At its May 10 meeting, VFW Post 8870 and its Ladies Auxiliary installed newly elected officers who will assume their year-long terms in June, and also presented a donation to an Eagle Scout candidate. Fred Apgar was installed as Commander of Post 8870, and this will be his second year of serving in that capacity. Under Apgar’s leadership, the post has experienced significant growth in membership, ... »
By Michael Schindler North Korea. Boston Marathon. MIT Shooting. Ricin. Edmonds school lockdown. The headlines the past week were far from encouraging and indicate that America is facing both national and local threats. The recent events strike when Army leaders are telling Congress that the readiness Americans have come to expect from the Army “is at risk if sequestration and continuing resolutio... »
Steve Hartley of Muggshotz Caricatures was certainly on pace to break the unofficial record for the most caricatures draw in one hour Sunday evening. The current record stands at 129 caricatures, and Hartley completed 65 sketches in less than a half hour — all part of a fundraiser for Edmonds-based Operation Military Family, held at Lynnwood Bowl and Skate. A light turnout prevented Hartley ... »
By Fred M. Apgar VFW Post 8870 On April 10, VFW Post 8870 sponsored a public forum at Lake Forest Park’s Third Place Commons regarding the Fallen Heroes Project, featuring founder and president Michael Reagan. Mike, a portrait artist who lives and works in Edmonds, is combat veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who served in the Vietnam War. He began drawing portraits of fallen service members w... »
By David Pan Lynnwood Today Artist Steve Hartley currently holds the unofficial record for drawing the most caricatures in one hour. He drew 129 caricatures in 2008 to better his previous record of 119, which he established two years earlier. Hartley is stretching his fingers and arm in preparation for another potential record-setting attempt. As part of a fundraiser for Emdonds-based Operation Mi... »
By Michael Schindler Many of our veterans between the ages of 18 to 24 are unemployed due to their participation in the National Guard and Reserves. What was marketed as money for college, an opportunity to serve and great job experience is turning out to be a career killer. The unemployment rate for the 18-to-24-year-old veterans in February rose to 36.2 percent (60,000) from January’s 31.3 perce... »
Lynnwood Bowl and Skate is hosting a fundraiser to benefit military families Sunday, April 21, 5-7 p.m. The combination bowling alley/skating rink is teaming up with Steve Hartley of Muggshotz Caricatures, who will attempt to break the (unofficial) world record for the most caricatures drawn in one hour. (The current record stands at 129 caricatures drawn, and he’s aiming to break 150. That&... »
By Michael Schindler If you’ve ever had dealings with another human being, you know just how powerful your words can be – the old rhyme “sticks and stones may break my bones but your words will never hurt me” couldn’t be further from the truth. Our words have the power to uplift or deflate – whether spoken or written – and the Department of Psychology out of University of Texas at Austin, pe... »
By Fred M. Apgar Edmonds portrait artist Mike Reagan will discuss his work with the Fallen Heroes Project at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 10 at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, sponsored by Edmonds-based VFW Post 8870. The meeting is open to the public The foundation provides hand-drawn portraits of our nation’s Fallen Heroes — those men and women who have sacrificed their lives while servi... »
By Michael Schindler If you are a transitioning service member, the prospect of finding a new job in the civilian world can almost seem like “mission impossible.” Today’s headlines typically don’t highlight a company that is doing a massive job hiring, but rather quite the opposite: 200-300 layoffs at T-Mobile and 800 or so to be blessed and released from Boeing. But there is hope – real hope – in... »
By Michael Schinder With the recent success of “Zero Dark Thirty,” the release of the new documentary – “MURPH: The Protector,” from writer/director Scott Mactavish – couldn’t have come at a better time. “MURPH: The Protector,” which opened March 22, follows the life and service of Lt. Michael Murphy, U.S. Navy SEAL, who was killed in action during Operation Red... »
Edmonds Community College has signed an agreement with Edmonds-based Operation Military Family to be a test site for a new, free veterans information and resources website and mobile app called VAPP. “This is the beginning of a great new partnership,” said Edmonds Community College President Jean Hernandez. “We look forward to helping Operation Military Family with this valued service that lets ve... »
By Michael Schindler With all the political chatter from both parties, it can be a bit of a challenge navigating through the white noise of rhetoric to truly understand what sequestration means to our area. Do we need to be concerned or can we expect to go about our lives with a “business as usual” attitude? Expect an economic slowdown. Our military and veteran demographics have a significant impa... »
