by Kenneth Juergens
Driving on Buffalo Road heading into the Village of Churchville is an American Legion Post named after a local American WWI hero that gave his life to his Nation and lovingly remembered by his mother through her generous donation to construct the building in his memory. The Harvey C. Noone American Legion Post 954 has good bones, but has been in a caretaker status.
This past year, the Post seems to have been on one of those home renovation television shows. One of the scenes is where you go into a room full of moldy boxes and cobwebs and discover a classic Brunswick standard tournament pool table amongst the clutter. Daily discoveries make this mission fun and chart the progress. Thanks to a dedicated group of individuals from both inside and outside the Legion, the Post is updating and reviving the building and organization.
The buzz in the village about the changes and support from the Legion, which is under the new leadership, recently led to an unsolicited donation of $250 from Emily Rein, founder of Bloom Wellness, for the bathroom renovations and other projects. Then there are individuals like Wayne McConnell, 81 years old and a master building contractor, who has taken on lead roles to maintain and repair the legion, such as replacing the storm damaged roof, reflooring and carpeting key rooms in the building and, along with Mike Morris, taking on refinishing the hall’s wooden floor. Another group of Legion family members, led by Sandra Gaffney, have redone the kitchen, painted bathrooms and rooms, and spent countless hours cleaning the Post. Cindy Branch, Wendy Wheeler, Letitia Juergens, Yvonne Knein, Bonnie Nau, Jackie Gallup, Ron and Tony Torcello, Craig Gertin, Anne Plucknette, Sandy Olsovsky, Mary Martin and others are all part of this team.
A key to this progress is vibrant leadership on all fronts. Through extensive engagement with the community, veterans, and members, the Legion family leads Monroe County in membership growth and has improved its finances where the size of donations to organizations has doubled and even tripled due to active fundraising. The Village support under the Mayor and Deputy Mayor and the leadership of Paul Robinson of the Department of Public Works during the Wreaths Across America, remembering our fallen with a wreath during Christmas, or repairing/replacing light poles and other major items has had a major impact. The Town of Riga in supporting the Memorial Day Legion projects and collecting flags for proper retirement at the Legion during its new Flag Day retirement ceremony also demonstrates this renewal of relationships. Next week, the Legion will have a joint spaghetti meet and greet dinner with the Lions Club to look at working together for the betterment of the community and local veteran support. On May 11 at 6:30 p.m., the Legion will host United Health and a presentation on Veterans benefits with Medicare.
Lastly, the Legion will have its annual open house during the Village of Churchville’s Walk About on June 16. All are invited to check out the Legion Family and the Post renovations.
