State’s VFW reaching out to younger veterans: Ben Mastridge, a window cleaner, returned from the Vietnam War with a hole in his foot and patriotism tucked in his back pocket for safe keeping. “When I first came back in 1966, I didn’t immediately join the VFW,” he said. “I didn’t want to think about the military. A lot of Vietnam veterans didn’t initially join a post because of the atmosphere we came home to and you didn’t always feel welcome.” Recently elected as junior vice commander for the Pennsylvania Veterans of Foreign Wars, Mastridge said he’s now determined to help modernize that organization. That way, he said, no veteran would ever get a cold reception again. Mastridge, who is 65, owns a window cleaning service in Bensalem. He said being his own boss has allowed him the freedom necessary for his new position as junior vice commander. “A lot more people are coming back damaged mentally and physically from Iraq and Afghanistan. And we have service officers in our clubs to assist these veterans and regional service officers with even more information and training,” he continued. “We need to dispel the myth that the VFW is just a bunch of old guys with their own bar selling cheaper beer. Last year alone, we raised more than $2.5 million to help the families of soldiers fighting overseas,” he said. The Pennsylvania VFW said it has 120,000 members in 540 posts across the state. Mastridge received the Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal and the Cross of Gallantry with Palm and Unit Citation. He served in the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division and was injured when a mortar blast sent shrapnel through his foot while in an artillery battery area in Vietnam. He eventually joined the VFW in 1994 and now is a member of the Billington Post.
Sunday, 27 July 2008
Window Cleaning for Vietnam Vet'
State’s VFW reaching out to younger veterans: Ben Mastridge, a window cleaner, returned from the Vietnam War with a hole in his foot and patriotism tucked in his back pocket for safe keeping. “When I first came back in 1966, I didn’t immediately join the VFW,” he said. “I didn’t want to think about the military. A lot of Vietnam veterans didn’t initially join a post because of the atmosphere we came home to and you didn’t always feel welcome.” Recently elected as junior vice commander for the Pennsylvania Veterans of Foreign Wars, Mastridge said he’s now determined to help modernize that organization. That way, he said, no veteran would ever get a cold reception again. Mastridge, who is 65, owns a window cleaning service in Bensalem. He said being his own boss has allowed him the freedom necessary for his new position as junior vice commander. “A lot more people are coming back damaged mentally and physically from Iraq and Afghanistan. And we have service officers in our clubs to assist these veterans and regional service officers with even more information and training,” he continued. “We need to dispel the myth that the VFW is just a bunch of old guys with their own bar selling cheaper beer. Last year alone, we raised more than $2.5 million to help the families of soldiers fighting overseas,” he said. The Pennsylvania VFW said it has 120,000 members in 540 posts across the state. Mastridge received the Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal and the Cross of Gallantry with Palm and Unit Citation. He served in the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division and was injured when a mortar blast sent shrapnel through his foot while in an artillery battery area in Vietnam. He eventually joined the VFW in 1994 and now is a member of the Billington Post.
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