No June Meeting

There will NOT be a Post meeting in June as it conflicts with the State VFW Convention in Macon. There will NOT be a meeting in June. Our next scheduled meeting will be a family breakfast on July 12th. Thanks for an excellent year and for all you do to support the VFW so that the VFW can support veterans, the military, and the community.

Voice of Democracy Winners 2007

Post Winner* Miss Casey McCully Soaring Eagles Co-Op Runner-Up* Miss Sarah Mitchell Newnan High School 3rd Place Miss Kiren Ali Woodward Academy * Entry submitted to the District 4 Voice of Democracy competition. As part of a new program this year, Miss McCully, as the Post Voice of Democracy winner, was invited to lead the Pledge of Allegiance during the Newnan Memorial Day ceremony. Miss McCully placed first in the District 4 Voice of Democracy competition and her entry was forwarded to the Department contest. Miss Mitchell's audio essay placed second in the District 4 competition.

Post Officers for 2008-2009

Commander Jeff Carroll Sr. Vice Commander John O'Connor Jr. Vice Commander Brad Swentor Quartermaster John Skinner Adjutant Dick Stender Chaplain Willie Boyd Trustee: 3-Year Ron Freese Trustee: 2-Year Bobby Hammond Trustee: 1-Year Dick Dennis Service Officer Joe Smith

Pre-War Football Legend To Be Honored On Memorial Day

Newnan's Post 2667 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars will once again conduct the community ceremony for Memorial Day on Monday, May 26, at 11:00 AM, at Veterans Memorial Plaza, on Jackson Street. For nearly 50 years, the post has sponsored Memorial Day activities for Newnan-Coweta citizens. In the event of inclement weather, the ceremonies will be held in the McKoon Funeral Chapel. This year, in keeping with the theme, "Honor All By Remembering One," the ceremonies will seek to remember the life of Robert Earl Beers, the youngest son of one of Newnan’s old families. Known during the late thirties as the "Newnan Flash," Bobby Beers was an outstanding high school athlete and a football standout at Georgia Tech. While short of stature, at just five feet 8 inches and weighing no more than 155 pounds, "Little Bobby Beers" captured local headlines with his prowess on the gridiron and received national recognition for his exploits in games against perennially top-rated college teams. Beers enlisted in the Army in 1940 and received a commission as a pilot in the Air Corps. Shortly after Pearl Harbor, in February 1942, he was assigned as part of the first contingent of the legendary 8th Air Force, in England. Sadly, Beers never got to see much action, dying in a plane crash near his Midlands base in August of 1942. Bobby was one of four of the Beers brothers who served during WWII, all of whom had distinguished military records. Elizabeth Beers, a local historian and community supporter, is the widow of Frank Beers, Bob’s older brother. Much of the memoribilia that will be displayed at the ceremony, comes from her collection of family memories. The program seeks to give the audience a picture of the life of Bobby Beers, as given by family, friends and available records. Anyone attending the ceremony, who has a recollection of Beers and his life is invited to share their memories. It is hoped that by knowing this one sacrificed life, we may better appreciate the sacrifices made by so many, in the protection of our lives and liberties. Following the Monday ceremony, the Coweta Veterans' Club invites the public to join them for a luncheon at the club. Food will be served until 2:30 PM. Commander Jeff Carroll will host the luncheon and promises that there will be a bounty of food, so there will be no need for guests to arrive early.

Low Country Boil & Membership Drive

Come join us Saturday, May 3rd at Noon! as VFW Post 2667 presents a Membership Drive & Low Country/Crawfish Boil simmered to delectable goodness $10 - All You Can Eat (or till we run out) New VFW Members Eat Free! (You must sign-up and pay that day)

District 4 Meeting Postponed

The District 4 meeting scheduled for tomorrow, January 20th, has been postponed due to inclimate weather. We'll post the new date here once we have it.

