VFW 322

VFW 322 The VFW mission is to "honor the dead by helping the living" through veterans' service, community service, national security and a strong national defense.

Welcome to VFW Post 322
The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, with its Auxiliaries, includes 2.2 million members in approximately 8,100 Posts worldwide. Its mission is to "honor the dead by helping the living" through veterans' service, community service, national security and a strong national defense. The VFW traces its roots back to 1899 when veterans of the Spanish-American War (1

898) and the Philippine Insurrection (1899-1902) founded local organizations to secure rights and benefits for their service: Many arrived home wounded or sick. There was no medical care or veterans' pension for them, and they were left to care for themselves. In their misery, some of these veterans banded together and formed organizations with what would become known as the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. After chapters were formed in Ohio, Colorado and Pennsylvania, the movement quickly gained momentum. By 1915, membership grew to 5,000; by 1936, membership was almost 200,000. Since then, the VFW's voice had been instrumental in establishing the Veterans Administration, creating a GI bill for the 20th century, the development of the national cemetery system and the fight for compensation for Vietnam vets exposed to Agent Orange and for veterans diagnosed with Gulf War Syndrome. In 2008, VFW won a long-fought victory with the passing of a GI Bill for the 21st Century, giving expanded educational benefits to America's active-duty service members, and members of the Guard and Reserves, fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

11/14/2025
11/06/2025

They stripped her Medal of Honor in 1917. She refused to return it, wearing it daily on her men's suit until she died in 1919. It was restored 58 years later. She was right all along.
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker was the only woman ever awarded the Medal of Honor. The U.S. government tried to take it back. She told them to go to hell—not in those words exactly, but in every action for the rest of her life.
She was born November 26, 1832, on a farm in Oswego, New York. Her parents were abolitionists and educational reformers who believed daughters deserved the same opportunities as sons. Radical idea for 1832. Mary's father taught her carpentry, mechanics, and medicine. Her mother taught her that corsets were instruments of torture designed to keep women weak.
Mary rejected corsets at age 15. She started wearing "reform dress"—shorter skirts over trousers, modeled after Turkish women's clothing. She was mocked constantly. She didn't care. She'd decided that fashion designed to restrict women's movement was fashion designed to restrict women's lives.
At 21, she enrolled in Syracuse Medical College. One of the only women in America pursuing medical education. Her male classmates harassed her. Professors questioned whether women had the intellectual capacity for medicine. She graduated in 1855 with her M.D.—one of the first women doctors in the United States.
Then she discovered that having a medical degree meant nothing if no one would hire you.
She opened a private practice with her husband, Albert Miller (also a doctor). Patients refused to see a female doctor. The practice failed. Her marriage failed too—Miller had affairs, and Mary divorced him in 1869. Scandalous for the era. She kept her maiden name. Even more scandalous.
By 1861, Mary was 28, divorced, struggling financially, and then the Civil War started. She saw opportunity.
She traveled to Washington D.C. and volunteered as a surgeon for the Union Army. The Army said no. Women could be nurses—cleaning, cooking, comforting. Not surgeons. Not officers. Not equals.
Mary went to the front anyway. Unpaid. Unofficial. She set up near battlefields and treated whoever needed help. After the First Battle of Bull Run (July 1861), she worked in a temporary hospital in the Patent Office building, treating hundreds of wounded soldiers.
Army officials couldn't deny she was skilled. In 1862, they hired her—as a nurse. She took the job because it got her near the wounded. But she didn't just nurse—she diagnosed, prescribed, operated. Surgeons who initially resented her began requesting her assistance.
She also wore what she wanted: modified officer's uniform with trousers. Male officers complained. She ignored them. "I don't wear men's clothes," she said. "I wear my own clothes."
For two years, she worked in field hospitals, often under fire. She assisted in surgeries where men screamed and limbs were sawed off without anesthesia (supplies were limited). She walked through battlefields pulling wounded men to safety. She contracted typhoid fever and nearly died. She recovered and returned to work.
In September 1863, she was finally appointed as Army surgeon—civilian contract, but official recognition. She was assigned to the 52nd Ohio Infantry. She became the first female U.S. Army surgeon.
But Mary wanted to do more. She started crossing into Confederate territory to treat civilian wounded—women, children, elderly left behind in war zones. Dangerous work. She was a Union officer behind enemy lines.
On April 10, 1864, near Chattanooga, Tennessee, Confederate soldiers captured her. They accused her of being a spy. She wasn't—she was treating civilians. But she was wearing a Union officer's uniform in Confederate territory, so they imprisoned her.
She was held at Castle Thunder in Richmond, Virginia—a notorious Confederate prison. Conditions were brutal: overcrowded, disease-ridden, minimal food. Male prisoners of war were beaten and starved. Mary, as the only female officer prisoner, was kept in slightly better conditions (separate cell) but still endured four months of hunger, isolation, and uncertainty.
In August 1864, she was released in a prisoner exchange—traded for a Confederate officer. She'd lost significant weight and her health was damaged permanently. She returned to duty immediately.
November 11, 1865: President Andrew Johnson awarded Mary Edwards Walker the Medal of Honor for her service during the Civil War. The citation praised her "valuable service" including "devoted[ness] to the sick and wounded" and her capture while "furnishing medical assistance to the wounded."
She was the first and only woman to receive it. She wore it every day for the rest of her life.
After the war, Mary became a writer, lecturer, and activist. She campaigned for:

