Thank you!

Next week is Thanksgiving, and we have a lot to be thankful for this year. We’ve accomplished a lot in the last year, thanks to the support of generous people just like you. See for yourself!

Trip of a lifetime for National Home’s “Liberty Kids”

It was the trip of a lifetime for the VFW National Home for Children’s “Liberty Kids”, eleven residents who got the chance to travel to New York City and join with members of the Ladies Auxiliary to the VFW and their National President, Gwen Rankin, in celebrating the Statue of Liberty’s 125^th anniversary.

“I am so lucky to be able to see this as a 10-year-old kid,” exclaimed one participant. “Most people will never get to see this in their lifetime!”

The main event for the group was the opportunity to participate in the Ladies Auxiliary’s annual presentation of its donation to the Statue of Liberty National Monument. The “Liberty Kids” worked hard throughout the year on several fun

draising projects so they could present their own gift to the Statue. They were warmly received by the audience when they presented their check for nearly $1,700 for the Statue’s upkeep.

The boat ride over was the kids’ first chance for a real-life look at the Statue. On the way, the group made a special connection with some of their fellow passengers. In the words of Misty Botke, a National Home staff member and trip chaperone:

“While on the boat waiting to leave Ellis Island, we finally coaxed everyone to come out on the deck because of the sun finally was warming things up, and a woman asked who the group of kids were.  When she heard who we were she started crying. Sadly she said she was ashamed she hadn’t visited the National Home in many years.  It was so sweet how the girls in our group immediately took to her and comforted her and spent time talking with her. As the girls were talking with this lady, I looked over at her husband and saw he was crying too.  That really shows just who much the National Home means to people.”

The group was also able to do some sightseeing while they were in New York. Highlights included a matinee performance of The Lion King on Broadway, the Empire State Building, the Toys R Us flagship store, complete with life-size Candyland game and outrageous Lego sculptures, and a visit to Carlo’s Bakery, home of the Cake Boss. They also enjoyed the chance to walk around and just experience the hustle and bustle of the city.

View more photos of the “Liberty Kids” in New York.

2011 Buddy Poppy has strong veteran roots

Buddy Poppy Child Kristina Marier at the 2011 VFW Convention

“My great-grandfather was a Navy veteran who served in World War II. My great-uncle was an Army veteran who served in Vietnam. My uncle is an Air Force veteran who served in Operation Desert Storm. And my dad is a Marine and Army veteran who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and continues to serve today,” proudly proclaimed 2011 Buddy Poppy Child Kristina Marier to the crowd assembled at the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Convention. And the crowd shared her enthusiasm, reacting with applause and cheers as “their” branches of service were named.

Kristina, who is 10, lives at the National Home with her parents and two younger brothers.

“I love living at the National Home because of what it has done for our family,” Kristina says. “We have lots of friends, places to play, and we are happy again.”

Some of Kristina’s favorite experiences at the National Home so far include participating in 4-H and raising her pig, Hammy, to show at the fair (they placed 3^rd), taking piano lessons and being active in the Jr. Girls.

Watch Kristina address crowd at the 2011 VFW National Convention in San Antonio.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars has held its annual poppy drive since 1922 to raise money for needy and disabled veterans and their families. A portion of the proceeds benefits the privately-funded VFW National Home for Children. Each year since 1930, children from the National Home have been chosen as Buddy Poppy Children to represent the National Home in the VFW community.

Missouri and Wisconsin bring Halloween fun to the National Home

Ghosts and ghouls, super heroes and fairy godmothers… Wait! Was that Hannah Montana who just walked by?

You never know who you’re going to meet during the Missouri-Wisconsin Fall Festival at the VFW National Home for Children.

With prizes for the top costumes in each age bracket, from preschool to adults, everyone comes looking their best. The competition is fierce, and the judges must decide their favorites under immense pressure. As you can see, it’s no easy task!

Win or lose, everyone has a great time at this annual event, which also includes a lunch of bratwursts and pizza, face painting, carnival games and, of course, candy.

View more photos from the Missouri-Wisconsin Fall Festival.

