Time is moving on. Here we are in early September and well past the big event in July. We owe a great
debt of gratitude to the DOD 60th Anniversary Committee for all the planning and work they did in providing
so much for the veterans during our time in Washington DC, July 24-28.
It started on the first evening with
a great reception at the Ft. Myers Officers Club, hosted by Under Secretary of the Army Joseph Westphal,
followed by a Tattoo conducted by the Army Honor Guard. On Thursday, July 25, we held the Board Meeting
and welcomed Tine Martin, George Covel, and George Bruzgis, all of whom were recently elected.
I was very
pleased that Tom Stevens ran again for his second three-year term and was re-elected. John “Sonny” Edwards
was also sworn in to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Frank Williams.
Even though our Board
Meeting was rushed somewhat because of a reception in the early afternoon hosted by the Korean Embassy,
we accomplished some good things we needed to get done. (The minutes of the meeting appear on page 10.)
I will mention a few of the items that I feel were important.
We approved the appointment of a Task Force
to study the possibilities of employing a KWVA Executive Director. At present, the duties and responsibilities
of the President are such that it is a very demanding job. In fact, it is more than a full-time job. Much
of the time is filled with administrative duties like filling out forms, writing letters, and communicating
with members.
As a Congressionally Chartered organization, there are financial audits and reporting responsibilities
that must be done every year. This Task Force will look into these factors and determine if the need and
the funding will be available to support such a position.
We are also considering—and discussed at length—a
credit card affinity relationship with USAA and a change in our advertising management. If these develop
as expected, it should enhance our possibilities of increased income to help support our programs. More
will come later about these particular projects.
We also gave the Election Committee the mandate to strengthen
the review of the resumes of members who are running for Director and Officer positions, and passed a recommendation
to seek a Group Exemption ruling from the IRS to allow chapters to get a 501(c)(19) status through the National
Organization.
Our Membership meeting on Friday was well attended. We heard committee reports and ratified
recommended changes to the by-laws. That night we had a great banquet with retired General Walter Sharp
as our keynote speaker. Also in attendance was the South Korean President’s Special Envoy Mr. Kim, Jung-Hoon,
along with thirty delegates from South Korea.
I think most of you are familiar with Dr. Jongwoo Han, who
is President of the Korean War Veterans Digital Memorial Foundation. During the time we were in Washington
he was holding his first Korean War Veteran Youth Legacy Workshop. Students from the United Nations countries
who served in the Korean War who are descendents of Korean War veterans were invited to participate in this
expenses-paid workshop.
To qualify for attendance they were required to submit a paper outlining their relationship
with a Korean War veteran and describing their passion and hopes for continuing the legacy of the Korean
War veterans. The workshop was tremendously successful, with thirty very enthusiastic students from all
over the world participating. They are off to a great start after electing officers and preparing for future
meetings.
I am very proud of what Dr. Han and these students are doing. They are certainly adding to our
Tell America program and a vital part of our effort to promote the legacy of our victory in Korea.
The culmination
of the annual meeting this year was the DOD event commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the signing of the
Armistice on Saturday morning, 27 July, at our Memorial on the mall. Around 7,000 Korean War veterans and
their families gathered there for a wreath laying ceremony and to listen to several speakers who recognized
what we did during the war. President Obama was the key note speaker and did a great job of honoring Korean
veterans. (If you haven’t seen this video, it is available at http://wh.gov/l1pj3.)
In this issue we have
a couple important topics that I want to call to your attention. The first is the notice of Election on
page 7. We will need some very interested and qualified candidates to fill both the Officer (2014-2016)
and Director (2014-2017) positions. If you are interested and willing to get involved, I urge you to submit
your application.
It has been fairly consistent each year that around 25% of our members take part in the
voting process. This is not a good representation of our membership, so I encourage everyone to carefully
review the qualifications of the candidates, talk it up in the chapters, and vote for the candidate of your
choice when the time comes.
The second topic has to do with our Recruiting Program. We traditionally think
about bringing in new members from outside the organization, but it is my understanding that many of our
chapters still have Korean veterans attending their meetings who are not members of the National KWVA. Those
who are not members need to be added to the National rolls.
Also in this issue is an article on page 15,
written by Director George Lawhon. In it, he reminds us again that everyone who belongs to and attends Chapter
meetings must also belong to the National Organization. I realize there are some who still believe they
don’t need to belong to National, but that is not right. Moreover, it is unfair to the members who pay their
dues and are a part of National.
In this 60th Anniversary year the Korean War veterans have been recognized
and honored like never before, because we are a Congressionally Chartered National Organization. If not
for the National Organization this would never have happened. Here again we must rely on State Department
and Chapter leadership to support this national effort.
The National Officers and Directors strongly encourage
the leadership at the state and chapter levels to take action to bring those who are not members into the
National organization. Any of you who have thoughts or questions about this, please contact one of the National
Officers or Directors. We need your help to solve this problem.
One final note: since I am now President,
Director George Lawhon is serving as National Tell America Chairman. If you have questions or need help
with your program, or would like to start a Tell America program in your chapter, please get in touch with
George at 408- 734-0305.
As I have mentioned before, the DOD 60th Anniversary Committee will no longer be
in existence after the middle of September, 2013, except for Barbara Foelber and Jean Davis, who will be
closing the books and the office. We still have a few of the pink booklets “Education for Students” published
by the South Korean Government and also some Jack Walker books if you need them. You may call George at
his number or A. J. Keyes at 817-472-7743 to have them shipped to you.
Respectfully,
Larry Kinard, President
Korean War Veterans Association, Inc. (KWVA/US)