Women's suffrage (right to vote—wouldn't be achieved until 1920)
Dress reform (opposed corsets, promoted practical clothing for women)
Women's property rights (married women couldn't own property in many states)
Temperance (alcohol prohibition—she'd seen alcohol destroy families)

She was considered eccentric, radical, difficult. She wore full men's suits with top hat. She was arrested multiple times for "impersonating a man" (it was illegal in some cities for women to wear trousers). She'd show up in court wearing her Medal of Honor and lecture the judge about women's rights.
People mocked her. Newspapers called her "a crazy woman in men's clothes." Cartoonists drew cruel caricatures. She didn't stop. She gave speeches across the country, wrote books, testified before Congress.
Then came 1917.
Congress passed a law revising Medal of Honor standards. They wanted to make it more exclusive—only for combat valor involving "risk of life above and beyond the call of duty" in direct combat with enemy forces.
They reviewed all previous recipients. They revoked 911 medals—mostly Civil War era awards given for non-combat service. Mary's was among them.
The Army Board for Correction of Military Records sent her a letter: return the medal.
Mary Edwards Walker, 84 years old, wrote back: No.
She wore it every day until she died. On her suit lapel. To lectures. To the grocery store. Everywhere. Pinned over her heart like armor.
She died February 21, 1919, at age 86. She'd tripped on the steps of the Capitol building (she was there lobbying for women's suffrage) and never fully recovered.
She was buried in her black suit, with her Medal of Honor pinned to her chest.
For 58 years, the revocation stood. Mary Edwards Walker was officially not a Medal of Honor recipient, despite the medal being buried with her, despite her service, despite everything.
Then, in 1977, a campaign by her descendants and supporters reached President Jimmy Carter. He reviewed her service record. On June 10, 1977, Carter signed legislation restoring her Medal of Honor.
She remains the only woman ever awarded the Medal of Honor.
Here's what her story actually shows:
She wasn't recognized because she was exceptional. She was exceptional despite never being recognized—at least not in her lifetime. She served as a surgeon for years before the Army officially acknowledged it. She received the Medal of Honor, then had it stripped, then restored 58 years after her death.
She spent her entire life fighting for the right to simply exist as she was: a woman who wore practical clothes, practiced medicine, spoke her mind, and refused to apologize.
The world called her crazy. History calls her right.
Every woman who became a military surgeon after her walked a path Mary cleared—usually without credit. Every woman who wears pants without arrest walks in freedom Mary fought for. Every female Medal of Honor debate references the woman who wouldn't give hers back.
She didn't wait for permission. She didn't wait for society to approve. She didn't wait for the rules to change.
She just lived as if the rules didn't apply to her. And eventually—decades after her death—the world admitted she'd been right.
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker died in 1919 wearing the medal they'd tried to take. She was buried with it pinned to her chest. And in 1977, the United States government finally admitted: she'd earned it all along.
She was the only woman to receive the Medal of Honor. They tried to take it back. She refused.
And 58 years after she died, they admitted she'd been right to refuse.
Sometimes being ahead of your time means dying before your time catches up. But it catches up eventually.
And when it does, the medal's still pinned to your chest—exactly where you knew it belonged.

