Little was a veteran of World War II having served in the U.S. Navy. He was a 58-year member of the Hoffman-Townsend American Legion Post No. 74 in Brookings. He served that Post in all offices including Post Commander, Post Adjutant and Post Finance Officer. He served as editor of the Post newsletter for several years and as President of the South Dakota American Legion Press Association in 1977-78.

Little served as District 2 Commander in 1972-74, State Vice Commander for Districts 2, 5 and 6 in 1978-79 and served four years as a member of the South Dakota American Legion Administrative Committee from 1973-77. He was selected as the District 2 Legionnaire of the Year in 1975. George Little was elected as the State Commander of The American Legion, Department of South Dakota in June 1980 during the 62nd Annual State Convention in Sioux Falls.

Visitation will be Thursday, October 24th from 5:00-8:00 p.m. at the Eidsness Funeral Home at 1617 Orchard Dr. in Brookings. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Friday, October 25th at the First Baptist Church, 527 Fifth St., Brookings, SD and internment will be at the Greenwood Cemetery in Brookings.

Cards and memorials may be sent to PDC Little’s widow, Hazelle, at 908 Christine Ave. #106, Brookings, SD 57006. Memorial donations may be made to The South Dakota American Legion Trust, the First Baptist Church, or the Brookings County Veterans Memorial.

Cammack Ranch Supply, Inc., of Union Center has been selected by the South Dakota American Legion Employment Committee to be the recipient of the 2002-2003 Employer of the Disabled Award.

The nomination form stated in part, "Cammack Building Supply hired a young man with a handicap in a very rural area. The employee had little experience in anything except ranch labor (before his accident). The owner, Gary Cammack, utilized a Department of Labor training program to create a job for the young man. Mr. Cammack bent over backward to make accommodations so that the employee could function as well as anyone else in the work environment. He lowered a portion of the counter, offered to pour concrete pads for wheelchair access, offered to outfit a pickup truck for hand controls, was willing to provide a golf cart for yard access, raised a desk to wheelchair height, and more. Mr. Cammack worked with other agencies, both public and private, toward the goal of remodeling his building so that the employee could access the second floor.

Gary Cammack is an exceptional employer, especially for an area as isolated as Union Center. His willingness to make accommodations for his handicapped employee is above and beyond any expectations.

Congratulations to Gary Cammack and Cammack Ranch Supply, Inc. of Union Center, SD. The Employer of the Year Award for hiring the disabled worker will be presented during the State Convention in June 2003, in Spearfish.

National Commander Ronald F. Conley of Pennsylvania has appointed or re-appointed 18 South Dakota Legionnaires to positions on national American Legion committees, commissions or councils, according to National Executive Committeeman Paul Evenson of Renner.

The appointments, which the NEC approved in October, include:

• Larry L. Price of Redfield to a one-year term as Vice Chairman of the National Americanism Commission.
• Aaron Anderson of Veblen, Maynard Hieb of Mitchell, Richard Hovorka of Tabor, Richard MacDonald of Rapid City, and Darrell Salter of Parker to one-year terms as Vice Chairmen of the Americanism Council.
• Gunner D. Baatrup of Virgil, Dennis Brenden of De Smet, Glen Kelley of Sioux Falls, and Charles Kunstle of Corsica to one-year terms as Vice Chairmen of the Foreign Relations Council.
• Stanley J. Gruneich of Flandreau to a one-year term as the National Commander's Representative to the Trophies, Awards and Ceremonials Committee.
• Donald T. Clarke of Wessington to a one-year term as Vice Chairman of the National Security Commission.
• Paul Evenson of Renner to a one-year term as a member of the National Security Commission Liaison Committee.
• James T. "Terry" Anderson of Wagner, Thomas Jurek of Mobridge, and Wayne Monson of Reliance to one-year terms as Vice Chairmen of the National Security Council.
• Wayne Vetter to a three-year term as a member of the Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Commission Executive Section.
• Darrel Haskell of Conde to a three-year term as a member of the VA&R Commission for Region 6.

Also enclosed for Commanders are two brochures to be used in conjunction with American Education Week (Nov. 17-23). These brochures may be reproduced locally as needed.

National Historian of The American Legion, Donald F. Simons, has announced that The American Legion, Department of South Dakota, has been awarded First Place in the One-Year Department Narrative History Contest and First Place in the One-Year Department Yearbook History Contest.

Department Historian Charemon Dunham of Iroquois prepared the two award-winning history entries. This makes four years in a row that South Dakota's entries in the history contest have placed in the top three in the national competition.

Harris-Dennis Post 151 of Mellette, SD, will receive a Certificate of Participation in the National One-Year Post Yearbook History Contest. Mellette's Post Historian is Bernard Fischbach of Mellette.

Congratulations to all involved in the national level competition.

