Thanksgiving was amazing this year! We attended the Veterans at the Hurricane Creek Grange in Joseph. They had many veterans in attendance and much conversation was enjoyed by us all.

The Elks Lodge was filled with even more veterans at their official Elks Veterans Dinner on Nov. 12. When we arrived and greeted whoever we recognized, we sat down and a gentleman was selling raffle tickets to help fix the damage sustained by our American Legion building in Wallowa during the August hailstorm. It was such a surprise! Our eyes teared up a bit to hear this.

The raffle to help our building’s roof for Kruse Post 72 raised $398. It was amazing to hear.

Then it was time to sit at the long tables, so beautifully decorated, and choose our meal entrée, steak or chicken. It was a grand feast. The emcee proceeded to announce and recognized several people, including Jack James and his lovely wife, Stacey. They are our new Disabled American Veterans (DAV), service officers in the county. DAV is one of, if not the best, service organizations in the country.

I dealt with DAV employees as a veterans benefits counselor/federal adjudicator for the Department of Veterans Affairs Region Office in Houston. They not only attended our training classes, but they also attended training sessions offered by the DAV. The training involves learning how the body works and how injuries affect other parts of the body.

Kim Hutchinson, quartermaster for the VFW in Enterprise, spoke at the patriotic event. And I greeted an Air Force couple who work at our local clinic. What blessings to be amongst our veterans.

The people in this county have a patriotic heart and it is greatly appreciated. Thanks to Wallowa County for supporting our veterans.