By Michael Schindler I’m a closet romantic. Took me eight months to get a date with the woman who is now my wife and after almost 20 years together, I still love her…and more importantly, she still loves me – which she would tell you hasn’t always been easy. But let’s be honest, this “happily ever-after” thing in the personal relationship side of life is work – and there are days it is all just ab... »
By Michael Schindler According to Stress in America, a study commissioned by the American Psychological Association, Millennials are the most stressed demographic. This not only impacts our military and Veteran populations, but every community across America – yes, even Edmonds. Real change is required. The study goes on to state, “While Millennials (ages 18 to 33) and Gen Xers (ages 34 to 47) rep... »
By Michael Schindler Some may be shocked to learn that a number of our service members are considered “low-income” families. With Health and Human Services now stating that a family of four making $23,050 or less meets the poverty threshold, a good number of our enlisted ranks in the first few years of service qualify. Specific to veterans, many low-income U.S. military veterans and their families... »
By Michael Schindler We are a nation in divided debate when it comes to gun control. Some camps are suggesting the Second Amendment is under attack, others are looking to reinterpret its original meaning, and our own Edmonds City Council is exploring how best to deal with the issue (might I suggest you look closely at what happened recently in Oak Harbor). Several weeks ago I addressed the 15-perc... »
By Michael Schindler The legislation that President Barack Obama signed Jan. 2 that postponed the fiscal cliff means changes to military and civilian paychecks. The legislation increases Social Security withholding taxes to 6.2 percent from the “tax holiday” rate of 4.2 percent many have enjoyed the past two years. This increase comes when many are experiencing increased health insuran... »
By Michael Schindler Despite some process and administrative changes in the Federal Veterans Administration, veterans can still expect they’ll have to fight to see their claim approved, and that approval could take well over three months if everything goes right. As we start 2013, many of the headlines are expressing the angst of what now seems to be the perpetual fiscal cliff and the rather disma... »
By Fred M. Apgar VFW Post 8870 Ten-time Emmy Award winner Bryan Johnston of Lake Forest Park attended a recent meeting of VFW Post 8870 to provide members with a preview of his newly published book, “Man With a Gun.” For nearly three decades, Johnston was a television and video writer/producer, and he is the author of three books. His latest, just released in December, weaves several h... »
By Michael Schindler A few days ago, I had a homeless veteran and his 78-year-old mother sitting in my office. I offered them both a cup of coffee and once we were settled in, the mom shared how the “system” had failed her son to the point that they were now living together…for the past seven months…in a seriously dilapidated Buick that has no heater. She too had fallen on hard times. Because they... »
By Michael Schindler “I haven’t changed my view that the continually increasing debt is the biggest threat we have to our national security.” — Admiral Mike Mullen, former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, August 2011. Talk about a cliff hanger…that has gone on for months. Our elected officials can’t seem to shake loose a bit of good cheer and solve a constitutional issue of passing a b... »
Two local teachers were recently recognized by Edmonds-based VFW Post 8870 for their ongoing efforts to promote American history, traditions and its institutions; teach and reinforce citizenship education topics; and promote democratic values and beliefs. The teacher recognition program is sponsored by the National VFW through its Citizenship Education Teacher Awards Program. At the Post’s D... »
By Michael Schindler I absolutely love Christmas – I love the reason for the season, I love the joy that seems to descend upon the masses and how frowns seem to turn upside down into smiles, and I especially love the anticipation kids across the country have when it comes to the packages under the tree. When it comes to military families, sometimes the best presents are the returning mom or dad. N... »
Every two weeks, My Edmonds News will publish a portrait made by Edmonds artist Michael Reagan, through his Fallen Heroes project, to honor a fallen U.S. solider and the loved ones they have left behind. This week, we feature Corporal Daniel L. Linnabary II, USMC, 23, who was killed Aug. 6, 2012 in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Corporal Linnabary, along with his father and grandfather, was the su... »
By Michael Schindler Diane Falzone, a television/radio host, relationship expert, and advice columnist for Military.com, recently wrote an article asking, “Should military marriages include a ‘deployment sex pact’”? As one can imagine, she got a plethora of responses – some surprisingly supporting such a pact. Having penned a book specific to military couples fighting to preserve their marriages, ... »
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