Russiaville Post 27 wanting to serve

AMVETS post accepts all honorably discharged military members

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Russiaville AMVETS Post 27 is still in its infancy and is really looking to grow, only having been present for a couple of years. They truly want to engage with those that have a servant’s heart, and still want to serve their country.

AMVETS is different. It is accessible to all, including the National Guard and Coast Guard which often are not recognized as Veterans unless they served in some capacity in the armed forces. With AMVETS if a service member has a DD214 that states they have been released under honorable conditions, they can join.

Through Russiaville AMVETS Post 27, there are several different programs to assist Veterans and their needs. Post 27 has four ACPCs, which stands for Association of Certified Biblical Counselors, on hand to provide services when needed. Not only are they a resource for Veterans, they are engaging in Biblical substance that provides unique perspective on overcoming obstacles and provides faith-based care grounded in the Word.

“The times we are living in and the way the world is, we know there is a need; people just don’t realize we are here”, said Katie Hillman, Post 27 adjutant.

“Founded and grounded in faith”, said Bob Webb, Post 27 Commander, when he described the organization, also mentioning that they have regular meetings at First Baptist Church in Russiaville. 

“We are all qualified to counsel any veteran for PTSD, and the counselors at our Post do this free”, said Webb.

Beneficiaries can access the very same services as well in recognition of the fact that the family members of Veterans deal with some of the same difficulties the Veterans do.

In 1944 there were seven different organizations that began to serve Veterans of war, while World War 2 was still active. In 1947 they all combined to create AMVETS, which stand for American Veterans.

The structure behind the program for Veterans was passed down by President Harry S. Truman himself, stating that the organization was to service all American Veterans who have been honorably discharged.

The uniqueness of AMVETS, aside from the fact that a member must have an honorable discharge, is that it serves all Veterans. Webb stated, “if you served a day and got washed out at boot camp under honorable conditions, you can join.”

In contrast, to access the American Legion a member had to serve in the years of conflict and must have some level of disability; To be a part of the VFW, a member must be a veteran of a foreign war.

AMVETS serve in Howard, Clinton, Tipton, and Carroll counties. One point that Hillman made was, “in order to become a member they don’t have to necessarily participate in all of our events. It does help us, though, when it comes to legislation being passed in Congress. The more [people] we have, the louder our voice is.”

Hillman, a community supporter and actively engaged in other areas outside of AMVETS Post 27, gets excited when she speaks about the investment into other community organizations through AMVETS. AMVETS has been a proud supporter of G.Y.S.T., which is a new nonprofit organization called Giving Youth Strategies to Thrive. They also support Turn About, an addiction resource center in Russiaville. Post 27 partners with them at various events to bring awareness to addiction.

Hillman put great emphasis on the fact that it is a family-friendly post.

“We have something for everyone, not just the Veteran,” said Hillman. “The Veterans themselves become members. Spouses can become a part of the auxiliary where they have their own separate meetings, and we have a juniors group as well. They all meet at the same time, same night, and same location. And at the end we all meet up again.”