10/31/2025

Major John “Lucky” Luckadoo has taken his final flight at 103— the last living member of the legendary “Bloody Hundredth” Bomb Group.

As a B-17 Flying Fortress pilot, he braved the deadly skies over Germany, where flak and enemy fighters claimed so many of his brothers. They called him “Lucky” — not for chance, but for courage. Mission after mission, he survived the inferno that few ever returned from, carrying the memories of those who did not.

For more than a century, he bore witness — telling their stories so the world would remember the true cost of freedom.

Now, the skies have grown quiet. Major Luckadoo has rejoined his crew, the ones who never came home. But his bravery, resilience, and devotion will forever echo across the heavens — a timeless salute to the Greatest Generation.

🕊️ Clear skies, Major. Your mission is complete. 🇺🇸✈️

10/29/2025

Brigadier General James Stewart, one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors, became the highest-ranking actor in U.S. military history. Enlisting before World War II, he served as a bomber pilot in the Army Air Corps, flying dangerous combat missions over Europe.

Stewart’s dedication extended beyond the war—he remained in the Air Force Reserve, eventually rising to Brigadier General. Balancing fame and service, he embodied true patriotism, earning numerous decorations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal, for his courage and leadership.

10/28/2025
10/25/2025

This one is going around. 💯 ~Baboo

10/23/2025

On this day in history......19 Oct 1994 – Honorary Special Forces LTC Martha Raye died.

During the Vietnam War, she was made an honorary Green Beret because she visited United States Army Special Forces in Vietnam, and she helped out when things got bad in Special Forces A-Camps. Because of those actions, she came to be known affectionately by the Green Berets as "Colonel Maggie." She continued her relationship with the Green Berets for the rest of her life. She built a guest house for Green Berets on the grounds of her home in Los Angeles and made many trips to Fort Bragg and other Special Forces Posts throughout her life. In 1988, the Special Forces Association Convention held in Fayetteville, NC carried the theme of "Honoring COL Maggie".

Maggie died of pneumonia on October 19, 1994, after a long history of cardiovascular disease. Martha Raye was 78 years of age, and residing in Los Angeles at the time of her death.

On November 2, 1993, Martha Raye was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, by President Bill Clinton, for her service to her country.

---Mud

05/26/2025

Lest we forget!

In 1975, a bloody civil war erupted in Lebanon, with Palestinian and leftist Muslim guerrillas battling militias of the Christian Phalange Party, the Maronite Christian community, and other groups. During the next few years, Syrian, Israeli, and United Nations interventions failed to resolve the factional fighting, and on August 20, 1982, a multinational force including 800 U.S. Marines was ordered to Beirut to help coordinate the Palestinian withdrawal.