Retired General Rob Tornow is 2008 Newnan-Coweta Citizen of the Year

The 2008 Newnan-Coweta Citizen of the Year is retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier General Robin G. Tornow, who also recently retired as director of the University of West Georgia's Newnan Center. "This is truly an honor. Truly an honor," Tornow told a gathering at the Coweta County Fairgrounds Thursday night. Newnan Times-Herald - Citizen of the Year

Wendell Whitlock - Coweta County Veteran of the Year 2007

World War II veteran Wendell Whitlock says he is honored to have been selected as Coweta County's 2007 Veteran of the Year, but insists he is no more deserving than other local veterans. "This is the greatest honor I have ever received," Whitlock says. "And I am as grateful as anyone can be. But there are others who did much more than me. As far as I'm concerned anybody who served deserves this honor. But I'm very proud and humble to accept and hope I've done some good for some people over the years." The Veteran of the Year honor is presented to veterans who've distinguished themselves not just in the military but in their contributions to the community, state and nation, according to Dick Stender, Commander of American Legion Post 57, which sponsors the award. The ceremonies begin at 11:00a today at the Newnan city park at Jackson Street and Temple Avenue. "I don't know if people realize how much Wendell has done to help this county, but he's literally served the citizens of Coweta County for a lifetime," Stender says. "We had lots of excellent candidates for Veteran of the Year honors, but I don't think we could have found anyone more deserving." Whitlock, 82, was raised on the family farm on Roscoe Road. He was one of 12 children, and Whitlock says all had a hand in running the farm that produced cotton, corn and soybeans. "It was our living and our livelihood. It's all we knew and all we did," he says. "I was just born to it and never thought I'd do anything else. Whitlock's plans changed on Dec. 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and America entered World War II. Whitlock was 16. He remembers hearing the news on the radio and jumping on his bike to pedal across the countryside informing everyone he saw that America was at war. "I didn't know what else to do," he says. "It made sense at the time." Whitlock graduated from Newnan High School in May 1942, but he didn't immediately join the service. Because the family farm's goods were vital to the war effort, all the male members of the Whitlock family were granted agricultural draft deferments. But two of Whitlock's brothers gave up their draft immunity to join the service, and by 1944, at age 19, Whitlock was ready to go to war. "I figured it was time for me to get involved," he says. "So I told my parents and then I joined the Navy." Whitlock was assigned to the navy's elite combat construction unit, the Seabees, and sent for training at Camp Peary, Virginia. There he learned the heavy construction business from the ground up, including how to operate every kind of earthmover imaginable. His unit was trained to build combat airplane runways, which Whitlock says was just like building roads. "If you could build a runway you could build a road," Whitlock says, "and a few years later that's what Coweta County needed. I was glad I had the training." After his unit was shipped to Treasure Island Naval Base in San Francisco, the Navy changed Whitlock's job and assigned him to a fuel and water tanker, the U.S.S. Tamalpais. The Tamalpais sailed from San Francisco on June 7, 1945, one month after Germany surrendered to end the war in Europe. Whitlock's ship stopped at Pearl Harbor then continued on to Manus Island in the Admiralty Islands chain. After delivering fuel and water to several ships in the area, the Tamalpais set out for the Phillipines, and on Aug. 10, arrived at Leyte, which in October 1944 had been the site of the largest naval battle of the war. During the voyage to Leyte, atomic bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The sailors knew the war was nearing an end even before Japan accepted unconditional terms of surrender from the Allied forces on Aug. 15. There was even less doubt about the war's outcome when a Japanese submarine surfaced in the middle of Whitlock's task force and surrendered. "When I saw that thing come up I said, 'We just rode right over that ship,'" Whitlock says. "It's a good thing he surrendered or there would have been trouble." A formal surrender ceremony was scheduled for Sept. 2, 1945, aboard U.S. battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The