I am sure there are
many people reading
this letter who are very
happy “spring time” is
just around the corner.
For all of us, this has been an unusual winter
with lots of snow, ice, and very cold weather.
Here in Texas a number of records have
been set, with low temperatures for the
month of March, but it still is not nearly as
bad as those in the north and east have had.
I am looking forward to mild temperatures
in April and May.
I am sad to see that our organization is
experiencing more and more losses through
the passing of our members. We recently
lost Tilford Jones, a member who has been
an integral part of the Board of Directors for
several years. He served as Treasurer for
four years during the term of President Bill
Mac Swain and as Director from 2012-
2014. He was in his second year of serving
as Director and Budget and Finance
Chairman before his death in early
February.
Tilford served as a 1st Lt. and Infantry
Platoon Leader in the 25th Division in some
of the heaviest fighting in 1950 and 1951,
earning the Silver Star, Bronze Star, and
Purple Heart. He was greatly respected by
all who knew him, and he will be sorely
missed.
Garry Rockburn, former Treasurer, and
Dorothy Wetzel, past National Director and
2nd Vice President, passed away in early
March. Garry served as Treasurer for a brief
period under Jim Ferris in 2012. He was
friendly and outgoing and very active in the
Association as the Canadian Liaison for the
national organization and Commander of
Chapter 105 in New York.
Dorothy was active at the National level
for several years under three different
Presidents.
For me, the passing of those mentioned
above emphasizes the concerns a few of us
on the Board have had for some time. We
are all getting older, and no matter what our
physical conditions are right now, most
Korean War veterans do not have many
years left. It is becoming more difficult to
find people who are willing to run for the
offices in the chapters and also at the
National level. We need to be thinking seriously
about our legacy and what will happen
to our story and our organization after
we are gone. I, for one, don’t want our
“Forgotten Victory” in Korea to fade away
just because we do.
We have just concluded a meeting of the
KWVA Board in Irving, Texas, where we
initiated actions that will help to manage
our organization and carry forward our
legacy for years to come. The primary outcome
of the meeting was a decision to add
the position of Executive Director to the
KWVA organization.
We have talked for some time about the
need to add some professional expertise to
help provide continuity during administration
changes and to provide a strong presence
in Washington D.C. That person will
play a major role the areas of legislation,
fund raising, membership addition, and
administration.
An office in Washington D.C. will allow
us to be a part of the veteran coalitions there
that will strengthen our voice with
Congress. We also approved changes to
several By-Laws that will streamline some
of our processes and allow us to manage our
business more efficiently. These two items
will be presented at the October
Membership meeting for ratification.
We approved proposals by Harris
Connect Corporation for a new KWVA
Directory and by USAA for a credit card
relationship. Besides being a benefit to our
members, both of these projects will be significant
fundraisers for our organization.
Dr. Jongwoo Han told us about his
efforts to interview Korean veterans across
the country for his digital museum and his
Youth Corps of Korean veteran grandchildren.
His second annual meeting of the
Youth Corps will be in Washington D.C. in
July 2014. Details on all of this will appear
in the Board minutes in later issues of The
Graybeards.
Elsewhere in this issue we show information
for the Annual Membership
Meeting in Rochester, Minnesota, to be held
in October, 2014. The location and the program
this year will be outstanding. Ed Valle
and Minnesota Chapter 1 (CID 40) are our
hosts. They are working hard to provide
plenty of entertainment and make things
interesting for all who attend. I am hoping
to have a large attendance, and I encourage
everyone who can to plan to be there.
The Ministry of Patriots and Veteran
Affairs of the South Korean government
has indicated it is planning some major
events in Washington D.C. again this July to
commemorate the signing of the armistice.
They have requested that we take part in
this program.
Tentatively, the plans are to have something
similar to the “Gathering” we have
had in the past. Dr. Jongwoo Han will have
his Youth Corps assembling there at the
same time. It was too late for us to change
our meeting this year, but at the recent
Board meeting we discussed the request and
voted to change the time and location of the
2015 membership meeting from Hampton
VA to Washington D.C. More information
will be forthcoming on both of these events
in the near future.
Did you vote? I certainly hope so,
because by the time you see this the voting
for new officers and directors will be almost
over. However, if you haven’t voted please
do so to get the ballots in by May 8th.
I feel confident that going forward we
will have a much stronger organization with
the changes being recommended and the
addition of the new Officers and Board
members.
Larry Kinard, President
Korean War Veterans Association, Inc. (KWVA/US)