Stand Down
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In spite of being repeatedly admonished that for every act of Do-Goodery, there must be an equal and opposite act of lowbrow BuFoonery, BuFoon John continues to tilt the balance dangerously over to the Do-Goodery side. Fortunately, we have great confidence in his legendary talent for Random Acts of Goofery. He’s a born Trickster, so I’m certain things will reach homeostasis. (To avoid confusion, homeostasis has nothing whatsoever to do with what you may think it does, although it is not unheard of for Trickster Shamans to go cross-gender if it serves their purposes. To my knowledge, BuFoon John only cross-dresses at Easter and Christmas.)
Without further nonsense:
BuFoon Steve
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Fellow Bufoons:
The Veterans stand down went well. We saw some 200 vets come through the doors and we were able to get enough flu shots, from the Health Department and the Hospital, to give those vets at risk a shot that should help protect them this season. I think we wound up giving some 40+ shots. We would have given more, but that’s what we could scrounge from the two agencies.
All the guys that are living in tents got new tents and lots of great camping stuff, like new camp stoves and cooking utensils. We even had some cast iron frying pans and Dutch Ovens to give to those that needed them. There was a huge selection of boots and all those that needed new shoes or boots were able to find a pair that fit. Swain’s, a local general mercantile, donated packets of ”T” shirts and underwear – even thermal underwear - in all sizes. The guys that wanted them were able to take whatever they needed. We had a huge assortment of clothes for not only the vets, but for families, and we were able to give out lots of clothes to the families as well.
We did a fair amount of medical stuff and were able to give out over-the-counter medications for colds and allergies, as well as Motrin and Tylenol. We even got a few of the guys to sign up to go over to the VA clinics and get medications for their chronic medical problems.
All in all, it was a great day, and after 10 hours on my feet I was glad to get home and sit in my chair, have some dinner and hit the bed.
Love you all,
Itchwoot
P.S. I need to add to this note: Dr. Hopfner and his wife Phyllis, who head this up every year, have been able to get a grant from the Department of Labor for about 25K. Along with other donations, they are able to purchase all kinds of things the vets might need, particularly those that are homeless or living in tents.There are three Stand Downs: One in Port Townsend, usually in late summer or early fall, one in Port Angeles, the first week of October, and one in Forks, usually the first week of May. About 7 thousand dollars is needed to purchase all the materials for each Stand down, and whatever is left over will go toward the next event or to homeless shelters for the Vets. There are a large number of volunteers. Most are veterans and their families, and of course the VFW and the Foreign Legion and other veteran organizations, such as the Marine and Army Auxilliaries, to mention a few are involved. Each year it has gotten bigger and bigger and we see more and more vets. We are now dealing with Desert Storm, Iraq, Bosnia and Afghanistan Veterans, as well as WWII, Korean and Vietnam Veterans. There was a volunteer group from the Homeless Shelter that provided an incredible breakfast and afternoon meal.
It was a most rewarding day and we were honored to be able to provide some sense of belonging and comfort to a lot of vets. Hip Hip Hurray! Hats off and heartfelt thanks to all.