Tamalpais was ordered to sail to Japan. Whitlock's ship was the third in line to enter Tokyo Bay, after the Missouri and its two destroyer escorts. Whitlock remembers watching tugs pull back the submarine nets across the mouth of Tokyo Bay to let the huge warship pass. Then the Tamalpais docked beside the Missouri, less than 150 yards from the spot where the peace treaty was signed that officially ended World War II. "It was like you were sitting in your lawn chair right across the street," Whitlock says. "You could see everything. Whitlock said he was most impressed by the precision of the surrender ceremony, which was scheduled so closely those in charge had even calculated how long it would take a Japanese admiral with a wooden leg to walk from the back of the Missouri to the surrender table and be seated in time for the 9 a.m. signing ceremony, which was immediately followed by a massive flyover of Allied planes. "Those planes were already in the air when the signing started," Whitlock says. "And the timing was so good that as soon as the last signature was made, thousands of planes filled the sky. It was a show of strength to make sure everybody knew who won." Whitlock remained in Japan as part of the occupation force for over a year. On one of his early patrols, he helped liberate 17 American prisoners of war from a Japanese coal mine. The men were filthy and starving, calloused all over from crouching and crawling through the mines. "You'd never seen anything like it," Whitlock says. "They were skin and bones." The freed prisoners were taken to a hospital ship and Whitlock's crew later invited all 17 to their ship for supper. Only one of the POWs was strong enough to walk up the Tamalpais' gangplank and accept the invitation. Whitlock also did guard duty at several Japanese cities, including Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where U.S. atom bombs had fallen. Whitlock will never forget the devastation. "At Hiroshima, there was nothing left in town but one steel skeleton," he says. "Everything else was just dirt. The whole city was gone. I've never seen anything like it and I hope I never do again." After almost a year in Japan, Whitlock's ship headed home. A huge storm near the Aleutian Islands threatened to sink the ship, but the Tamalpais held together, and when the ship sailed through the Panama Canal en route to Mobile Bay, Whitlock knew his war was almost over. After a short stay in Mobile, Whitlock was deployed to Jacksonville, Fla., where he was discharged in June 1946. He and some friends paid a man $25 to drive them to the Atlanta bus station in his new convertible. But once in Atlanta, Whitlock decided he didn't want to take the bus home and started hitchhiking. He caught one ride to Fairburn and another to Duncan's barbecue, which was then located at the corner of Roscoe Road and Jackson St. From there Whitlock walked less than a mile to his house. "I've never been so happy to be anywhere in my life," he says. Ten months later, he married his sweetheart, Elva Allen. The couple recently celebrated their 60th anniversary. They have three children, Clara Whitlock Hackney, James Wendell Whitlock Jr., and Edward Allen Whitlock. After the war, Whitlock became co-owner of both a service station and a trucking company. But in 1948, he left private business and went to work for Coweta County, starting as a shotgun-carrying prison guard. He was soon overseeing county road building programs. His Seabees' training in heavy equipment and construction was put to good use. "We were busy back then," he recalls. "Most of the roads were still dirt. People wanted to get out of the mud and on paved roads so they could go to town and spend money. We helped them do just that." In 1961, Whitlock was appointed Coweta County Warden and Road Superintendent. In 1978, he was named the county's Superintendent of Public Works, a position he held until he retired in 1988. Whitlock supervised the construction of all new subdivision roads when Coweta's residential growth boom began in the mid-'80s. He still looks at some of the roads he oversaw and says he's proud of the job the county did. "I've always said this county belongs to the people, all the people, and I was always doing my best to make sure they got the best possible work for their money. I think we did well. I think this is the best county in the United States, and I believe it will stay that way." In addition to many other local honors, the huge recreation complex on Hwy. 34 at White Oak Creek was named the J. Wendell Whitlock Recreational Complex in his honor in 1994.

