35 Legion Parkway
West Seneca,
New York 14224
U.S.A.




American Legion
Post 735




Marine Corp. League
Detachment 239




Veterans of Foreign Wars
VFW Post 8113




Navy Seabee Veterans
of America, Island X-5





AMVETS
Post 8113




82nd Airborne










  
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West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee


Serving the Veterans and Residents of West Seneca

  


    Photo Gallery


    2023



  • Walkway of Freedom Spruce-Up

    • The Walkway of Freedom received a facelift on Sunday, May 7th as volunteers cleaned up the complex and planted new flowers. Organized through the efforts of Kelly Bebak, nine volunteers spent their Sunday morning digging and planting. Donations of soil, mulch and plants were made by Scotts Miracle Gro and the West Seneca Home Depot.




      Tools, soil, mulch and plants ready to go
            
      Supervisor Gary Dixon lends his "green thumb" to the project


      Weeds and dead plants were removed from the three large plant beds at the Walkway and new soil was added before the planting began. Most of the plants were perennials so they will continue to come back each year.




      Jim Bebak does some weeding
      while Maggie Wilson and Kelly Bebak do some planting
            
      Maggie Wilson, Jim Bebak, Gary Dickson, Kelly Bebak, Stepanie Russo, Chris Marks,
      Jim Hinton, Dave Robinson and Jim Manley


      The West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee would like to thank Chris Marks and Jim Hinton from Scotts Miracle Gro, Dave Robinson from Home Depot and volunteers Jim Bebak, Kelly Bebak, Gary Dickson, Maggie Wilson, Patti Wangelin and Stephanie Russo for their donations, time and effort to beautify the Walkway of Freedom Complex for the summer. Special people make special places!


      Planting is finished







  • West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee Recognized as 2023 Service Organization of the Year
    • p>The West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee was named by the West Seneca Chamber of Commerce as the Service Organization of the Year for 2023. This prestigious award was presented at the 76th annual West Seneca Chamber of Commerce Dinner on February 15, 2023 at Kloc's Grove.



      Members of Joint Veterans Committee presenting the colors

      The evening festivities began with the West Seneca Joint Veterans presenting the colors, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Twelve members of the Veterans Committee were in attendance as Jim Manley and Mark Graham accepted the award on behalf of the entire West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee.


      Members of Joint Veterans Committee presenting the colors



      Members of Amvets Post 8113
      and Navy Seabee Veterans of America, Island X-5

      Other awards were presented throughout dinner as William Cleary and Vigilant Fire Company were named as the Chamber Member of the Year, Franco DiPasqua was honored as the Educator of the Year, Great Lakes Pizza Company was named as the Business of the Year and Evan Czamara received the Gerald Hathaway Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. The Citizen of the Year was presented to Supervisor Gary Dickson for all he has done for our community.



      Committee members gathered for a photo with Chamber Award and Proclamations from elected officials
      (L-R) Dave Dascomb, Ken Herkey, Bob Basher, Frank Weber, Phil Heimburg, Ron Puckett,
      Jim Manley, Jerry Johnson, Mark Graham, Pat David, Ray David and Dan Cotter



      Chamber Award for Community Service Organization of the Year and Proclamations

      This award was made possible by the dedication and hard work of the West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee. The Committee would also like to thank our residents, businesses, other service organizations and the West Seneca Town Board for their unwavering support of our veterans.

      Thank you to all of our West Seneca Veterans and volunteers for all they have done to help the Committee receive this recognition.







      2022


  • Students from Clinton Street Elementary School Honor Veterans
    • The Students at Clinton Elementary School are making Veterans Day a little more special by making cards and letters for our local veterans. Students are thanking our veterans and active military for their service to our country. This was a school-wide project with the creation of unique cards and letters from all of the grades at Clinton Elementary.




      Cards and Letters from Clinton Street Elementary School


      Members of American Legion Post 735 will distribute the Veterans cards and letters to veterans from the various West Seneca Posts, Senior Citizen Center Veterans and veterans living in several Assisted Living & Senior Care facilities.

      The messages and artwork from the Elementary School children is sure to bring a smile to all of our veterans!




      School Children Honor Our Veterans







  • Harvey D. Morin, VFW Post 2940 Ceases Operation
    • June 2022 saw the loss of one of West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee’s charter members. The Harvey D. Morin Post, VFW 2940 surrendered their national charter and is no longer a Veterans of Foreign Wars Post.




      Donation to VA Transportation


      After serving veterans and their community for eighty-eight years, the Harvey D. Morin, VFW Post 2940 turned in their charter to the Department of New York, VFW.




      Donation to Buffalo Vets Center


      Organized and chartered in 1934, VFW Post 2940 was the home to thousands of West Seneca and surrounding area veterans. Starting with a Post Home on Seneca Street and eventually moving to Center Road, there was always a place for our veterans to meet and help our community. The Post had many World War II veterans and Korean War veterans, followed by our Vietnam veterans, who maintained an energetic membership for many years. With a very active Auxiliary, there was always help for our veterans.




      Donation to Vets One-Stop Center of WNY


      By 2018 as our World War II and Korean War veterans began to pass away and new membership became a trickle, the Post membership eventually dwindled down to a handful of active members who realized that they could not maintain their Post Home on Center Road. The Post Home was sold and a small office was set up at Southgate Plaza as the veterans attempted to find a new, smaller Post Home. Finally realizing in early 2022, that a new building was not feasible, VFW 2940 members voted to turn in their VFW charter.




