West Mifflin VFW To Post Sign On TRAA Building

After nearly 30 years of service, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 914 Intrepid West Mifflin will officially be marking its longtime meeting place in style. The staff of the Thompson Run Athletic Association on Ball Avenue, West Mifflin, has agreed to allow the award-winning post to place a sign on the front of its building.

“This is a big step for us,” said VFW Post 914 Commander Jake Bradich. “The Thompson Run has been very supportive of the post and its activities over the years. By putting up a sign, we’re committing to keeping our relationship going for many years to come.”

In the Thompson Run, VFW Post 914 already displays a large plaque featuring the engraved names of its life members, as well as a picture of one of its Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans who was inducted into the Joseph A. Dugan, Jr. Hall of Valor at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum in Pittsburgh. There is also a framed picture of Medal of Honor winner and West Mifflin native, Marine Colonel Mitchell Paige, and other post memorabilia.

The arrangement with the TRAA gives the atmosphere of a fraternal place for a group of veterans to get together - without the responsibilities that come with running a club. And the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines that make up VFW Post 914 like the results.

“Because of the help we’ve received from the club, we’ve been able to concentrate more on supporting the community here in West Mifflin,” said Bradich, an Iraq War veteran. “The post has been recognized with a number of awards over the years, but we wouldn’t have been able to do near as much as we have without the help of the Thompson Run.”

West Mifflin’s VFW has maintained a solid track record during its more than 25-year run at the Ball Avenue club. Over the past five years, the veterans’ group was named as an All American Post, as well as an All State Post twice. At VFW Post 914’s last meeting March 28, the organization was awarded a 100 percent membership streamer by the national VFW. The new ribbon joins nearly a dozen others on the West Mifflin post’s colors.

“We do our best to be good citizens,” the commander said. “Meeting at the TRAA helps.”

Bradich also cited the work done by VFW Post 914 Patriot's Pen and Voice of Democracy chairman, Gary Ruston, as instrumental in promoting the organization’s youth scholarship programs.

“Because I don’t have to worry about running the club, I have more time to make certain our youth activity programs run smoothly” said Ruston, a Navy Gulf War veteran who also serves as the unit’s quartermaster. “Instead of ordering chips and nuts, I get to order medals and help hand out certificates. It’s a win for everybody.”

Other community groups that the post has supported over the years include youth sports programs, Scouting, the West Mifflin Area Senior High School Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps, and the Greater Pittsburgh Soapbox Derby. The unit also has an active hospital visitation program at Southwestern Veterans Center, and participates in many local parades and ceremonies.

In addition to the sign that will be placed on the TRAA building, the post has two other signs that will be placed at the North and South ends of West Mifflin. Each features the post name, as well as the traditional VFW logo. All of the signs should be up within the next few weeks.

“We’re proud to be part of West Mifflin and of our association with the TRAA,” said Bradich. “Our new signs will help remind people that we’re here to help our fellow veterans and the community, and hope to do so in the future.”