VFW - Newsletter

VFW POST 969 AND AUXILIARY 969

with VFW Riders Group - Chapter 3

SEPTEMBER 2026 NEWSLETTER

vfw969.org - Auxiliary969wa@gmail.com - Facebook

POST 969 OFFICERS

AUXILIARY OFFICERS

President - Bob Bartell | Sr. Vice President - OPEN (ask Bob or Sue!) | Jr. Vice President - Cordelia Ford | Secretary / Treasurer - Sue Helmann | Chaplain - Shirley Hauser

VFW RIDERS GROUP - CH. 3

President - Robert "Dutch" Anderson | Vice - Robert "Grumpy" Young (Air Force) | Sergeant-at-Arms - Jerry "3-in-1" Busig (Navy) | Chaplain - Troy "Chappy" Shafer (Army)

Meetings: Auxiliary - third Tuesday of each month at 5:30 p.m.; Post - third Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Location: VFW Post 969, 3510 McKinley Avenue, Tacoma, WA 98404.

Support VFW Post 969 - Just $5 helps fund veteran outreach, scholarships, and emergency aid.

Give $5 Today

AT A GLANCE

Auxiliary meeting - September 15 at 5:30 p.m.
Friday dinner - 5:00 p.m. each week.
Patriot Day basket donations needed before assembly on September 10.
Questions or newsletter submissions: Auxiliary969wa@gmail.com.

Upcoming Events - September 2026

Sept. 1 - Riders Bike Night.

Sept. 5 - Riders All Patriots Ride.

Sept. 7 - Labor Day weekend.

Sept. 10 - World Suicide Prevention Day.

Sept. 11 - Patriot Day. Basket donations delivered to local police and fire departments.

Sept. 12 - Riders Red, White and Blue Bike and Music Festival.

Sept. 14 - VFW Auxiliary's 112th Birthday!

Sept. 15, 5:30pm - Auxiliary 969 monthly general meeting.

Sept. 17 - Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

Sept. 18 - POW/MIA Recognition Day and the U.S. Air Force Birthday. Ceremony in Olympia that morning; cake and gifts at the club that evening.

Sept. 25 - Gold Star Family Dinner.

Sept. 27 - Fall Leaf Festival, Leavenworth - VFW leads the parade. Also Gold Star Mother's and Family's Day.

Sept. 29 - VFW Day.

August Recap: Back-to-School Backpacks

Our Auxiliary partnered with Operation Homefront for the Spanaway Back-to-School Brigade on August 5, donating supplies and handing out backpacks to more than 400 military-connected children. We also supported the Joint Services Support Backpack Resource Fair at Camp Murray (August 11-12), and Joint Services Support publicly thanked Post 969 by name for our help. On August 29, Post and Auxiliary volunteers - including President Bob Bartell, Quartermaster Terry Hicks, and Sr. Vice Commander Jim Dawson in uniform - are teaming up for the Tacoma Police Department's Kids Health and Safety event at the Tacoma Dome.

Thank you to everyone who donated, volunteered, or supported us behind the scenes - and a special thank-you to RE/MAX Northwest Tacoma for printing flyers for our upcoming event.

Post 969 also hosted the District 3 meeting on August 9, with a great turnout from across the district.

President's Message

Greetings everyone. We're just getting started on a new year and still looking for some staff members - anyone interested, please call me at 253-495-8572. Our Auxiliary planned and executed two great back-to-school volunteering events this summer, plus a wonderful Coast Guard Birthday celebration at the club. Volunteering opportunities are coming up, so please watch our web page and Facebook page for updates.

- Robert (Bob) Bartell, President

From the Club Board

Friday nights at the Post: dinner at 5:00pm, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, raffles, and karaoke. Weekly canteen events: Tuesday Tacos, Wednesday Queen of Hearts, Thursday Football and Bingo, Friday Dinner and Karaoke. Canteen hours are Tuesday-Thursday from 5:00pm and Friday from 4:00pm.

Friday-night kitchen volunteers are needed - a current WA Food Worker Card is required. Contact Club Board Chairman Leyla Oxford by text at 509-225-0401.

- Leyla Oxford, Club Board Chairman and Post member

VFW Riders Group - Chapter 3

Meetings: 2nd Tuesday, 6:00pm, at the Post. The Riders cook dinner at the Post on the last Friday of every month. Our inaugural Dice Run for Puget Sound Honor Flights was a success - we expect we've raised over $6,000 to pass on. Great job, everyone! Save the date for more rides: Bike Night (Sept. 1), All Patriots Ride (Sept. 5), and the Red, White and Blue Bike and Music Festival (Sept. 12).

Stay classy. - Robert "Dutch" Anderson

Make Your Voice Heard

Contacting your legislators works. This summer, Shirley reached out to Senators Murray and Cantwell and Representative Strickland to urge Congress to protect veterans' earned disability compensation - and heard back from all three offices. If an issue affects veterans, military families, or this Post, your legislators want to hear from you.

Congratulations and Welcomes

Congratulations to Margarita Manor, winner of our scooter raffle!

Please join us in welcoming the newest members of the Auxiliary: Michelle Anderson, Leslie Lytle, Donald Morrow, Chanda Ryan, Deborah Shipley, Anya Symanski, Jessica Symanski, and Maya Symanski.

Please also join us in welcoming Phillip Jackson, voted in as our newest Post 969 member this month!

VFW Auxiliary Post 969 - Tacoma, WA

Unwavering Support for Uncommon Heroes