NJ 206OFFICERS

2018 ~ 2019

Thomas Miller* Commandant

Norman Nutt*Senior Vice

Commandant

John Andrews* Junior Vice

Commandant

Mike Dougherty* Judge Advocate

James Loizides Adjutant/Paymaster

Dan DanziChaplain

AnthonyOszmianski

Sergeant at Arms

Artie WilliamsQuartermaster

* = DetachmentTrustees

Welcome To Your OnLine Newsletter - Apr 2019 Volume #7 Issue 3

Links: Slattery Detachment 206 ~ Marines Care Foundation ~ Legacy of a Hero ~ Dept NJ MCL ~ MCL National This newsletter is interactive while online, highlighted links work & sometimes open a new screen. You can print each page separatelyor all, the page number is at top right of page. Officers & members wishing to post in the newsletter, please send info to Pete Gallo.

Feel free to forward this newsletter & web site. Editors: Don Patterson ~ Pete Gallo

www.marinescare.org

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery Marine Corps League, Detachment #206

Marines Care Foundation, Inc.,In Memory of L/CPL Chris Cosgrove, III

Whippany, New Jersey P.O. Box 566, West Caldwell, NJ 07007-0566 www.mclslatterydet.org

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #2

Detachment Monthly Meetings

1st Wednesday of the month - starts 1930 ***UPSTAIRS HALL*** at Post #155 American Legion Home13-23 Legion Place Whippany 07981 phone# 973- 884- 2494

2019 ScheduleSubject: 2019 dates to remember

MARINE ROSE EVENTS

11 May-Lake Hopatcong Block Party

15 June-Shoprite, W.Caldwell

15 Sept-Oct Miller (formerly Konner) Chevrolet,W.Caldwel

l2/3 Nov-Our Lady of the Lake Church,Verona. Additional locations in progress.

~ * ~

3 April regular meeting all regular meeting start at 1930 and held at Legion post 155 home Whippany

1 May regular meeting

25 May Flag placement at veterans grave sites meet at legion 0800

27 May Memorial day Parade meet at Hanover recreation center breakfast 0700- 0815 followed by shortservice at the Hanover veterans monument you then will be bused to the parade assembly location at thehigh school on East Fairchild place the parade starts at 0930 ends at the legion where a ceremony is heldwith Refreshments to follow the ceremony of hot dogs, beer, soda and ice cream. judge Advocate MikeDougherty is the guest speaker the hot dogs are prepared and served by members of the Polish Americanclub of Whippany.

5 June regular meeting.

14 June Flag Day Flag retirement ceremony at legion begins at dusk we join the other service groups.

** 10 July regular meeting instead of the 3rd.

25 July GOLF Outing fund raiser !

7 Aug regular meeting nomination of officers election in Sept

4 Sept regular meeting election of officers.

2 Oct regular meeting installation of officers start 1930 on completion of installation refreshments areserved.

6 Nov regular meeting.

10 Nov- 244th USMC birthday

4 Dec regular meeting.

8 Jan 2020 annual Social cost $25 per person

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #3

Commandant's Corner

Greetings Marines,

The first few months of the year have gone by fairly well without any major problems both inthe world and more closely, in the detachment. Now that we are into Spring, we are headedtowards warmer weather. This signals the start of our “Rose Season” lead by Bob Stalzer.When Bob gets a location near you, give him a call or send an email to him and volunteer tohelp out.

We also have to keep Dan Danzi and the “Danzi Platoon’s” short trip to the Lyons VA Hospital grounds inmind. The next one will be on Saturday, March 16th. Details in the “Important Up-coming Events” area ofthis newsletter.

Later this Spring will be the Memorial Day Parade in which Slattery is in charge of this year. That willhappen on Monday, May 27 which is Memorial Day. And, two days before remember that Slatterymembers place flags at Gate of Heaven Cemetary in East Hanover, This will happen on Saturday, May 25.We’ll discuss this at the May meeting.