The Marines left Lebanese territory on September 10 but returned in strengthened numbers on September 29, following the massacre of Palestinian refugees by a Christian militia. The next day, the first U.S. Marine to die during the mission was killed while defusing a bomb. Other Marines fell prey to snipers. On April 18, 1983, a su***de bomber driving a van devastated the U.S. embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people, including 17 Americans. Then, on October 23, a Lebanese terrorist plowed his bomb-laden truck through three guard posts, a barbed-wire fence, and into the lobby of the Marines Corps headquarters in Beirut, where he detonated a massive bomb, killing 241 marine, navy, and army personnel. The bomb, which was made of a sophisticated explosive enhanced by gas, had an explosive power equivalent to 18,000 pounds of dynamite. The identities of the embassy and barracks bombers were not determined, but they were suspected to be Shiite terrorists associated with Iran. • CPL Terry W. Abbott, USMC
* LCPL Clemon S. Alexander, USMC
* PFC John R. Allman, USMC
* CPL Moses J. Arnold JR., USMC
* PFC Charles K. Bailey, USMC
* LCPL Nicholas Baker, USMC
* LCPL Johnsen Banks, USMC
* LCPL Richard E. Barrett, USMC
* HM1 Ronny K. Bates, USN
* 1STSGT David L. Battle, USMC
* LCPL James R. Baynard, USMC
* HN Jesse W. Beamon, USN
* GYSGT Alvin Belmer, USMC
* PFC Stephen Bland, USMC
* SGT Richard L. Blankenship, USMC
* LCPL John W. Blocker, USMC
* CAPT Joseph J. Boccia JR., USMC
* CPL Leon Bohannon JR., USMC
* SSGT John R. Bohnet JR., USMC
* CPL John J. Bonk JR., USMC
* LCPL Jeffrey L. Boulos, USMC
* CPL David R. Bousum, USMC
* 1STLT John N. Boyett, USMC
* CPL Anthony Brown, USMC
* LCPL David W. Brown, USMC
* LCPL Bobby S. Buchanan JR., USMC
* CPL John B. Buckmaster, USMC
* PFC William F. Burley, USMC
* HN Jimmy R. Cain, USN
* CPL Paul L. Callahan, USMC
* SGT Mecot E. Camara, USMC
* PFC Bradly J. Campus, USMC
* LCPL Johnnie D. Ceasar, USMC
* PFC Marc L. Cole, USMC
* SP4 Marcus A. Coleman, USA
* PFC Juan M. Comas, USMC
* SGT Robert A. Conley, USMC
* CPL Charles D. Cook, USMC
* LCPL Curtis J. Cooper, USMC
* LCPL Johnny L. Copeland, USMC
* CPL Bert D. Corcoran, USMC
* LCPL David L. Cosner, USMC
* SGT Kevin P. Coulman, USMC
* LCPL Brett A. Croft, USMC
* LCPL Rick R. Crudale, USMC
* LCPL Kevin P. Custard, USMC
* LCPL Russell E. Cyzick, USMC
* MAJ Andrew L. Davis, USMC
* PFC Sidney S. Decker, USMC
* PFC Michael J. Devlin, USMC
* LCPL Thomas A. Dibenedetto, USMC
* PVT Nathaniel G. Dorsey, USMC
* SGTMAJ Frederick B. Douglass, USMC
* CPL Timothy J. Dunnigan, USMC
* HN Bryan L. Earle, USN
* MSGT Roy L. Edwards, USMC
* HM3 William D. Elliot JR., USN
* LCPL Jesse Ellison, USMC
* PFC Danny R. Estes, USMC
* PFC Sean F. Estler, USMC
* HM3 James E. Faulk, USN
* PFC Richard A. Fluegel, USMC
