I will not mention that thing that’s going on right now, I think we’ve heard enough.

I was asked by Jean to wish her husband, Fred Walton, a very Happy Birthday.

If you see Fred around make sure you congratulate him on being 90 years young on April 6th.

His family is coming home to Maybrook to celebrate with him. Happy Birthday Fred.

April 21, 2020, the VFW 2064 Auxiliary of Maybrook will turn 45 years old. How awesome is that. They started out with about 15 members (all women). They are now about 90 members strong and men have now been able to join the organization.

They are planning to celebrate with a dinner, which will probably be postponed. The Auxiliary still has a couple of Original Members, Donna Caudy and Dolores (Dee) Guest still active. Donna Caudy likes to tell the story of how her Dad, who was a member of the VFW, didn’t give her a choice. To this day, Donna is the most active member of Auxiliary 2064. She is serving her second stint as President.

They have members that range in age from 16 years old to 95 years young.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary does many things for Veterans, Active Service Members and the Community. The Auxiliary does different fundraisers throughout the year. They host Dinner/Dances at various times of the year. This past Valentine’s Day, they hosted a Dinner/Dance and the proceeds went to America’s Vetdogs, an organization that breeds and trains dogs to be service animals for Veterans with varying medical conditions including PTSD, seizure disorders and sight and hearing loss among other conditions.

Every year they have a Christmas party for the Children of the community in conjunction with the VFW. Santa visits and every child leaves with a gift. The members of the Auxiliary go to Castle Point Veterans Hospital every year with gifts for the Veterans at their annual Christmas Party.

Keep an eye out for “Christmas In July”. The Auxiliary and VFW will be hosting a Christmas Dinner on July 25, 2020. By then we will all be ready for some Holiday Fun. Keep reading this column for more details.

Every October, in conjunction with the Village of Maybrook and the VFW, they host the “5K Run/Walk for Homeless Veterans Autumn Classic”. All proceeds go to organizations helping Homeless Veterans.

The Auxiliary is scheduled to host a “Scrapbooking Crop” on April 18th at the VFW, located at 209 Main Street, Maybrook. The event starts at 9am and ends at 9pm. Continental Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be served to all participants. The cost is $50 and that includes electricity for your craft, a little goody bag, meals and raffle ticket for baskets. The proceeds from this event will be used to send care packages to a local soldier and his unit who were recently deployed. We would like to make sure these soldiers have some necessities as well as some special treats from home.

The Auxiliary attends many ceremonies, including Veterans Day, Memorial Day, and Flag Day. You can also attend these ceremonies and pay tribute to those Veterans that have served on Veterans Day, those that have lost their lives during war on Memorial Day and Honor our Flag on Flag Day. Veterans Day can be celebrated at the Town of Montgomery Government Center.

The Village of Maybrook commemorates Memorial Day with a parade down Homestead Avenue and you will see the Auxiliary with their Poppy Queen and Poppy King (these two are too cute for words).

In order to be an Auxiliary member, you must have a family member who has served in the armed forces during war time. A mother, father, sister, brother, daughter, son, granddaughter or grandson, wife or husband, widow or widower can become members of the Auxiliary. You must be 16 years old or older. New members are always welcome. You’ll need your loved one’s DD214 (Separation Papers) to prove eligibility. Contact Donna Caudy at 845-614-5644 for more information or contact me.

I happen to be the secretary for the Auxiliary. As of right now, one of our members is the New York State VFW Auxiliary President, Deb Casella. We are so very proud of her and her accomplishments.

Congratulations VFW Auxiliary 2064, keep up the great work that you do.