The House of Representatives is often referred to as the People's Chamber because they represent a much smaller constituency than most Senators. Last week, the House passed a motion to instruct the House Conferees to the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2003 Conference Committee to accept the Senate version of concurrent receipt by a vote of 391-0 with 40 members not voting. But that was not enough for the House Conferees. In fact, the House voted to go into recess and the House Conferees walked away from the bargaining table with Senate Conferees.

Why? Because top advisors to President Bush have recommended a veto of the National Defense Authorization Act if it contains any form of concurrent receipt. The Pentagon leadership has stereotyped all service-connected disabled military retirees as wealthy "double-dippers" wanting to take money away from active-duty service members preparing for war.

But we know the truth. As veterans, we understand the hardships associated with military service. We also know military retirees, both service-connected disabled and not, that are anything but wealthy. We know military retirees that cannot afford the co-payments, much less the premiums required to participate in TRICARE, DoD's privatized healthcare delivery system.

Please contact the White House, your Senators, and your Representative today and deliver these three simple messages:

• Enact concurrent receipt legislation - the Senate version, or a reasonable compromise of the two.
• The National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2003 must be cleared by Election Day.
• If the President does veto the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2003, please join your colleagues and override the veto.

Senator Tim Johnson: 324 Hart Senate Office Bldg., Washington, D.C. 20510-4104, phone 202-224-5842. Sioux Falls phone: 800-537-0025. Web site: johnson.senate.gov

Representative John Thune: 1005 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515-4101, phone 202-225-2801. Sioux Falls phone: 800-755-5646. Web site: johnthune.house.gov

The correct method to file a change of address for membership in The American Legion is by reporting it to State Headquarters on a Member Data Form. Member Data Forms are available from State Headquarters. If you need some, just ask and we will provide them to your Post Adjutant.

Membership cards are processed with a bar code scanner at State Headquarters. There is a very good chance that if you write an address correction on the membership card, prior to sending it to State Headquarters, it will be missed.

Just a reminder to those who are processing the membership within the Posts - due to the recent dues increase, $19.00 must accompany each membership card processed through State Headquarters.

$9.00 from each membership goes to National Headquarters in Indianapolis. $10.00 from each membership remains at your Department Headquarters in Watertown and is allocated as follows: $.10 is earmarked for Children and Youth; $.15 for Music and Parade; and $.10 for VAVS. The other $9.65 is for expense of operations of The American Legion, Department of South Dakota and its programs.

A quick and convenient method of determining the amount that should accompany each batch of memberships sent to State Headquarters is to use the Ready Calculator for American Legion Membership Cards which can be found in the back of the 2002-2003 South Dakota American Legion Adjutant's Administrative and Awards Manual.

Wayne Vetter of Cresbard has been appointed by State Commander Walt Lindemann of Eureka, as a member of the South Dakota Veterans Council. Vetter replaces Jim Melgaard of Pierre who resigned from the position.

The American Legion, Department of South Dakota is one of the member organizations of the South Dakota Veterans Council. The Commander, the Adjutant and one other appointed individual represent each organization on the council. The purpose of the organization is:

• To develop a statewide, intelligent, aggressive and serviceable Council for the purpose of promoting all activities found to be for the good of all veterans and their dependents.
• To provide a means of contact and communication among members of the Council and veterans organizations.
• To do any and all things necessary or proper for the accomplishment of the foregoing business and objects of the Council, including, for such purposes, to contract and pay for personal and other services, to contract for, buy, take by deed, gift or devise, hold, possess, manage, borrow, rent, lease, loan, assign, convey, sell, and dispose of in any manner real and personal property, and to act as trustee, or be a beneficiary of a trust.
• To provided a practical means by which veterans organizations throughout the state may effectively contribute to the betterment of all veterans in three principle phases, as follows:

1. Legislation effecting veterans and their dependents.
2. Concern for the general programs for all veterans and their dependents and all veterans organizations, principally hospital, labor and social.
3. Make public, information in behalf of all veterans and their dependents and veterans organizations represented and establish a system of public relations for this purpose.

Congratulations to District 1 Commander, Mark Weinmann of Canton (member of the Hudson American Legion Post), who was chosen to attend the 2002 National American Legion College.

Commander Weinmann will report to school in Indianapolis, Indiana on November 3 and will attend a weeklong, in-depth course of instruction on The American Legion. The college is a combination of lectures, small group workshops and practical exercises. Students will receive training in leadership, sales and marketing, communications and fundraising.

Weinmann, the only applicant to apply this year, was nominated to National Headquarters in Indianapolis and was subsequently chosen by a panel of Past National Commanders who met during the National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Weinmann becomes the second South Dakota Legionnaire to attend the college. Melvin Lee of Winner attended the National Legion College in 2001.

Congratulations to the following Posts who have already attained 100 percent or better on their 2003 membership:

• District 1 - Brandon Post 318
• District 4 - Rosholt Post 48
• District 5 - Virgil Post 268
• District 6 - Pukwana Post 201
• District 7 – Geddes Post 56
• District 8 - Witten Post 167
• District 9 - Allen Post 317

The next Membership Target Date is November 11.