September Meeting Minutes 📝
COMMANDER’S COALITION MEETING
SEPTEMBER 4, 2024, 10 A.M.
American Legion Post 13
Minutes/Notes
Attendees: Ed Hood, John Folsom, Tom Napier, Cartney Thomas, Nell Hewitt, Dan Hendrickson, Henry Lowery, Frank Roycraft, Paul Rogerson, Gail Ernst, Alex (Butch) Topicz, Earnest (Ernie) Reed, Johnnie Roberts, M.H. Allen, Valencia Scott, Ben Ringvelski, Akin Akinyemi, Cindy Laskowski, Marc Dickieson, Roxann Dressel, Mary LaBatt, Danielle Woods, Tony Minichello, Eugenia Simmons, Gordon Lightfoot, Brooklyn Enders, Donna Washington, Amanda Daughtry, Berline Belizaire, Eric Evans, Craig Benner, Charles LeCroy, Lori Fitzpatrick, Aaron West, David Wilson, Berline Belizaire, Debbie Mann, Michael Mann, and Marianne Trussell.
Ed Hood, Adjutant, American Legion Post 13 led attendees in a salute to the American Flag and the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag to open the meeting and a salute to the American Flag to close the meeting. He asked Earnest Reed to deliver a prayer. Ed welcomed everyone, reminded everyone to speak up, identify themselves and their organization, and invited Tom Napier to begin. See comments below.
Tom Napier, Vice Chairman, Honor Flight Tallahassee. Honor Flight attendees and guardians will be honored with a dinner at the Honor Flight Reunion at the National Guard Armory on Saturday, December 7. Saturday, April 26, 2025, will be the next Honor Flight (Number 11). So far there are 44 veterans signed up and 55 guardians for the 2025 Honor Flight. Tom Napier presented Marianne Trussell with an award for being a great supporter of Honor Flight. She reminded everyone she is no longer an attorney and thanked Tom, Honor Flight, and everyone. She is very honored.
Cartney Thomas, Office of Mayor John Dailey, Tallahassee. The Mayor could not make it and sends his apologies. The next meeting of the City Commission will be September 11 at 3 pm.
Frank Roycraft, Commander, VFW Post 3308. The Post is doing well. Post 3308 and volunteers stepped up to the plate with homeless efforts, etc. Thank you to everyone for all you do.
Henry Lowery, United States Marine Corps, AmVets Post 1776. No report. He apologized to everyone for missing the last meetings. He has been in and out of the hospital.
Earnest Reed, Fleet Reserve Association, Branch 34. No report.
Alex (Butch) Topicz, FRA Branch 34, CVMA 20-12. The Americanism/Patriotism Essay is now open for grades 6-12. The essays are due on December 1. Contact him for more information.
Johnnie Roberts. No report.
Amanda Daughtry, Congressman Neal Dunn’s Office. No report. Here to help.
Gail Ernst, American Legion Auxiliary Unit 13, Air Force Association, MOAA. The next meeting of MOAA is September 16 at the Tallahassee Elks Lodge on Magnolia with the social beginning at 6 pm and the business meeting at 7 pm. The speaker will be the CEO of the Tallahassee Museum. Please RSVP by September 8 by calling 850-212-7009.
Paul Rogerson, AmVets. No report.
Gordon Lightfoot, Commander, AmVets Post 1776. AmVets will be holding a “Turkey Shoot” in November (details will be forthcoming); there will be raffles and good food. The foundation for the VFW monument has been installed T THE Tallahassee National Cemetery (TNC); the monument will soon be erected at the TNC.
Ben Ringvelski, Commanding Officer, NROTC Unit FAMU and professor of naval science. No report.
Danielle Woods, Coordinator, Leon County Government. It’s hurricane season. She handed out copies of The Leon County 2024-25 Disaster Survival Guide last time she was here and has a few more. To receive emergency notifications, go to Leonready.com. This Saturday there will be a bicentennial event at 11 am at which Doug Alderson will be a speaker.
Eric Evans, Fl Cares, Inc. Works on accessibility issues (ramps, half steps, etc.) for veterans and spouses and children of veterans in Wakulla, Gadsden, Leon, and Jefferson Counties. 100% volunteer organization. 262 projects have been completed of which 20 were veterans and 40 were veteran related. Twenty-four (24) family members are waiting for projects. Contact him at 850-347-1445 for help with money and to volunteer.
Craig Benner, Veteran Advocate, Dept. of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. On September 20 there will be a short POW/MIA ceremony at 12 noon at the flag pole in front of the Dept. of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Kirkman Building on Apalachee Parkway. It will last approximately l5 minutes. Flyers were available.
Dan Hendrickson, President, Tallahassee Veterans Legal Collaboration. On September 20 at noon there will be a final graduation before Judge Aikens who is retiring; 4-5 veterans will be graduating. American Legion Post l13 has been going above and beyond recently. Kudos to Post 13. A truck is still needed for food deliveries on Wednesdays. Please help.
Charles LeCroy, American Legion Post l3. Thank you all for all you do for veterans. If you are not involved – get involved. One of his passions is animals/dogs. Please give what you can to help out the Shelter; everything is absolutely necessary.