* CPL Steven M. Forrester, USMC
* HM3 William B. Foster JR., USN
* CPL Michael D. Fulcher, USMC
* LCPL Benjamin E. Fuller, USMC
* LCPL Michael S. Fulton, USMC
* CPL William Gaines JR., USMC
* LCPL Sean R. Gallagher, USMC
* LCPL David B. Gander, USMC
* LCPL George M. Gangur, USMC
* SSGT Leland E. Gann, USMC
* LCPL Randall J. Garcia, USMC
* SSGT Ronald J. Garcia, USMC
* LCPL David D. Gay, USMC
* SSGT Harold D. Ghumm, USMC
* LCPL Warner Gibbs JR., USMC
* CPL Timothy R. Giblin, USMC
* ETC Michael W. Gorchinski, USN
* LCPL Richard J. Gordon, USMC
* LCPL Harold F. Gratton, USMC
* SGT Robert B. Greaser, USMC
* LCPL Davin M. Green, USMC
* LCPL Thomas A. Hairston, USMC
* SGT Freddie Haltiwanger JR., USMC
* LCPL Virgil D. Hamilton, USMC
* SGT Gilbert Hanton, USMC
* LCPL William Hart, USMC
* CAPT Michael S. Haskell, USMC
* PFC Michael A. Hastings, USMC
* CAPT Paul A. Hein, USMC
* LCPL Douglas E. held, USMC
* PFC Mark A. Helms, USMC
* LCPL Ferrandy D. Henderson, USMC
* SSGT John Hendrickson, USMC
* MSGT Matilde Hernandez JR., USMC
* CPL Stanley G. Hester, USMC
* GYSGT Donald W. Hildreth, USMC
* SSGT Richard H. Holberton, USMC
* HM3 Robert S. Holland, USN
* LCPL Bruce A. Hollingshead, USMC
* PFC Melvin D. Holmes, USMC
* CPL Bruce L. Howard, USMC
* LT John R. Hudson, USN
* CPL Terry L. Hudson, USMC
* LCPL Lyndon J. Hue, USMC
* 2NDLT Maurice E. Hukill, USMC
* LCPL Edward F. Iacovino JR., USMC
* PFC John J. Ingalls, USMC
* WO1 Paul G. Innocenzi III, USMC
* LCPL James J. Jackowski, USMC
* LCPL Jeffrey W. James, USMC
* LCPL Nathaniel W. Jenkins, USMC
* HM2 Michael H. Johnson, USN
* CPL Edward A. Johnston, USMC
* LCPL Steven Jones, USMC
* PFC Thomas A. Julian, USMC
* HM2 Marion E. Kees, USN
* SGT Thomas C. Keown, USMC
* GYSGT Edward E. Kimm, USMC
* LCPL Walter V. Kingsley, USMC
* SGT Daniel S. Kluck, USA
* LCPL James C. Knipple, USMC
* LCPL Freas H. Kreischer III, USMC
* LCPL Keith J. Laise, USMC
* LCPL Thomas G. Lamb, USMC
* LCPL James J. Langon IV, USMC
* SGT Michael S. Lariviere, USMC
* CPL Steven B. Lariviere, USMC
* MSGT Richard L. Lemnah, USMC
* CPL David A. Lewis, USMC
* SGT Val S. Lewis, USMC
* CPL Joseph R. Livingston, USMC
* LCPL Paul D. Lyon JR., USMC
* MAJ John W. Macroglou, USMC
* CPL Samuel Maitland, USMC
* SSGT Charlie R. Martin, USMC
* PFC Jack L. Martin, USMC
* CPL David S. Massa, USMC
* SGT Michael R. Massman, USMC
* PVT Joseph J. Mattacchione, USMC
* LCPL John McCall, USMC
* SGT James E. McDonough, USMC
* LCPL Timothy R. McMahon, USMC
* LCPL Timothy D. McNeely, USMC
* HM2 George N. McVicker II, USN
* PFC Louis Melendez, USMC
* SGT Richard H. Menkins II, USMC
* CPL Michael D. Mercer, USMC
* LCPL Ronald W. Meurer, USMC
* HM3 Joseph P. Milano, USN
* CPL Joseph P. Moore, USMC
* LCPL Richard A. Morrow, USMC
* LCPL John F. Muffler, USMC
* CPL Alex Munoz, USMC
* CPL Harry D. Myers, USMC