If you have something of interest to the members, let me know and we will (the officers and I) figure outhow we can help, what needs to be done or who will take care of it. A good example of this is Al Bischoff’sgrandson’s leaving for boot camp. See that short piece on this in this newsletter.

Another major but little work involved event coming down the pike will be Golf Company 2/25 returningfrom Afghanistan. This will be covered more at the April and May meeting and in the next newsletter (Mayissue). The exact arrival date has not been set but should fall towards the mid to end of May.

Looking further is our major event of the year, the Slattery Golf Outing, which will take place on July 25 tobe precise. We will need a few members to “sit on the holes,” to do the registration, plant signs, gathergoodies for the tricky trays, and generally do what needs to be done to help John Andrews and CharBowie get this job done. This is our biggest money maker for the year, so let us get it done right. Also keepin mind that the ad book will be happening again this year - more on that later.

A lot of things to think about but many hands make the burden lighter and those many hands can still grabthose pizza slices at the end of the meetings. I appreciate how you have helped me so far these past fewmonths and look forward towards a great spring and summer. Summer is coming

Do have a Happy Easter or a memorable Passover. Pay your taxes and if you need a deduction, donate itto Slattery. See you at an event or at the next meeting.

Semper Fi, Tom Miller

Golf/2/25 at Work in Afghanistan

Golf/2/25 at Work in Afghanistan. Our 2/25 Golf Marines battle in Afghanistan more than what we think.Here's and update from March 2 where the Marines took care of business. It was an attack onCamp Shorab (previously known as Camp Leatherneck) where the Marines are based. The camp is madeup of several sections and houses the Afghanistan, US Army and US Marines. Bring up the article belowby going on the Wide World Web and inputting the following. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/01/world/asia/taliban-peace-talks-attack.amp.html

A video during the actual attack is on You tube if you want to pull it up. Go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nb4ZI5IrZfU&feature=youtube March 2019

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #4

This Month in USMC History

APRIL

3 April 1945: On Okinawa, Marines of the III Amphibious Corps continued to make good progressall along their front, clearing Zampa Misaki and seizing the Katchin Peninsula, thus effectivelycutting the island in two. By this date (D+2), III AC elements had reached objectives thoughtoriginally to require 11 days to take.5 April 1947: Five Marine guards were killed and eight wounded when attacked by CommunistChinese raiders near the Hsin Ho ammunition depot in Northern China. This last major clashbetween Marines of the 1st Marine Division and Communist forces occurred shortly after withdrawaland redeployment plans from China were issued for the 1st Division and 1st Marine Aircraft Wingon 1 April.10 April 1959 : Lieutenant Colonel John H. Glenn, Jr. was named as one of the original sevenProject Mercury astronauts selected for space training. The seven astronauts, all volunteers, wereselected by NASA from an initial group of 110 leading military test pilots. Three years later, on 20February 1962, Col Glenn would become the first American to orbit the Earth.12-13 April 1918: Marines of the 4th Brigade suffered their first gas attack on the night and earlymorning hours of 12-13 April when the Germans bombarded the 74th Company, 6th Marines nearVerdun with mustard gas. Nine Marine officers and 305 enlisted Marines were gassed andevacuated, and 30 Marines died from the effects of the gas shells which hit in the middle of thereserve area cantonments in which they were sleeping.15 April 1962: Marine Corps operational involvement in the Vietnam War began on Palm Sundaywhen HMM-362 with its Sikorsky UH-34s arrived at Soc Trang in the Delta south of Saigon. Thetask unit was called "Shufly" and its first operational employment involved lifting Vietnamese troopsinto battle.18 April 1983: One Marine Security Guard was killed and seven were wounded when a large carbomb exploded just outside the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. Lance Corporal RobertMcMaugh was standing guard at Post 1, just inside the front entrance when the bomb explodedoutside the door. The explosion killed 61 people including 17 Americans. LCpl McMaugh was buriedat Arlington National Cemetery on 26 April.21 April 1951: Marine carrier-based airplanes made their first aerial contact with enemy planesover the Korean front lines. Captain Philip C. Delong shot down two YAK fighters and 1st LieutenantHarold D. Daigh destroyed one more and damaged another in the heavily defended Pyongyang-Chinnanpo area. Both pilots were with VMF-312 flying from the USS Bataan.27 April 1805: First Lieutenant Presley N. O'Bannon, who with seven other Marines was part of aforce of Greeks and Arabs led by American Consul William Eaton, raised the United States flag forthe first time over a conquered fortress of the Old World at Derne, a stronghold of the Tripolitanpirates. Two Marines were killed and one wounded in the assault on the walled city.28 April 1993: The last A-6E Intruder departed from Marine Corps service. Marine All WeatherAttack Squadron 332 transferred the last Marine A-6E to St. Augustine, Florida, and prepared forthe squadron's transition to the F/A-18D and eventual movement from Cherry Point to Beaufort,South Carolina.