New duplex means we can help even more military and veteran families

The newest duplex on the VFW National Home for Children campus was officially opened at a ribbon-cutting ceremony under bright blue skies Saturday morning. The two new homes, the Air Force House and the Air National Guard House were constructed with funds donated by James B. Logg, a veteran of both the Air Force and Air National Guard and a strong supporter of veteran family causes.

It is the first time an individual has funded the construction of a home on the National Home campus.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by local and national dignitaries who showed their commitment to our nation’s veterans and their families. Attendees included Veterans of Foreign Wars Jr. Vice Commander in Chief William “Bill” Thien, Ladies Auxiliary Sr. Vice President Leanne Lemley and Military Order of the Cooties Supreme Commander Joe McCullough, as well as Department leaders from the VFW and Ladies Auxiliary.

The Air Force House and the Air National Guard House will accommodate participants in our Military Family, Veteran Family and Single-Parent Family programs.

Each side of the 2400-square foot duplex includes three bedrooms and two bathrooms.  Both units are ADA compliant. Maintenance and upkeep of the Air Force House will be sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of Europe while the Military Order of the Cootie Grand of Florida and its Auxiliary will sponsor the upkeep of the Air National Guard House.

Read the Lansing State Journal’s coverage of the dedication.

View more photos from the dedication.

Illinois Day brings fall fun to the National Home

VFW and Ladies Auxiliary members by the busload and carload descended on the National Home for the annual Illinois Day celebration on Saturday.This year was extra special for Illinois, in light of the fact that the 2011-2012 Buddy Poppy Child, Kristina hails from Chicago. She was greeted with extra cheers from the crowd when she delivered her speech during the event.

As part of the annual celebration, visitors had the chance to check out the two Illinois houses as well as several other campus buildings before heading inside the Community Center, where they enjoyed ice cream and popcorn in the cafe, carnival games in the auditorium and lunch in the gym. After lunch, they were treated to a performance by the National Home Chorus and heard updates from members of the National Home’s management team on current construction projects and other things happening on campus.

For many, it was their first trip to the National Home, and everyone left with a stronger sense of its mission and the important role it plays in helping our nation’s military and veteran families.

View photos of Illinois Day on our Flickr page.

National Home welcomes Indiana friends

VFW and Ladies Auxiliary members from across Indiana converged on the National Home this Sunday for the annual Indiana Day celebration. For many, this is an annual trip north to visit the campus and interact with the families and staff. But for some, including this year’s Department Veteran Family Support Chairman, Cheryl Dillard, this was their first time on our campus.

“The National Home has always been in my heart,” Cheryl said. But seeing it in person gave it a whole new meaning for her. “It is everything I imagined and more.”

Whether it was their first visit or their 20th, visitors departed with a stronger bond with the National Home and the families it serves.

View photos from Indiana Day 2011.

A busy and fun summer at the VFW National Home for Children

Getting ready for a fun week at Camp Trotter

“What did you do on your summer vacation?” is a question most every child has answered a time or two at this time of year. If you ask the children and teens living at the VFW National Home for Children this question, don’t expect a short answer.

Whether raising rabbits and pigs for the annual county fair, participating in our Education Department’s Summer Enrichment Program, weekly trips to the nearby VA hospital, heading off to Camp Trotter, fishing in Lake Erie or riding the rides at Cedar Point, residents had lots of opportunities to keep busy.

Visiting the Ledges at nearby Fitzgerald Park

The chorus was also hard at work preparing for the VFW National Convention and the Work Crew kept campus looking great all summer.

For Education Services Supervisor Laura Lonsbery, the Summer Enrichment Program serves two purposes: keeping the children engaged and learning so they’re ready to hit the ground running when school starts back up in the fall and showing that learning can be fun.

“This year we focused on giving the children more choices and control over summer program topics,” Laura said. “We gave them some general topics, like upcycling, sewing, cooking and science.  The kids then brainstormed ideas of projects they wanted to complete.”

