BUCKHANNON – Two local organizations are partnering to bring Christmas cheer to all homebound veterans in Upshur County.
On Tuesday, the Christian men’s group, the Band of Brothers, and the Frank B. Bartlett American Legion Post 7 announced they are collaborating to deliver all homebound veterans in Upshur County a 2021 West Virginia Scenic Calendar to brighten their spirits.
The Band of Brothers’ annual Christmas fundraiser, ‘Help Us Help Kids from 1 to 92’ is focused primarily on selling calendars to raise funds for nursing homes in Upshur and surrounding counties. The Christian men’s group will then donate the money to nursing homes, all of whom will utilize it as they see fit to orchestrate a Christmas celebration of some sort – for example, a dinner or an Angel-tree-type event – for their residents.
On Tuesday, the American Legion Post 7, headed up by post commander Ed Smith and post adjutant Mary Albaugh announced they were partnering with the Band of Brothers to purchase 2021 West Virginia Scenic Calendars – with all new, stunning photographs captured by Band of Brothers member Al Tucker – for all homebound veterans in Upshur County.
Post adjutant Mary Albaugh said Post 7 wants to work with the VFW Post 3663, the local DAV, the Upshur County Senior Center and Central West Virginia Aging to ensure each and every veteran receives a calendar.
“We’re going to contact them and see if we can get names of those veterans they serve to ensure they receive a calendar,” Albaugh said. “We’re going to need help to find out where they live and take them to them – of course, we already know our guys. We’re just starting this, and I think it’s wonderful.”
Tucker and fellow Band of Brothers members Kevin Hawkins and John Simons said they were honored to be part of the effort.
“We’re really humbled and honored to be a part of this,” Tucker said. “We’re vets – all of us – and it’s near and dear to our hearts to help our comrades, and it’s been an awfully difficult year for all of us. But for the homebound and those in the nursing home, it’s just been absolutely horrible, so we are going to do all we can to brighten their day. We’re so appreciate of Ed and Mary stepping up to do this.”
If you’d like to purchase a calendar for a veteran, please send a check for $15 made out to Band of Brothers and write ‘calendar for vet’ in the memo line, Tucker said. Checks may be mailed to Tucker’s home at 98 W. Lincoln St., Buckhannon, WV 26201.
The Band of Brothers members also thanked Amy Summerfield and Pat Brake, another Band of Brothers member, who had, prior to Tuesday, made an anonymous annual $5,000 contribution that pays for the cost of printing the calendars at Ralston Press.
“They did this anonymously prior to today,” Tucker said, “but I think the community deserves to know what kind of people live in our town.”