2019 Golf Outing

Get your here:

2019 Golf Outing Brochure

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #5

Retirement ceremony for Lieutenant Colonel John M. Chacko

One team one fight On Friday March 1st we had the honor of helping outwith the retirement ceremony for Lieutenant ColonelJohn M. Chacko Jr .

Semper Fi

Gunny Monaco

Eagle Scout ceremony for Andrew James Gigantino

On February 10th 2019 I had the honor of attending the Eagle Scout ceremony for Andrew JamesGigantino BSA Troop 155 Caldwell New Jersey Council. Eagle Scout is the highest advancement rank inBoy Scouting. Since 1912 more than two Million Boy Scouts have earned the Eagle Scout rank. In thewords of the Eagle Scout Promise, Eagles do their best each day to make their training an example, theirrank and their influence count strongly for better Scouting and for better citizenship in their troop, in theircommunity, and in their contacts with other people. To this they pledge their sacred honor

Gunny

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #6

Lyons Visit January 21, 2019

The Danzi Patrol to Lyon visit report

“The Danzi Patrol” of the Slattery Detachment visited Lyons on Saturday, January 19th. This visit was thefirst 2019 bi-monthly brunch provided by Dan Danzi and gang. It provided 45 attendees of the LyonsNursing home with support and friendship not to mention all the “goodies.”

There were a dozen members of the Slattery group there. Tony Oszmianski came down with Dan andAnthony Fiorentino and Tom Miller with Keith Butler. Others were there already and met the caravan atLyons for the feast. Artie Williams and Dave Katz along with Luis Gomez and “Caffe” his Bulldog guide-dogmet us there when we arrived. Eddie Neas Sr. and beautiful wife, Linda, dropped in later with son, EddieJr. and his wife, Christina. All hands chipped in not only to serve the veterans, but went around andchatted with most of them.

We arrived there about 0945 and soon had the hard rolls out and being cut as the other items wereunpackaged, Anthony sliced the rolls in half and soon other members were either buttering or creamcheesing them. Others were arranging the donuts, Danish and bananas on trays or just chatting with vets.

The very helpful VA staff assistance group of Jessica and Jennifer soon had the coffee ready for theresidents. Dan had the orange juice being poured into individual cups and given to the various veterans.The donuts and Danish were on trays and followed the hard rolls around for the vets to choose. Thebananas and canteen books were the last to be distributed at one to each.

When they finished, the Slattery members took a few minutes off to enjoy some bacon, egg and cheesecroissants or sausage, egg and cheese biscuits provided by Dan along with some Dunkin’ Donuts coffeefor the gang.

A good time was had by all but soon this good thing came to an end. We bid fair well and were out of thereand returned to the Whippany area by 11:45. If you haven’t tried it, contact Dan for the next trip. It shouldbe in March or at the latest April. A Pete Gallo blast will go out when we find out the Saturday date. It wasanother successful visit completed by Dan and gang.