Upcycling an old t-shirt into a rug

Some of the projects they completed included “upcycling” an old skirt into a purse and old t-shirts into rugs, starting their own square-foot garden, making their own ice cream and fruit smoothies and collecting and identifying insects from around the campus. They also went on several field trips and did LOTS of reading.

“Participants were encouraged to read all summer through our library section of summer program,” Laura said. “They learned about different genres, explored the range of books available in our library and participated in reading challenges like making a joke jar during humor week.”

Looking up at the dome on a field trip to the state Capitol Building

The Recreation staff also did their part to keep the children busy this summer. Fifteen children showed hogs and one showed rabbits through the 4-H program this year.

“The kids had a great week, showing their animals, camping at the fair, working in the food shack and selling their animals,” said Nancy Bowers, who oversees the 4-H program. “We had one first place hog, a third place and two fourth place ribbons in hog showmanship and a fourth place ribbon for rabbit showmanship. The hog kids also were honored by the 4-H swine superintendants as the best out of 12 clubs in the hog barn for doing chores on time and being responsible and helpful at fair.”

The National Home club took home a 4th place ribbon in Rabbit Showmanship.

One more note of praise for the 4-H program came from a third-generation local hog farmer, who said, “Without a doubt every year the VFW kids ALWAYS come to the fair, well prepared, knowledgeable about their species, and by FAR always keep the cleanest pens of any of the clubs.”

Twelve children packed up and headed to Camp Trotter for a week in August, where they fished, swam, rode paddleboats, had campfires and did other camp activities.

Looking forward to some time on the lake at Camp Trotter

“The kids had a great time at Camp Trotter and didn’t want to leave the camp when we went to pick them up!” Nancy said. “Many of them had never been to camp before and told us about making new friends and serenaded us on the trip home with campfire songs.”

While some of the moms had a hard time saying goodbye as the kids headed north, they were all grateful for the opportunity their children had, courtesy of the VFW Department of Michigan.

Youth Worker Brian Lorente said he encountered two problems managing this year’s Campus Work Crew: not enough bug spray to fend off an abundant (and hungry) crop of mosquitoes and not enough projects to keep his eager and efficient crew busy.

Over the summer, the crew put more than 480 miles on the “blue truck” while they weeded and mulched the gardens around the houses, repainted curbs, picked up loose trash around the dumpsters, helped prepare for state days and cleaned and organized several areas around campus.

Members of the Work Crew head off to another project

For their hard work, members of the work crew were honored with special “paper plate awards” that included the Andre the Giant Award, the Band-Aid Award and the Scorpion Queen Award.

Finally, twenty-five residents traveled to Ohio for the annual Lake Erie fishing trip, organized by VFW member Jack Uber. The Port Clinton VFW post fed the hungry crew before they headed out to fish. The group got to fish for six hours and caught 150 perch. Prizes were awarded for first fish caught, biggest fish and most fish caught.

Getting ready to hit the water for the 2011 Lake Erie fishing trip

These activities and more made for a fun and interesting summer on the National Home campus. So if you happen to meet any of the National Home residents and you ask about their summer vacation, just be prepared for a lengthy answer.

Proud Veterans Motorcycle Club visits National Home

The National Home welcomed more than forty riders from the Proud Veterans Motorcycle Club of Parma, MI, on Saturday. The riders visited campus as part of their annual Poker Run, which raises money for the National Home.

Riders arrive on campus during their annual Poker Run for the National Home.

Would you like to visit the National Home? Check out our Calendar for upcoming events or contact us to schedule a tour.

Nursery beats the heat with lemonade stand

What’s better on a hot summer day than a glass of ice cold lemonade? How about having that lemonade served to you by some of the cutest kids on the National Home campus? That’s just the treat campus residents and staff got to enjoy when, earlier this summer, children at the Ladies Auxiliary Nursery hosted a lemonade stand to raise money for field trip snacks.

The children raised a total of $28, some of which they converted to treats for some of the animals they saw on their recent trip to the zoo, including this guy.

They plan to use the remaining money for a trip to the bowling alley later this month to celebrate with the preschool graduates before they head off to kindergarten.