, and chapter information. All of this information
was in disarray. This task is critical at this time and Jake and Jim are doing a great job,
in a commendable manner. |