Local VFW Takes to the Internet

Tim Juillett says veterans are just not finding their way to the VFW.

As the junior vice commander of Montgomery’s VFW Post 7452, Juillett has a front-row seat for the problem. He said new membership has been down considerably—veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are few and far between in VFW organizations, and even some vets from the Vietnam and Korean wars don’t know that they’re eligible to be members, he said.

Juillett believes the VFW offers invaluable services to veterans, and he’d like to see more take advantage of them. And the way to do that, he said, is to get the VFW out into the public eye.

That’s why Post 7452 has taken its first steps online, as of last week. The post has a new website (www.vfw7452.org) and a new Facebook page, and the VFW Hall at 122 N. River St. has been equipped with WiFi, so members can access either of the new pages from there.

The new site is loaded with information for veterans, Juillett said. Vets can look up their service records, can connect with national veterans organizations and other local military groups, and can see a calendar of events happening at the Montgomery post.

“It’s a one-stop area guys can go to, and it’s geared toward information veterans and their families can use,” Juillett said.

The site will also feature an “In Memoriam” video section, paying tribute to members who have died.

Going online is also more environmentally-friendly. The VFW’s newsletter will now be posted on the website, instead of printed and delivered to all the members. Juillett said in the past, about 550 copies of the newsletter were printed up and distributed.

Juillett hopes the website will help draw attention to some of the volunteer efforts the VFW undertakes in the community. And he hopes it will educate some veterans on just what the VFW is, and how it can benefit them to join.

“We want to get the word out about who we are and what we do,” Juillett said.