NEWS FROM THE HUT by John Hamilton

I’m sure that you have all heard the phase, “When it rains, it pours.” Of course, we have breakfast at the Hut every Monday morning for all our Hominy Veterans, lovingly prepared by our faithful cook and 3^rd Vice Commander Jimmy Himes. Even though, according to our guidelines, we don’t have breakfast on a holiday, we all forgot last Monday for Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day, and Jimmy prepared the breakfast and we all showed up to enjoy the food.

Then on the Wednesday, October 13^th, it was the United States Navy’s Birthday as claimed by the US Navy as the date of its official establishment, when the Second Continental Congress passed a resolution creating the Continental Navy. All of the guys at Post 142 like to kid me about being in the Navy, and a Sailor. They have even given me the nickname of “Squid.” These guys are absolutely my friends and buddies. I know that some people might be offended by this, but I consider it a term of endearment and acceptance as their friend. As it has been termed by many others, we are a “Band of Brothers”, and we respect one another and have each other’s back. As it has been termed, “No one left behind.”

On Tuesday, October 14^th, Lynn and I met with the other members of the Hominy Heritage Association at the Hominy Library at noon. There were a lot of interesting things discussed including, but not limited to the receipt of the CenterPoint Energy Grant for the Hominy Depot Village as described in the Hominy News-Progress newspaper in the September 15^th issue on page two, and an extremely successful “Legacies and Wine Evening at the Park”. Every chair was filled, and a good time was had by all. They also discussed having the Hominy Halloween walk up and down Main Street by the Hominy children scheduled for Saturday, October 30^th starting at 6:00 PM. There is no current information on the day and time for the Hominy Christmas Parade yet.

The next event was on Saturday, October 16, 2021, was the American Legion Fall District 1A-1B Conference that was held in Collinsville, OK hosted by Post 2 that is shared with the Collinsville chapter of the VFW. Many things were covered during the meeting such as Oklahoma American Legion Boy’s State has changed its venue to Rogers State University (RSU) located at 1701 W. Will Rogers Blvd. in Claremore, Oklahoma, beginning with the May 28 to June 4, 2022, session. The regular registration fee is $299, but an early bird price of $275 is available for those registering early (with a cost of $325 for those registering late). The exact early and late cut-off dates will be announced when registration opens soon. This year the number of delegates will be limited to 450 boys, so it is to every high school junior’s advantage to register early to ensure acceptance. Please contact your closest American Legion for sponsorship, or in cases where funding may not be available through the Legion, delegates have the option of self-paying the registration fee. See www.okboysstate.com for more information and to watch videos of what Oklahoma Boys State is all about. There literally is something at Boys State for everyone. Activities include a mock government in action, print and video journalism, band, choir, sports, academics, air rifle shooting, an oratorical contest on the Constitution, learning how to drill (like in the military), making life-long friends, and gaining a whole new perspective on patriotism, as the American Legion motto of “For God and Country” is present throughout the week. Delegates who complete Oklahoma Boys State can later receive reduced room and board rates at RSU if they choose to go to school there. All delegates who successfully complete the week-long program can receive two hours of elective college credit with payment of tuition fees, with the option of an additional credit hour for post-Boys State effort.

Boys State truly is “a week that shapes a lifetime.”

The next event on my calendar is the Hominy City Council meeting at City Hall on Monday, October 18^th at 6:00 PM. Last month the only ones there were city employees except for my wife and me. It is very interesting how the work of the city is accomplished. I was impressed how our Hominy Mayor works very hard to look out for Hominy citizens and how the city spends their financial resources. He says no a lot more than he says yes. He believes strongly in the old adage, “The buck stops here.”

This Thursday, October 21^st, our post will be holding our monthly meeting. This months meeting is going to be an installation of our new officers, plus our annual installation dinner. In addition, we will be holding our first Sons of the American Legion (SAL) meeting starting at 5:00 PM, followed by the installation dinner at 6:00 PM, and then the installation meeting at 7:00PM. The Commander, Steve Swinford, will be bringing the meat dishes and the members will be bringing the sides and desserts. All members and their wives are welcome to attend.

Then, on this coming Saturday, October 23^rd, our Oklahoma Department Executive Committee (DEC) meeting will be held in Shawnee, OK. The Department Commander, Charlie O’Leary, will be conducting this meeting. The DEC is made up of the executive committee and one or more delegates from each District in Oklahoma. This is the body group that make the decisions that the Oklahoma American Legion must abide by. Of course, none of these decisions can be in opposition to The American Legion National Constitution and By-Laws.

Until further notice, our regular Legion meeting will be the third Thursday of each month. Our next meeting will be on Thursday, October 21^st at 7:00 PM. The next Sons of the American Legion (SAL) will be on Thursday, October 21^st at 5:00 PM. The Monday morning Koffee Klatch meetings have been resumed at 8:00 AM. If you are a veteran, come by for our monthly meeting, and/or the Monday morning Koffee Klatch meetings. Several of the Post 142 members meet on Wednesday’s at Daylight Donuts on OK-99 around 8:00 AM in Hominy for coffee and breakfast treats. If you have a good story, it may end up in print. Also, keep up with us at the Post 142 website “americanlegion142.org” and Hominy Legion on Facebook.