WHAT’S NEWS IN WEST MIFFLIN
$1,000 IN
SCHOLARSHIPS
AWARDED BY WEST
MIFFLIN VFW
Three Walter R. Kuczma scholarships
were presented by Veterans of Foreign
Wars Post 914 Intrepid to graduating
seniors in May during the West Mifflin
Area High School convocation ceremony.
Elena Piel was selected for the top award,
Cassandra Nickelson took second and
Jenny Rohach took third.
Each scholarship awardee received a
recognition certificate from the post, as
well as cash awards of $500, $300 and
$200 respectively. The students competed
by writing an essay on the assigned
patriotic theme, “Why My Vote Matters.”
Faculty members of West Mifflin Area
High School selected the winners.
For graduating seniors Piel and Rohach,
these are the second scholarships received
from VFW Post 914. They each won
$100 participating in the post’s Voice of
Democracy competition this past year.
The West Mifflin VFW scholarship
program is named after the post’s founder
and first commander, Walter R. Kuczma.
Raised on Pittsburgh’s South Side during
the Great Depression, he enlisted in the
Navy during World War II at the age of 17,
and served aboard the USS Intrepid – the
battle-hardened aircraft carrier for which
VFW Post 914 is named.
West Mifflin VFW Post 914 Intrepid
Commander Jake Bradich, left, and Post
Quartermaster Gary Ruston presented Walter
Kuczma scholarships to three students,
first place winner Elena Piel, second place
Cassandra Nickelson, and third place Jenny
Rohach, at the West Mifflin Area High School
convocation ceremony May 22.
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As the post’s first commander, Kuczma
assisted with parades, support of local
youth athletic teams, the unit’s first Pearl
Harbor Remembrance Ceremony and
other VFW activities that helped the post
earn All American honors. He was also
instrumental in establishing post backing
for the West Mifflin Area High School
Titan Marching Band and the Air Force
Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps
program.
The Kuczma scholarships are awarded
each year to graduating seniors at West
Mifflin Area High School, and provide
cash awards to three students seeking
postsecondary education. Those interested
in applying should contact the high
school’s guidance office.
For more information about VFW Post
914 and its activities, visit the group’s
website at http://traa.weebly.com/vfw-
post-914.html or contact Commander
Bradich at 412.508.1313.
TWO MON VALLEY
VETERANS USE
PITTSBURGH
WARRIORS HOCKEY TO
HELP ‘ICE’ WOUNDS
Air Force veteran Richard J. Betler and
retired Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer
David G. Jackel, II, both lace up skates as
part of the Pittsburgh Warriors Hockey
program. The two members of Veterans
of Foreign Wars Post 914 Intrepid
West Mifflin agree that hockey helps
them decompress from the stress they
experienced in the military.
A nonprofit organization, the Pittsburgh
Warriors hockey team is made up of
honorably discharged, disabled veterans
who play hockey to help fight the physical
and mental scars of military service. The
group’s mission also encourages team
members to be more productive in their
communities, and build relationships with
fellow veterans.
To skate for the team, candidates
are required to provide a Veterans
Administration disability letter, as well as
proper discharge documentation noted
icmags.com
VFW Post 914 Intrepid West Mifflin
members David G. Jackel II, left, and
Richard J. Betler proudly wear their team
jerseys. The two local veterans lace up
skates as part of the Pittsburgh Warriors
hockey program.
on a DD Form 214. The group is affiliated
with the Pittsburgh Penguins through the
Hockey Sticks Together Foundation, and
wears the team’s logo. The Warriors team is
the only nonprofit disabled veteran hockey
squad authorized for this honor.
Last year, the Pittsburgh Warriors took
a divisional runner-up slot during the USA
Hockey Warrior Festival in Las Vegas,
Nevada, and is hoping to do even better at
the upcoming festival this October.
Ice time, equipment, uniforms, travel
and lodging are all funded by donations
through Hockey Sticks Together, the
Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation, and
various other businesses and individuals.
Personal equipment is preferred, but not
required.
Off the ice, both Betler and Jackel
are active in veterans affairs and in their
communities. Jackel serves as a volunteer
firefighter in West Mifflin, while Betler
works for the Veterans Administration.
As members of VFW Post 914, Jackel
has organized several community events,
including Memorial Day services at
Mitchell Paige Park, and Betler has
participated in veterans group fundraisers,
including the Disabled American Veterans
Colonel Samuel D. Foster Post 76 annual
installation and dance.