A VFW Post in Connecticut used its social media reach in March to help needy community members during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Volunteers at VFW Post 1523 in Putnam, Conn., display items in March collected for area organizations to help their community’s elderly population. Post 1523 Quartermaster Antonio Rendon said the Post has collected about $2,000 worth of goods since it started in late March. Photo courtesy of VFW Post 1523.VFW Post 1532 in Putnam, Conn., used its location as a drop-off point for donations to the older residents, including veterans, according to Post Quartermaster Antonio Rendon.
“We have reached out to our community on Facebook and our local radio station, WINY Radio,” Rendon said. “We collected donations from our community to help our elderly in the community who couldn't get out to get the necessary goods to survive during this period.”
Rendon added that he and other volunteers “worked tirelessly” in collecting, organizing and distributing donations at the Post, including:
- Jessica Malarkey, an Auxiliary member
- Cariann LG, an Auxiliary member
- Sonja Chanllor, an Auxiliary member
- Rhonda Lajoie
- Susan Pratt
Items collected at the Post, which has amounted to about $2,000 worth of goods according to Rendon, will be donated to Putnam-area senior housing developments, as well as other northeast Connecticut organizations, including TEEG, Daily Bread and Friends of Assisi Food Pantry.
By Dave Spiva/VFW magazine