      Donation to Batavia Veterans Home


      With funds from their Post Home sale, VFW 2940 members lived up to the spirit of veterans helping veterans, by donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to other veterans’ organizations and non-profit organizations that help veterans. With input from members who attended the final meetings of the Post, a list of worthwhile organizations was drawn up and funds distributed to those organizations. Some of the organizations included VALOR Food Pantry for Veterans, VA Home for Veterans, Veterans One Stop, the Patriot Riders, Volunteer Services for Women Veterans, Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park, KIA Road March, Veterans Honor Flight, Battle Dogs PTSD Treatment Center, West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee, WNY Vets Center, DAV Transportation and several other organizations.




      Donation to VA Medical Center


      We salute all of those who were past members of Harvey D. Morin Post, VFW Post 2940. Your service to other veterans and to your community will long be remembered. Your Post met the mission of the VFW by helping and rehabilitating our needy and disabled veterans, assisting our veteran’s widows and orphans and the dependents of our needy or disabled veterans and promoting Americanism by means of education in patriotism and by constructive service to local communities. Your legacy will continue for years to come through your generosity to the various veterans organizations throughout the area.






    • Memorial Day Ceremony - May 30, 2022
      • Against a sun soaked sky that served as a blue backdrop, the West Seneca Joint Veterans Committee held their Annual Memorial Day Ceremony on Monday, May 30th. The ceremony took place on the Walkway of Freedom complex.

        Member units of the Veterans Committee, Marine Corp. League Detachment 239, Veterans of Foreign Wars VFW Post 8113, Navy Seabee Veterans of America, Island X-5, AMVETS Post 8113 and Auxiliary, VFW Post 2940 and Auxiliary, 82nd Airborne and American Legion Post 735 and Auxiliary formed up in front of the war monuments and were joined by the West Seneca Police Honor Guard and the Vigilant Fire Honor Guard.



        Members of the Navy Seabees, AMVETS Post 8113 and the West Seneca Police Honor Guard
              

        Member units from the Veterans Committee, Police Honor Guard and the Vigilant Fire Honor Guard

        The ceremony began with a beautiful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner sung by Ms. Grace Greenan. Greenan, who is the Music Director for Mount St. Mary Academy and is a recording artist, also sang God Bless America. The Benediction was given by Committee Chaplain Ken Herkey.



        Grace Greenan performs our National Anthem
              

        Veterans Committee Chaplain Ken Herkey gives the Opening Prayer

        Our scheduled guest speak, Colonel Lara Morrison, Commander of the 914th Air Refueling Wing, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, New York, was unfortunately taken ill and was unable to attend the Memorial Day Ceremony. 1st Lieutenant Lucas Morrow, Chief, Public Affairs, 914th Air Refueling Wing, filled in as our guest speaker, highlighting the meaning of Memorial Day and why we should always remember the sacrifices of our young men and women serving in our Armed Forces.



        1st Lieutenant Lucas Morrow gives Memorial Day speech
              

        Grace Greenan, Ken Herkey, Jim Manley and 1st Lt. Lucas Morrow



        Members of the West Seneca Women's Club
              

        Elected officials including Shannon Filbert, Robert Breidenstein, Susan Kims and Jeff Piekarec

        After the ceremony, the public was invited to walk through a Civil War camp presented by Union Army re-enactors from the 155th New York Volunteer Infantry, the Union Volunteers Fife and Drum Corps, the US Engineer Brigade, Tom Schobert and the Field Hospital Surgical Unit, the Garibaldi Guard and Fran D'Amico, a Civil War Roman Catholic nun/nurse.


        Members of the 155th New York Volunteer Infantry

        The public had the opportunity to learn how camp life might have been during the Civil War and had the chance to see several demonstrations, including musket firing, marching and entertained by Civil War era music played by fife and drum.

        Many thanks to sound system engineer Howard Orlando and Bugler Jeff Glaub for their participation and assistance.






  • VFW Post 2940 Makes Donation to Buffalo Niagara Honor Flight
    • The Buffalo Niagara Honor Flight (BNHF) is part of a national network of independent Hubs working together to honor our nation s veterans with an all-expenses paid trip to the memorials in Washington, D.C., a trip many of our veterans may not otherwise be able to take.

      Since 2005, the Honor Flight Network has helped make it possible for more than 200,000 veterans from all services to visit Washington and other memorial sites from more than 130 locations across the country. In 2009, Honor Flight Buffalo became an “official” Hub of the Honor Flight Network serving Erie, Niagara and surrounding counties area veterans. Honor Flights are made possible by donations.



      Members of VFW Post 2940 present check to Buffalo Niagara Honor Flight

      Members of Harvey D. Morin Post, VFW Post 2940 met with members of the Buffalo Niagara Honor Flight on 9 April 2022 to present the BNHF with a check for $20,000.00 to help the Buffalo Niagara Honor Flight continue its goal for Veterans to share in a day of honor at our nation's memorials.



      Group picture with Congressman Brian Higgins
               
      45 Veterans scheduled for April 30th Flight

      Participation in an Honor Flight trip gives veterans the chance to share this momentous trip with other veterans, to remember friends and comrades lost, and share their stories and experiences with each other.






  • Eastern Redbud Tree Donated to the Walkway of Freedom Complex