VFW Post 3408

06/20/2026

06/17/2026

Corpsman Up!

Today, we celebrate and recognize the U.S. Navy Corpsmen who have stood alongside our for 128 years.

Since June 16, 1898, Navy Corpsmen have embodied the spirit of . From naval hospitals to the battlefield, they remain always faithful, treating our wounded and keeping Marines in the fight.

To the in our ranks, we thank you for your unwavering dedication to duty and to our Marines.

Semper Fidelis.

✍️ (U.S. Marine Corps graphic by Lance Cpl. Matthew Morales)

📷 (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Armando Elizalde)

06/17/2026

The proposal would fund combat veteran disability and retirement pay while changing disability ratings for sleep apnea and tinnitus.

06/15/2026

‼️ Action Alert‼️

Congress is considering legislation that would expand some veterans' programs by changing disability ratings for tinnitus and obstructive sleep apnea.

According to VA estimates, those changes could affect up to 1.5 million veterans and reduce disability compensation by approximately $57 billion over the next 10 years.

Veterans should not pay for veterans' benefits.

Take action today and tell Congress to Honor the Contract and protect earned disability compensation: https://votervoice.net/VFW/Campaigns/138035/Respond

06/14/2026

Happy Birthday to the U.S. Army!

From the official website of the U.S.Army, "Since its official establishment, June 14, 1775 — more than a year before the Declaration of Independence — the U.S. Army has played a vital role in the growth and development of the American nation."

Did you join the Auxiliary under the eligibility of an Army veteran?
Let us know in the comments!

06/14/2026

Today is Flag Day!

Flag Day has been observed for more than 150 years, but its origins can be traced all the way back to June 14, 1777, when the Continental Congress declared, "The Flag of the United States shall be of thirteen stripes of alternate red and white, with a union of thirteen stars of white in a blue field, representing the new constellation."

In 1861, a celebration of the American Flag in Hartford, Connecticut focused on the Americanization of immigrant children, in 1889 the principal of a free kindergarten for the poor in New York City started a Flag Day initiative that caught the eye of the State Department of Education, and in 1893, Elizabeth Duane Gillespie, a direct descendent of Benjamin Franklin, proposed a resolution to the city of Philadelphia to observe June 14 as Flag Day (unfortunately, as she was a woman, this was largely ignored). Presidents Wilson and Coolidge, in 1916 and 1927, issued proclamations declaring June 14 Flag Day, but it was not until 1949 that President Truman signed it into law.

The VFW Auxiliary considers observances of Flag Day and of the American Flag itself an important part of the Americanism Program. Past and present traditions involving the Flag have included distributing them to immigrants who celebrating their new citizenship, participating in Flag retirement ceremonies alongside the VFW, welcoming visiting National Presidents with an Aisle of Flags, replacing tattered or faded Flags flying in front of local businesses, placing Flags on veterans' graves over Memorial Day weekend, carrying Flags during parades and teaching children about the history and meaning of the American Flag in schools through picture books and youth programs.

Happy Flag Day from the VFW Auxiliary!

06/13/2026

06/13/2026

Congressional Republicans introduced a nearly 600-page veterans benefits package on June 10 that would end a longstanding pay offset for combat-injured veterans but would cut disability compensation for up to 1.5 million other veterans to cover the cost.

The bill, called the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act, was introduced by House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Mike Bost and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jerry Moran. It bundles more than 60 pieces of bipartisan legislation and is anchored by the Major Richard Star Act, a measure that has drawn more than 315 House cosponsors but stalled in Congress for years.

(Full story with all the details, found in the comments.)

Under current federal law, veterans who were medically retired from the military before completing 20 years of service due to combat-related injuries cannot receive their full military retirement pay and VA disability compensation simultaneously. Their retirement pay is reduced dollar-for-dollar by whatever disability compensation they receive from the Department of Veterans Affairs—a policy critics call the “wounded veteran tax.”

The offset affects an estimated 50,000 to 54,000 veterans. In some cases, the reduction eliminates retirement pay entirely.

The Poison Pill

The Congressional Budget Office has estimated the Major Richard Star Act alone would cost $78 billion in direct federal spending over the 2026-2036 period. Under congressional PAYGO rules, that cost must be offset.

That offset comes from the effective elimination of VA disability compensation for tinnitus and sharply reduce compensation for veterans with obstructive sleep apnea who manage the condition with a CPAP device. The changes would apply to all new claims and to future reassessments of existing claims.

The Department of Veterans Affairs projects Section 108 would reduce disability compensation payments by up to $57 billion over 10 years and affect up to 1.5 million veterans.

VSO Reactions

Major veterans service organizations responded quickly and critically to the bill’s PAYGO provisions. The Veterans of Foreign Wars announced its opposition the day after the bill was introduced.

“The VFW strongly opposes the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act as currently drafted because it asks future disabled veterans to bear the cost of expanding benefits through changing the VA rating schedule for tinnitus and obstructive sleep apnea, which are common conditions associated with combat poly trauma,” said VFW National Commander Carol Whitmore. “Veterans’ benefits are an earned obligation of the nation, a promise made through the military service contract, and should not be financed through offsets, fee increases or reductions that place additional burdens on veterans, military families and survivors. A grateful nation pays its debts to veterans; it does not send them the invoice.”

DAV National Commander Coleman Nee acknowledged the package included provisions the organization sought for years but said the tinnitus and sleep apnea cuts were unacceptable.

“We reject the premise that the only way to fulfill the promises made to the men and women who served in the past is by cutting benefits for veterans in the future,” Nee said. “Eliminating compensation for sleep apnea and tinnitus is not a reflection of improved outcomes for veterans—it is a budget-driven decision that shifts the burden onto those who have already sacrificed.”

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America also formally opposed the bill. IAVA said it opposed the legislation “based on its intent to finance new veterans benefits by reducing or restricting earned disability compensation for other disabled veterans.”

Full story found in the comments.