Newnan-Coweta Freedom Walk - Sunday, Sept. 9

Commemorates the 6th anniversary of 9/11 attacks - to remember those who lost their lives and to honor firefighters, police and soldiers of our nation who protect our freedom every day. Events are being planned with guidance from the America Supports You, www.AmericaSupportsYou.com. Newnan walk begins with a 6:30 p.m. Gathering at gazebo in the Newnan city park at Jackson Street and Temple Avenue and ends at Court Square. Sister walks will also be held Sept. 8-11 in Washington, D.C., and all over the nation. Details: Susan Shaner at 770-845-2254 or 770-251-3987 or sshaner@numail.org.

Veterans' Plaza Bricks - Order Form Online

We have the order form online. Click here to display and print it.

Veterans Memorial Committee Expanding Brick Efforts

Brick for the Veterans Memorial Plaza are selling. Now members of the Veterans Memorial Plaza committee are looking for ways to pick up the pace. The committee is looking for ways to reach out and meet people face-to-face in order to maximize the effort. The group will be taking orders for bricks at the next Market Day in downtown Newnan, at the Powers' Crossroads Country Fair and Arts Festival on Labor Day weekend, and at the Coweta County Fair in September. Read more at Newnan Times-Herald

Teacher of the Year Award

The VFW's National Citizenship Education Teachers' Award recognizes the nation's top elementary, junior high, and high school teachers who teach citizenship education topics regularly and promote America's history and traditions. Nearly 1,000 teachers are from every state, the District of Columbia and overseas. Fellow teachers, supervisors or other interested individuals can submit nominations by November 1 to your local Post. VFW's National citizenship education teacher awards include: $1,000 cash award for professional development to each of the top K-5, 6-8 and 9-12 teachers; $1,000 award for each winning teacher's school; plaques for both the winning teacher and school; an all-expense-paid trip to attend the VFW and Ladies Auxiliary National Community Service Conference in Washington, D.C. Teachers who win first place in each category will be invited to conduct a workshop at the conference. Anyone interested in nominating a public school, private school, or home school teacher should contact VFW Post 2667 by phone at 678-571-5333 or email the Post at vfw@CowetaVets.org for more information. For additional information visit www.VFW.org/ or www.VFW2667.org/. You can also download the nomination and information brochure.

Patriot's Pen Youth Essay Competition

A local student could win a $10,000 U.S. savings bond. Commander Jeff Carroll of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 2667, announced the kick-off of this year’s VFW and its Ladies Auxiliary “Patriot’s Pen Essay Competition.” Students in grades 6-8 in this area have the opportunity to compete in the VFW’s annual essay competition and win thousands of dollars in U.S. Savings Bonds and a trip to be honored at the VFW and Ladies Auxiliary Community Service Conference. Students begin by competing at the local Post level. Post winners advance to District. District winners compete in the state competition. The state winners compete for more than $75,000 in U.S. Savings Bonds and an all-expenses trip to Washington, DC. Each year more than 130,000 students participate in the Patriot’s Pen Essay Competition. Students are invited to write a 300-400 word essay on a patriotic theme. This year’s theme is “Why I am an American Patriot.” Deadline for student entries is November 1st. Interested students and teachers should contact VFW Post 2667 by phone at 770-254-2850 x216 or email the Post at vfw@CowetaVets.org for more information. For additional information visit http://www.vfw.org/ or http://www.vfw2667.org/. You can also download the entry form if you don't have one.

Voice of Democracy Scholarship Competition

A local high school student could win a trip to Washington, DC and a $30,000 scholarship. Commander Jeff Carroll of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 2667 announced the kick-off of this year's VFW and its Ladies Auxiliary "Voice of Democracy Scholarship Competition." High school students in this area have the opportunity to compete in the annual audio essay competition and win thousands of dollars in scholarships, a trip to Washington, DC, as well as dozens of other awards. Students begin by competing at the local Post level. Deadline for entries at the Post is November 1st. Post winners advance to District. District winners compete in the state competition. The state winner will enjoy a four-day tour of Washington, DC along with the winners from every state, the District of Columbia, the Pacific Areas, Latin America/Caribbean, and Europe. During the more than 60 years that the Veterans of Foreign Wars and its Ladies Auxiliary have been involved with the Voice of Democracy, more than 7 million high school students have participated. Students compete by writing and then recording a three-to-five minute audio/essay expressing their views of this year's patriotic theme "My Role in Honoring America's Veterans." All state winners will receive at least a $1,000 national scholarship but any one of them could win the $30,000 first place award. A total of $146,000 in national scholarships is awarded to national finalists in addition to the scholarships and awards given at the preliminary levels of competition. Interested students and teachers should contact the Voice of Democracy Chairman at VFW Post 2667 by phone at 678-571-5333 or email the Post at vfw@CowetaVets.org for more information. For additional information visit www.vfw.org/ or www.vfw2667.org/. You can also download the entry form if you don't have one.