Visnu Gonzalez baby

Marine sniper now a quad has baby: Visnu Gonzalez baby

Semper Fido - K9 Basics

Semper Fido - K9 Basics Do you know of a veteran who is in need of a service dog for his or her PTSD?To apply for a service dog from Semper Fido, Inc. the following are required: The applicant must provideproof of an Honorable Discharge (DD214) or Medical Discharge or if still on Active Duty, a MilitaryVerification of Service document; Provide a letter from their medical or psychiatric physician or therapistindicating that the applicant qualifies and would benefit from the companionship/partnering with a ServiceDog; additionally, provide a written prescription (Rx), for "(1) Service Dog for PTSD and/or TBI from theirmedical or psychiatric physician" (identifies medical necessity of the Service Dog); Provide (2) personalreferences., to whom Semper Fido, Inc. can send a reference request; The individual must travel toMarlton, NJ for training and is responsible for his own travel, lodging & meal expenses. Other than that theservice dog is provided and trained free of charge. The training process takes approximately six (6)months to complete. It is a big commitment but well worth it. We know our dogs have saved lives and thatis why we do what we do. Send them to... Semper Fido - Application to see all requirements and to apply

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #7

Mahwah pack 258 Mahwah New Jersey

On February 24th 2019 I had the honor of attendingthe Blue & Gold ceremony "Arrow of Light Awardceremony for Alex Wang, Anthony Zampino, BrandonTsu, Carter Cardine, Christopher Howard, Hailey Tsu,Ishan Prabhu, Jeremy Pestano, Matthew Posner, &Ryan Jarous(unfortunately he will not be able toattend) BSA Mahwah pack 258 Mahwah New JerseyCouncil. ARROW OF LIGHT AWARD. The highestrank in Cub Scouting is the Arrow of Light Award.Earning this rank prepares a Webelos Scout to become a Boy Scout. Webelos Scouts who have earnedthe Arrow of Light Award have also completed all requirements for the Boy Scout badge. We are soexcited to celebrate our 51st Blue & Gold banquet with all of our scouts, families, and distinguished guests.We are so proud of our Arrow of Lights and wish them well! Congratulations and best of luck in yourTroops!

Gunny

A Day At the USMC Recruiting Station

On Sunday, February 25th, Karl Bischoff started his first stop atbecoming a United States Marine after signing up with them at theU.S.M.C. Recruiting Sub-Station in Rockaway, New Jersey.

Karl and his family were at the recruiting station to receive the latestnews on how the next few days would be going for him. His mother andfather, Christine and Tom Bischoff were accompanied there by hisgrandfather, Al Bischoff and Al’s lady friend, Florence Cottone. Al is a

long time member of the Slattery Detachment, Tom Miller also joined them during the talk by Karlsrecruiter, Staff Sergeant Brendan Gagnon.

S/Sgt. Gagnon discussed what would be happening to Karl in the next few days, what should happenregarding the family and when graduation would take place. He also discussed the who, what, how andwhy to call should something happen that would be needed to know by Karl and where his first duty stationwould possibly be. This is just a short list of what he discussed.

A lot has changed since Al (1943) and I (1963) went into the Marines regarding enlistment. I remembergoing to the recruiter and enlisting all in the same day. Then the next stop was going and being sworn in atthe federal offices in Milwaukee. The following day going to the airport and flying out to San Diego andmeeting the first of our drill Instructors, S/Sgt Baker. Then being told to go out “that” door and wait for him.He should have been called “Sgt. Barker” as he came out and outpoured, “Get on those yellow footprintsyou maggots” and then, “Get on my f#$!@^& bus, move, move move.” What happened next is somewhatof a blur.

A lot of new and “exciting” things will be happening to Karl and the two other recruits who were joining andgoing to boot camp with him. In the coming weeks and months ahead there will be a lot of new things thathe will remember for the rest of his life. We wish him the best and hope that when he returns he will giveus an up-date as to how they are running things in South Carolina. Al has promised to bring us “news” ofKarl at one of our meetings. That’s one proud grandpa.

