There are many people to thank
in the historical background of Post 1008. With the various mergers over the
years, it presents an interesting history. Post 1008, founded on February
7, 1950 as Water Wonderful Post 1008. At this point, the Post was meeting
in the American Legion Hall on Paddock and Pike.
Members of VFW Post 1370
formerly met in the basement of a local bar located on Saginaw and Rapid St.,
owned by Paul Parks. Several members of Post 1370 would later transfer to
Post 1008 to bolster the ranks of the Post. .
In 1964, the David Belisle Post
4102 of Drayton Plains merged with Post 1008. Stanley Stewart was the commander
of Post 4102 and served as the interim commander until the post-election of
1965. The merged posts merged under the number 1008 opened on October 15th,
1967 and elected Clell L. "Mutt” Morse as its first commander.
The purchase of the current
post building is a true story of dedication and faith in the importance of Post
1008.
Five members stepped forth and
determined to give Post 1008 a home of its own. Clell "Mutt” Morse, George
Pappas, Dixie White, Kenneth Gilmore and Robert Almas risked everything when
they collateralized their homes to take a 25 year mortgage on the property at
1690 Airport Road. With the money secured, they also helped to renovate an old
airframe machine shop into a rental hall and Veterans of Foreign Wars post. No
member of Post 1008 will ever forget the level of commitment these individuals
exhibited.
In 1993, the Post merged yet
again, this time with the David Belisle Post 1008 and Heart of the Lakes (Keego
Harbor) Post 2706. In a symbolic act of unification, the family of David
Belisle gave permission for the name of the post to change to Heart of the
Lakes to welcome the new membership from Post 2706, while keeping the Post 1008
number. The first commander of the newly unified post was Richard Coe.
Undoubtedly, many people have
strived to keep Post 1008 open and thriving so that it can continue to serve
the needs of our veteran community.
Don't forget to bring a dish to pass!
...we want to welcome today's military service members into our ranks to become part of our elite group.
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