Meeting the Wyoming state VFW commanders in Guernsey

Mark DeLap
Posted 10/20/21

VFW meet and greet

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Meeting the Wyoming state VFW commanders in Guernsey

Posted

GUERNSEY – It was publicized as a chance to “meet the commanders” who are in charge of the VFW posts and activities across the state of Wyoming.

In attendance was VFW state commander Jim Rish who said it was a chance to tour the state and to meet with fellow VFW members.

“Our national commander wanted all the department commanders to do a tour,” Rish said. “So, if you are in Illinois, you can get a bus and drive 100 miles and hit 20 posts. Here in Wyoming, I can get a bus and drive 100 miles and I may not even hit a post.”

So the group had decided to have a “meet the commander” function. With Rish came Danielle Smith who is the Department of Wyoming Senior Vice-Commander who will be the Department of Wyoming commander in 2022, and Jason Zimmerman who is the Department of Wyoming Junior Vice-Commander.

The event was held at the Guernsey VFW post 4471 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Oct. 16.

“We decided to have the event here in Guernsey as it is a central location for Wheatland, Guernsey and Torrington,” Rish said. “It’s just sort of a meet and greet and we will have a lunch but conduct no business.”

The VFW auxiliary with president Pam Cain along with other auxiliary members were on hand to provide a meal for all the VFW members in attendance. There were sloppy Joes, beverages, snacks and some of Cain’s homemade raspberry desert with raspberries from her backyard garden.

The VFW numbers have waned in recent years and part of the goal of the members this year is to get the membership back up over 1 million.

“The national commander’s mission is to get all of the numbers back up,” Rish said. “We’re not going to do it all in one year, but our goal is to stay over a million. Because when he goes to brief Congress and things we want done for the veterans, it’s always nice to say, ‘well, I got a million, plus folks behind me.’”

Rish said he joined the VFW later in life and hesitated when he was younger because he said that all he ever saw was the guys sitting at a bar and drinking.

“Now, we want to put more emphasis in getting out into the community,” Rish said. “Showing the community what we are really about. We are family oriented, veteran oriented and community oriented. We have to get out and do things for them.”

According to Rish, the Lander Post just recently put on a huge pig roast and the whole town showed up.

“That’s what we want,” he said. “People really don’t know what we’re doing if we’re not out in the community doing it.