I will be trying to get S/Sgt Gagnon to come a give a talk on how they handle recruits like he did for Karl. Itwas a very interesting day.

Semper Fi, Tom Miller

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #8

Marine Joseph Ralph Bellofatto Thanks go to the family of Joseph Ralph Bellofatto. We received a donation from the family to be used by Marines Care to assist needyMarines.

Joe graduated from Passaic Valley High School in 1985 and joined the Marines shortly after. He proudly served in Persian Gulf WarOperation Desert Storm in 1991.

He was a skilled laborer, talented in painting, carpentry, and glazing and most recently worked at Hackensack Glass. He was an avidfisherman and a passionate cook. His charismatic personality and infectious laughter brought joy to many occasions.

Marine Bellofatto passed away on Monday March 4th, 2019 in Oak Ridge, NJ. just a week short of his 52nd birthday. We would like tothank him and also his family for the donation and for placing the memorial request in the obit that follows: “In lieu of flowers, memorialdonations can be made to Marines Care Foundation, Inc. P.O.Box 566 West Caldwell NJ 07007-0566 www.marinescare.org”

Thanks Joe for your service and for assisting needy service people with the donation.

Medal of Honor In October of 2018, SgtMaj John Canley was presented the CongressionalMedal of Honor. He was my Company Gunny during my time in Viet Namwith Alpha 1/1. As part of the three-day event, he was presented theMedal of Honor Flag at Marine Corps Barrack at 8th & I, Washington, DC.After the presentation, I made mention to one of the Majors present thatMrs. Gonzalez never received the Flag on behalf of her son Sgt AlfredoGonzalez who was KIA on 4 February 1968 in Hue City 51 years ago thismonth. He was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1969. CommandantGeneral Neller approached me and said he would make it happen and hedid.

I did some research on the Flag and this is what I found:

The Medal of Honor Flag, honoring the 3400 recipients of the medal, wasdesigned by William L. (Bill) Kendall of Jefferson, Iowa. Bill spent his entiremilitary career from 1954-1974 in the U.S. Army Special Forces andserved three tours with MACV-SOG in Vietnam.

The flag, which is presented to recipients of the Medal ofHonor, was sponsored through Congress byRepresentative Tom Latham and Senator CharlesGrassley in 2002. It became part of the CongressionalRecord on 24 June 2002 and approved by PresidentGeorge W. Bush in October 2002.

The thirteen white five-pointed stars are arranged as onthe current Medal of Honor ribbon. The original flagdesign by Bill Kendall was altered by the Institute ofHeraldry - removing the words "Medal of Honor" alongwith adding a gold border.

On Monday, 14 January 2019, nine Marines from AlphaCompany, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines arrived in EdinburgTexas. At our hotel in Edinburg, the owner asked us whywe were in town. When we told him about the ceremony,he told us that he had attended the Freddy GonzalezElementary school as a young boy. He and his wifepicked up our bar and snack tabs. Our group relayedstories of Sgt Gonzalez and the Battle of Hue City to himand his wife.

On the first day, while we were having breakfast at the hotel, we met a Marine wearing a 1/1 hat. He was withBravo 1/1 in 67-68.

He talked about the day Alpha 1/1 had to help his Company on 15 December 1967 at Con Thien. He did not makeHue City as his platoon was sent to another location during Tet. I presented for all to see the pictures and maps Ihave of Hue City. Coincidentally, he told us that he was in Infantry Training Regiment (ITR) with Cpl Norris Brenden,my Machine Gun Squad Leader, who was KIA on 5 February in Hue City. He saw the pictures I had of Cpl Brendenin my album. He told me knew head been killed. It’s absolutely amazing what happens when Marines get togetherno matter where we gather.