Lori Fitzpatrick, Senior Director, Covenant Care Foundation. She was previously associated with Right at Home. Covenant Care Foundation (CCF) seeks to grant wishes to veterans from the Panhandle to Pensacola. Introduced her new boss at CCF, Aaron West.
Aaron West, President, Covenant Care Foundation. They grant wishes of veterans (Honor Care Program) and offer home health care services
M.H. Allen, K9s for Warriors. There will be a fundraising event, K9s for Warriors, on October 9 from 5-7:30 pm at the Moon, 1105 E. Lafayette St., Tallahassee. All proceeds from this event will be donated to K9s for Warriors to help save more veterans and first responders and to provide to them former rescue dogs by turning them into well trained service dogs. Everyone is invited. It is free; no tickets are needed. Donations are accepted. There will be free food. Flyers were made available.
Tony Minichiello, American Legion Post 49, Monticello. There will be a POW/MIA Ceremony on September 20 in the afternoon. There is also a fish fry on September 28. Call him for details. He also announced that Kent Watson died; the funeral is Monday, September 9. Contact him for details.
Cindy Laskowski, Commander, American Legion Post l3. She will advise of how each of you can help with the Veterans’ Day Breakfast in November. Thank you for all you do. She is looking forward to working with everyone.
Mary LaBatt, DAR, Caroline Brevard Chapter. No report.
Roxann Dressel, Commander, American Legion Post 114, Crawfordville. There will be a meeting of the American Legion District 2 at American Legion Post 13 this Saturday at 10 am.
Nell Hewitt, President, American Legion Auxiliary Unit 13. No report.
Donna Washington, Volunteer Coordinator, VA Clinic, Tallahassee. New hours for the VA Clinic are 7:30 am – 4:30 pm. You can get your flu shot at your specialty appointment or you can get your flu shot at the Flu Clinic between 1 and 3 pm.
Akin Akinyemi, Leon County Property Appraiser. Thank you for all you do. He will rely on Ms. Scott to report.
Valencia Scott, Deputy Director, Leon County Property Appraiser’s Office. Contact the office if the estimate of taxes was not received; they represent what your tax bill will look like. Any questions call 850-606-6200 or go to www.PA.gov
Eugenia Simmons, Director, Tallahassee National Cemetery. There is very little going on at the Tallahassee National Cemetery (TNC). She told everyone that on September 20 at 8 pm there will be a POW/MIA Ceremony at the TNC. On September 25 at 3 pm there will be a Final Salute service at which military honors are presented for those previously interred but without family or friends. Construction is about 65% and in the final phase. By the end of the year everything should be complete. The new sections are complete. She has a wonderful staff. Please stop by or call if you need anything.
David Wilson, AmVets, Vet Events Tally, Air Force Association, et als. He left handouts on each table with names of organizations, contact names, and telephone numbers. The POW/MIA monument has been approved. Expect a dedication ceremony in January.
Berline Belizaire, VA Suicide Prevention Coordinator. September is Suicide Prevention Month. On September 24 from 9am -12 noon there will be an event featuring safe training and a home health presentation.
Brooklyn Enders, Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Specialist, Career Source Capital Region. Fridays are deemed Find a Job Friday. They also help with resumes, interviews, etc.
Marc Dickieson, Commandant, Marine Corps League Chapter 472. Krispy Kreme donuts will be sold at the Ace Hardware in Killearn this Saturday (the first Saturday of every month). Meetings of the Marine Corps League are held the third Tuesday of every month at noon at the Chow Time Restaurant. (See David Wilson’s handout.)
Debbie Mann, President, American Legion District 2. No report.
Michael Mann, Commander, Sons of the Legion, American Legion Post 13. The next meeting of the Sons of the Legion, will be Thursday, October 24. You need to be the son or the grandson of a veteran to be a member.
John Folsom, American Legion Post 13, Chaplain for AL District 2. Make sure you signed in. He mentioned the kind heart of Charles LeCroy and his love of animals. He also mentioned that at the next social of the American Legion Post l3 there will be recognition given to WW II veterans/members.
Ed Hood, Adjutant, American Legion Post 13. Suicide Prevention Month is September. There are a lot of resources out there. Don’t punch your own time card. He personally called the Veterans Crisis Hotline and it saved his life.
Marianne Trussell, Chair, Support Committee for the Tallahassee National Cemetery, Inc. A report of the Big Bend Honor Guard (BBHG) was given: In the month of August the BBHG provided military honors at 14 interments that accounted for approximately 280 volunteer hours. Since the opening of the Tallahassee National Cemetery (TNC) the BBHG has provided honors at 1,244 interments. She thanked Eugenia Simmons for reminding everyone of the September 20 and September 25 events. The next meeting of the Support Committee will be held on Tuesday, October 15 at 5 pm at the Administration Building of the TNC. The meeting should last no more than one hour and there will be elections of the Vice Chair and the Treasurer. They are elected at the meeting, but their terms begin at the January meeting. Everyone is welcome whether a member or not. There are no dues to become a member. There is a workday scheduled for Saturday, October l2 from 9-11 am. Details will be provided. Show up by 9 am at the front of the Administration Building of the TNC. No gas or electric tools are permitted. Bring just yourself, gloves, loppers, clippers, etc. Everyone is welcome.
The next Commander’s Coalition Meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, at 10 am at the American Legion Post 13 at Lake Ella.