Veterans Memorial Plaza Bricks

In order to help fund Veterans Memorial Plaza in Newnan, the committee is hoping to sell some 5,000 bricks to form the pedestrian area in the landscaped park. Anyone can buy bricks and the bricks can have anyone's name on it. Several people have planned to buy a brick for each grandchild. Bricks can also have the name of a club or business. To come close to the goal of 5,000, many bricks for non-veterans will have to be given, along with those recalling family members and friends who joined the military. The park is located at Jackson Street and Temple Avenue. A proposal was unveiled during the annual Memorial Day gathering at the park, and fundraising is now under way. Bricks may be given in honor or in memory of anyone. Each brick costs $50 and can have three lines of text with a maximum of 16 characters and spaces per line. Checks may be made to the city of Newnan. Orders may be sent to Newnan City Manager, 25 LaGrange St., P.O. Box 1193, Newnan, GA 30264-1193. Payment must accompany orders. We're working to get a picture of a brick to help sales. Click here to display and print the order form. The plaza will include an area with flagpoles, and there will be plaques listing Cowetans who died in World War II, World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the current and recent conflicts in the Middle East. There is even a space for a future plaque if it should be needed. The proposal also calls for a permanent desk-style podium that can be used for the program in the park each Veteran's Day and Memorial Day as well as for other community events. The plan includes benches near the plaques. In addition, the Coweta Veterans Club has offered to provide a plaque for the park that will show an uplifted hand and the words: "I solemnly swear to uphold and defend..."

August 2007 Meeting for Breakfast

Our August 2007 Post meeting will be on Saturday, the 11th, at 9:00 AM at the Coweta Veterans Club. We'll have a big breakfast so all post members are encouraged to attend. If you need a ride, call Jeff Carroll, Willis Byrd, John Skinner, or Fred Morgan and we'll arrange to pick you up and drop you off afterwards. See you there.

Robert "Eddie" Couch Honored

Memorial Day ceremonies, sponsored by VFW Post 2667, were held on Monday, May 28th, at Veterans' Memorial Park on Jackson Street in Newnan. The "Honor All by Remembering One" ceremony remembered the life of Senoia's Eddie Couch, who was killed in 1968 while serving in Vietnam. The program was followed by a community fellowship dinner at the Coweta Veterans' Club.

Veterans Park Plan Should be Ready for Memorial Day

Members of the Veterans Memorial Park committee have approved a general plan for development of the area around the Veteran's Monument - and hope to have that plan ready for official unveiling at Memorial Day ceremonies. See full article at www.Times-Herald.com

Post Officers for 2007-08

Commander Jeff Carroll Sr. Vice Commander Willis Byrd Jr. Vice Commander Jim Camp Quartermaster John Skinner Adjutant Dick Stender Chaplain Willie Boyd Trustee: 3-Year Bobby Hammond Trustee: 2-Year Dick Dennis Trustee: 1-Year John O'Connor

Students Study with Veterans

The day after the 65th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Newnan High School students were given what is rapidly becoming a rare opportunity. Instead of hunching over history books at their desks and viewing run-of-the-mill textbook photos commemorating the event, the students were able to study Pearl Harbor survivor Dixie Harris' personal photographs, as well as newspaper clippings from 1941. Harris, Georgia State Chairman of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, Inc., was one of many veterans spanning historic eras from World War II and Korea to Vietnam and Operation Iraqi Freedom who visited the school. See the full article at www.Times-Herald.com.