Continued next page

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - #9

Medal of Honor Continued

I also showed them some pictures andmementos of those who were KIA duringthe battle which I leave at the Viet NamVeterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DCwhen I visit during the Memorial DayWeekend. I create a personalized tribute toeach of them.

MGen Bradley James, the Commander ofMarine Forces Reserve, presented theMedal of Honor Flag to Mrs. DoliaGonzalez at the Freddy GonzalezElementary School on behalf of GeneralRobert Neller, Commandant of the MarineCorps. He was accompanied by SgtMajScott Grade, CMS Strack and CWO-5Brantley. Also present was Cpl TessaWatts, who is a Mass Communicator withStrategy and Operations atMARFORRRES. She photographed the event and did video interviews with a few of us about SgtGonzalez. Nine Marines that served with Sgt Gonzalez participated in the Medal of Honor Flag Ceremonyin Edinburg, Texas. Mrs. Gonzalez calls us “her boys”. The ceremony took place at the Freddy GonzalezElementary School named in Sgt Gonzalez’s honor.

This is the Joan ofArc Church which Ifound during myreturn to Hue Cityin March of 2016. Iam in the middle.Sgt Gonzalez diedin the church on 4Feb 1968. The1968 picture of thechurch in thecollage below hasfour Marineswalking out. GunnyCanley is the lastMarine. This issignificant sinceGunny Canley iswalking out of thechurch where SgtGonzalez died.

Both of them are Medal of Honor recipients with whom I had the honor to serve with in Alpha 1/1. The townof Edinburg, Texas and the Freddy Gonzalez Elementary School honors Sgt Gonzalez every day with whatthey do.

We were also able to visit the Museum of South Texas and saw the Sgt Gonzalez display. A good time washad by all in attendance and we represented all of those from Alpha 1/1 who could not make this greatevent.

Semper Fi,

Neas

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - 10

Lyons Visit March 16, 2019

The Danzi Patrol” of the Slattery Detachment visited Lyons on Saturday, March 16th. This visit was thesecond 2019 bi-monthly brunch provided by Dan Danzi and gang. And, a gang it was - 13 of us. Itprovided 35 - 40 attendees of the Lyons Nursing home with support and friendship not to mention all the“goodies.”

There were a dozen members of the Slattery group attending plus a daughter of one of the members. DanDanzi lead the group followed by Tony Oszmianski, Anthony Fiorentino, Artie Williams, John Andrews, EdMoscariello, Art Bowie, Kevin Lawless, Lee Minton, Tom Miller and Dave Katz. These eleven were joinedby the beauties of the group, associate member, Monika Flaherty and Lee’s daughter, Liz Minton. Theguys worked but the girls made us look like we were standing still - thanks ladies, you can join us anytime.All hands chipped in not only to serve the veterans, but went around and chatted with most of them.

We arrived there about 0945 and soon had the hard rolls out and being cut as the other items wereunpackaged, Anthony sliced the rolls in half and soon other members were either buttering or creamcheesing them. Others were arranging the donuts, Danish and bananas on trays, passing out orange juiceor just chatting with vets. Monica was "wheel chairing" around getting coffee for the vets - she's great withone hand and one foot. She says that her foot is getting better.

The very helpful VA staff had the coffee ready for the residents. Dan had the orange juice being pouredinto individual cups and given to the various veterans. The donuts and Danish were on trays and followedthe hard rolls around for the vets to choose. The bananas and canteen books were the last to bedistributed at one to each. We bid fair well and were out of there and returned to the Whippany area by11:30. Ed and Tom were a bit later as Ed had a flat in the parking lot. John Andrews stopped and helpedfix the problem as he has a miniature tow-truck in the back of his pick-up. Artie gave verbal assistance andMonika smiled and cheered us on. Fun day all around.

Hello All!

I was so thrilled to be able to join in on such a worthy cause, visiting our Veterans.

John Andrews had reached out to me on behalf of the detachment to send their well wishes. He was goodenough to transport me to Lyons VA so that I may participate in the visit, as I am unable to drive. I do thankhim for going out of his way and also for everyone’s well wishes!

