Freehold VFW plans for rebirth with new veterans
BY DICK METZGAR
Staff Writer

There is a major effort afoot to breathe new life into the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post No. 4374 on Waterworks Road, Freehold Township.

The post was chartered in 1946 by a group of returning World War II veterans who wished to serve the needs of returning veterans while serving the community.

With the ranks of the nation's World War II veterans thinning at a fast rate on a daily basic, the local post has experienced difficulty in attracting new members from veterans of more recent conflicts on foreign soil, including the Vietnam War, the Persian Gulf War and veterans returning now from service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The post has a large facility on 7 acres on Waterworks Road.

Although the post has continued to be active in community affairs, in recent years attracting new members has been difficult, according to Victor Iannelli, of Freehold Borough, the post commander.

Iannelli, a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War who served with the 82nd Airborne, said the post is inviting area veterans to attend a special meeting to discuss the future of the organization on Nov. 2 from 7:30-9:30 p.m.

"The theme of the meeting will be 'Meet the 'New' VFW' as it creates for the future built on the traditions of the past," Iannelli said. "The post is now looking to the future and the needs of our newest veterans and our community. As such, we would be honored to have veterans join our discussion at that time on how we can assist our National Guard/active personnel and their families when they are deployed overseas and when they return, and our continuing support for the future needs of the community. We would be pleased to have the thoughts of these veterans and how they would like to play a role in helping. We expect this meeting will be memorable, entertaining and informative."

The post's vice commander, Rob Johnson, of Marlboro, is also an Army veteran of the Vietnam War.

"The VFW is an important part of our community," said Johnson, who made a return trip to Vietnam in 2004, almost 40 years after fighting in the war in southeast Asia. "The post has always been a place where old veterans can go and get together with other veterans and talk. It is important for the post to provide the necessary amenities for our veterans to get together."

Although the post's bar closed more than 10 years ago, Iannelli said he has been raising funds for some renovations to the existing facility.

"The building itself is in good shape structurally," Iannelli said. "However, we hope to spend about $22,000 for some renovations."

Attorney Alexander Levchuk, 87, who has his office on West Main Street, Freehold Borough, was one of the post's early members after having served in the U.S. Army in World War II in Africa, Italy, France and Germany. Levchuk was a first lieutenant at the end of the war.

"Harry Sagotsky, a World War II veteran, local attorney and Freehold Borough councilman, was one of the veterans who was involved in the creation of the post in 1946," Levchuk recalled this week. "I was a young attorney at the time. I joined the post about one year later. I wish these latest post organizers the best of luck in what they are attempting to accomplish. The post is an important part of the community."

Iannelli said the post currently has more than 300 members, about 40 of whom are active.

"We would like to attract about 30 more active members this year," Iannelli said.

Nationally, the VFW traces its roots back to 1899 when veterans of the Spanish American War (1898) and the Philippine Insurrection (1898-1902) founded local organizations to secure rights and benefits for their service. The organization's motto has always been "honoring the dead by helping the living."

The VFW, with its auxiliaries, includes 2.4 million members in about 9,000 posts worldwide, according to the organization's Web site (VFW.org).

Veterans wishing to attend the Nov. 2 meeting at the post on Waterworks Road, Freehold Township, should contact Iannelli in advance by sending an e-mail to viannelli@finsvcs.com, or by calling (732) 683-1000, ext. 13. Leave a message including name and number of guests.