Weekend Potpourri

It being Memorial day weekend I am going to be apolitical Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Although I may post some individual items of political interest unless it is in response to a blatant distortion of facts it will not be campaign material.

I am confused (not unusual my detractors claim) by the following from Mark Spivey's article on the Senior Citizen's Center dedication; "state Veterans of Foreign Wars official Anthony Nelson Sr. noted that the city's 55-year-old VFW chapter, the oldest in Union County, finally has a place to call its own."

When I was discharged from the AUS on Jan. 2, 1946 there were two very active veteran's organizations in the Plainfield/North Plainfield area. both dated back to at least the post WWI era and at least one and probably both had Spanish-American war veterans among their membership. It is a fact that for some reason which I can not recall ,that on Memorial and Armistice Day's the VFW boycotted any rituals at the Memorial in the Crescent Ave, Watchung Ave, East Seventh Street intersection. The long forgotten dispute was over the inscription on the base of the memorial.

I was a member of the VFW for a short period of time and I believe that the meetings may have been held in the Masonic Lodge rooms (Park & 7th). Some time afterwards the post moved to the Redman's(?) Building on (again memory is poor)west side of Duer St. just beyond the brook in North Plainfield. I know the post was active through the 50s so I wonder what happened that this VFW post is only 55 years old? Please update me.

I am happy that Assemblyman Green set the record straight about his sons. If anyone had taken the time to look up the reference at the Courier they would have seen that the salaries mentioned was for the basis of their pension plan contributions several years ago.

In addition JG wrote about his son Sheldon; "His job as Plainfield Emergency Management Coordinator is a title, a title that brings him no monetary benefit."

That was probably on response to an anonymous comment to an entry about Emergency Management in Plainfield which I believe I posted in early March' "The Emergency Management Coordinator for Plainfield is Sheldon Green, Jerry Green's son, he is a fireman here in Plainfield. He is paid an additional stipend for that role."

I could not find in time available any funding for the Emergency Management Committee. Again any further info is appreciated.

The first of three segments of my first days in service starts today.