I enjoyed our visit to Lyons today immensely and seeing so many friends from the detachment was a goodreminder how very fortunate I am.

:)Monika Flaherty

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - 11

Nebraska Floods Hit Hard

The farmers are bearing the brunt of "the most widespread destruction ever seen in the Nebraska state'shistory." said Nebraska governor Ricketts. The floods are all due to a confluence of conditions that includethe recent bomb cyclone storm, as well as frozen ground melting in the spring, warming weather pattersand heavy rain. The bomb cyclone pummeled the region with low pressure, heavy rains and blizzard-likeconditions before melting off and spawning floods that have forced more than 4,400 people to evacuatetheir homes.

"Obviously we'vegot a lot ofrecovery left aheadof us,” Ricketts toldCBSNews. "It'sgoing to be a longroad for us torebuild ourinfrastructure andget people back intheir homes." Thefloods have beennothing short ofcatastrophic: Atleast four peoplehave died, andestimated farmloses could top $1billion. Parts of 15

states are under flood watches and warnings with Nebraska in one of the worst conditions.

After doing some research, the Marines Care Foundation decided to do as much as they could with thedwindling funds that we have in the foundation coffers. The foundation is going to assist the flood victimswith the help of the donation that Bayer presented us at the Toys for Tots Day in December. We still had abit left over after assisting North Carolina, Georgia and Florida in hurricane relief and California inassistance with the horrendous fires.

The research we have been doing indicates that the town of Fremont, about 40 miles northwest of Omaha,became an island as the Platte River and Elkhorn River overflowed.

So, after we found out who needs help,Junior Vice of the Nebraska Marine CorpsLeague, Marine Jason House wascontacted. While talking to House he said,“that Fremont was like an island. Youcannot get in our out.” And went on to say,“we have no indication on how manyhomes were damaged or how many peopleneeded rescue.” The flooded Platte andElkhorn Rivers turned the town of Fremontinto “a mandatory evacuation” area forresidents by the Dodge County Sheriff'sOffice.

Continued on next page

L/CPL Robert J. Slattery, Marine Corps League Det #206, NEWSLETTER, Apr 2019 - 12

Nebraska Floods Hit Hard Continued

Here is an email I received from Jason while doing the research:So from talking to the Marines that havebeen hit by flood waters, here’s what i have learned. If they were renters the flood insurance doesn’t coveranything. The homes that were hit were not in a flood plane because of dikes and levys took them out offlood planes but all failed during flood. We are having furnaces, water heaters, air conditioners, washers,dryers, etc. all bring destroyed. And, in the foreseeable future, we understand that there maybe someinsurance additional claims. That may be in the future, but we know how long that can take and if theinsurance company even pays out. And we don’t need our Marines going without heat when it’s still in the20’s at night here.

On top of all of that, our Marines are having mud/sand that came into the homes with the river water. OneMarine had a foot of the mud outside his house and had to walk through it to get inside until I found a guywith a tractor to clear it out for him and all that mud is also in the basements and some may need itprofessional removed and then comes the chances of mold growing.

Pictures of the Fremont area (clockwise) - The floodwaters from the Niobrara River in the northern part ofthe state were so strong they blasted through the 90-year-old Spencer Dam on Thursday, drowning thelocal town of Lincoln in water and completely washing out a bridge on US Highway 281. A farm nearFremont pictured above as the town as turned into a virtual island after the Platte and Elkhorn Riversflooded. Highway road eaten out by the turbulent waters. Water pictured seeping into the west side of towndespite being the placement of sandbags in Fremont.

2019 Golf Outing

2019 Golf Brochure 2019 Golf Outing Brochure

2019 Golf Solicitation Letter2019 Golf Outing Solicitation Letter

Marines Carewww.marinescare.org

Slattery Det206 www.mclslatterydet.org

Dept NJ www.njmcl.org

MCL National www.mclnational.org