Christ Episcopal Church in Binghamton graciously hosted the event.
There were two readings, which
were both well attended.
As usual, Chapter 90 had a presence at the St. Patrick's Day and
Memorial Day Parades in Binghamton. To help spread our message of peace, VFP Executive
Board Member Tom Palumbo joined
us for the St. Patrick's Day Parade,
along with others from Tioga County, NY. Through the years since 911, the crowds have become more
and more supportive of our message. Perhaps the country is gradually growing fatigued from our perpetual wars.
In January, several members visited a local mosque in Johnson City,
NY, which had an Open House. All
who attended were made to feel
welcome. Our Chapter is glad it
could be a part of this coming together of the community.
Chapter 91 - San Diego, CA
Gil Field
―Winter‖ here in San Diego found
Chapter 91 walking in the Martin
Luther King Day parade on January 18, hosting a double-booth
in the Earth Fair on April 17 and
later setting up our ―Hometown
Arlington West Memorial‖ in
front of the floating USS Midway
Museum on Memorial Day.
Chapter members also participated in the demonstrations to shut
down Creech Air Force Base in
March, and we began a 5 year program to educate the public in hopes
of reducing public interest and participation in the annual Miramar Air
Show, a huge defense contractor
event held here each October.
With the support of public donations, our chapter continued to purchase and personally deliver sleeping bags sets and other life essentials to our estimated 1,000 homeless vets and non-vets who live on
the streets downtown, having delivered over 2600 sets as of May 31
Members are now a recognized
source of quality commentary by
local TV and radio stations, who
often call us for opinions and interviews when world events happen.
Our chapter remains invigorated
by the post-9/11 vets who are now
officers and board members of the
chapter, as we rely on the more
seasoned vets from the Korean
conflict to keep us grounded
and reflective.
Chapter 92 - Seattle, WA
Keith Orchard
On April 15, Chapter 92 did our
annual tax day leafleting at
Westlake Park in Seattle with noted author David Swanson, highlighting the costs of war and the
disproportionate amount of the
federal discretionary budget that is
spent on the military. In the evening David Swanson gave a presentation on the second edition of his
book War Is a Lie at Town Hall in
Seattle, sponsored by chapter 92.
About 135 people attended.
On May 1, Chapter 92 marched
in Seattle‘s annual May Day Parade sponsored by El Comite from
El Centro de la Raza in Seattle.
This is the first time Chapter 92
marched in this immigrants‘ rights
and labor rights parade.
Chapter 93 - So. Central MI
Lynne D. Gilbert
Arlington Michigan Memorial Day
Members of the Chapter joined
the Detroit Chapter in a Memorial
Day observance, Arlington Michigan, in Detroit.
The Chapter installed a new
Peace Pole at the Episcopal Church
of the Incarnation in Ann Arbor, with
peace messages in English, Arabic,
Spanish, Chinese, and Korean.
Part of the ceremony honored longtime peace activist Mary Ann Perrone of ICPJ, with which the Chapter
plans to collaborate on some projects. Also recognized was Korean
War veteran Dell Mayes.
As part of Eastern Michigan‘s annual Martin Luther King, Jr. observances, Chapter President Bob
Krzewinski and Vice President Bill
Shea presented an hour-long seminar on King‘s anti-war activism, including the context in the Viet
Nam War and King‘s Riverside
Church address. Plans are
afoot to repeat the talk in 2017
and extend the presentation to
the University of Michigan.
The Chapter tabled at the annual
Earth Day at the Leslie Science
Center in Ann Arbor on April 17,
where kids responded to an opportunity to color a peace message,
and will table at the Ann Arbor
Green Fair on Friday, June 10,
where members will emphasize the
environmental costs of war.
Chapter 101 - San Jose, CA
Phil Pflager
VFP101, in conjunction with the
San Jose Peace and Justice Center
and the Peninsula Peace and Justice Center, participated in the Veterans For Peace Drone Quilt Project during the months of January,
February, and March by procuring
Drone Quilts and securing venues
for their display in the Bay Area.
Drone Quilts were displayed along
with foam boards describing the
quilt project and the impact of drone
warfare on civilian populations.
Quilts were displayed at the First
Congregational Church in Palo Alto,
the Los Altos library, DeAnza College in Cupertino, three Catholic
churches in Palo Alto, the Bechtel
International Center and the Markaz
Resource Center at Stanford University, and the San Jose Peace
and Justice Center.
VFP Newsletter Spring 2016 15