* 1STLT David J. Nairn, USMC
* LCPL Luis A. Nava, USMC
* CPL John A. Olson, USMC
* PFC Robert P. Olson, USMC
* CWO3 Richard C. Ortiz, USMC
* PFC Jeffrey B. Owen, USMC
* CPL Joseph A. Owens, USMC
* CPL Connie Ray Page, USMC
* LCPL Ulysses Parker, USMC
* LCPL Mark W. Payne, USMC
* GYSGT John L. Pearson, USMC
* PFC Thomas S. Perron, USMC
* SGT John A. Phillips JR., USMC
* HMC George W. Piercy, USN
* 1STLT Clyde W. Plymel, USMC
* SGT William H. Pollard, USMC
* SGT Rafael I. Pomalestorres, USMC
* CPL Victor M. Prevatt, USMC
* PFC James C. Price, USMC
* SSGT Patrick K. Prindeville, USMC
* PFC Eric A. Pulliam, USMC
* HM3 Diomedes J. Quirante, USN
* LCPL David M. Randolph, USMC
* GYSGT Charles R. Ray, USMC
* PFC Rui A. Relvas, USMC
* PFC Terrance L. Rich, USMC
* LCPL Warren Richardson, USMC
* SGT Juan C. Rodriguez, USMC
* LCPL Louis J. Rotondo, USMC
* LCPL Guillermo Sanpedro JR., USMC
* LCPL Michael C. Sauls, USMC
* 1STLT Charles J. Schnorf, USMC
* PFC Scott L. Schultz, USMC
* CAPT Peter J. Scialabba, USMC
* CPL Gary R. Scott, USMC
* CPL Ronald L. Shallo, USMC
* CPL Thomas A. Shipp, USMC
* LCPL Jerryl D. Shropshire, USMC
* LCPL James F. Silvia, USMC
* LCPL Larry H. Simpson JR., USMC
* LCPL Stanley J. Sliwinski, USMC
* LCPL Kirk H. Smith, USMC
* SSGT Thomas G. Smith, USMC
* CAPT Vincent L. Smith, USMC
* LCPL Edward Soares, USMC
* 1STLT William S. Sommerhof, USMC
* LCPL Michael C. Spaulding, USMC
* LCPL John W. Spearing, USMC
* LCPL Stephen E. Spencer, USMC
* LCPL Bill J. Stelpflug, USMC
* LCPL Horace R. Stephens, USMC
* PFC Craig S. Stockton, USMC
* LCPL Jeffrey G. Stokes, USMC
* LCPL Thomas D. Stowe, USMC
* LCPL Eric D. Sturghill, USMC
* LCPL Devon L. Sundar, USMC
* LT James F. Surch JR., USN
* CPL Dennis A. Thompson, USMC
* SSGT Thomas P. Thorstad, USMC
* PFC Stephen D. Tingley, USMC
* LCPL John J. Tishmack, USMC PFC
* Donald H. Vallone JR., USMC
* CPL Eric R. Walker, USMC
* CPL Leonard W. Walker, USMC
* CPL Eric G. Washington, USMC
* CPL Obrian Weekes, USMC
* 1STSGT Tandy W. Wells, USMC
* LCPL Steven B. Wentworth, USMC
* SGT Allen D. Wesley, USMC
* GYSGT Lloyd D. West, USMC
* SSGT John R. Weyl, USMC
* CPL Burton D. Wherland JR., USMC
* LCPL Dwayne W. Wigglesworth, USMC
* LCPL Rodney J. Williams, USMC
* GYSGT Scipio Williams JR., USMC
* LCPL Johnny A. Williamson, USMC
* CAPT Walter E. Wint JR., USMC
* CAPT William E. Winter, USMC
* CPL John E. Wolfe, USMC
* 1STLT Donald E. Woollett, USMC
* HM3 David E. Worley, USN
* PFC Craig L. Wyche, USMC
* SFC James G. Yarber, USA
* SGT Jeffrey D. Young, USMC
* 1STLT William A. Zimmerman

Address

3800 S Windermere Street
Englewood, CO
80110

Opening Hours

Monday 2pm - 10pm
Tuesday 2pm - 10pm
Wednesday 2pm - 10pm
Thursday 2pm - 10pm
Friday 2pm - 12am
Saturday 2pm - 12am
Sunday 2pm - 9pm

Telephone

(303) 789-9146

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