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Military rites upon the death of a veteran are a very sacred, moving, and respectful way for families, friends, and fellow veterans to recognize the men and women who served in the military when the United States of America needed it. The American Legion’s Normal Post 635 and Bloomington Post 56 just wrapped up their second year in a row when they held over 100 military rites in our county. Many members of the local American Legion honor guard, as well as VFW and other honor guards, are over 65, and younger men and women are needed to serve in the honor guard. If you don’t belong to a veterans organization, find one you feel comfortable with and join. These organizations at the local, state and national levels work tirelessly for the rights and benefits of veterans. Young Veterans, answer the “call of duty” that you have so bravely encountered before when you have served so generously!

LONGTIME MEMBER OF HONOR GUARD TURNS 90

Honor Guard member Gus Miller, who was a member of the American Legion Honor Guard at Bloomington-Normal for 58 years, just celebrated his 90th birthday. He was part of the honor guard detail that led the military funeral rites for Adlai Stevenson II in July 1965 at Evergreen Cemetery in Bloomington, and was photographed in coverage of the funeral by The Pantagraph. Wish him good luck!

FULL TIME AND SEASONAL JOB IN BLOOMINGTON 2023

The City of Bloomington has full-time vacancies and career positions such as Assistant City Engineer in Public Works, Business Manager for Arts and Entertainment, Junior Patrol Officers, Firefighter/Paramedic and others. Browse the bloomingtonil.gov job site for more details and to apply. The Bloomington Department of Parks and Recreation also offers many seasonal positions for aquatic coordinators, arena workers, boat attendants, caretakers, golf attendants, and many others. A seasonal job fair will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 7 at the Grossinger Motors Arena in downtown Bloomington. Browse “City of Bloomington Seasonal Jobs” and select “City of Bloomington Seasonal Jobs – Government Jobs” to learn more about the Bloomington Parks and Recreation Career Fair.

THE NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION IS THE BEST RATING

Each year, the US Customer Satisfaction Index rates 400 companies in 47 industries and 10 economic sectors, including various federal and local government agency services. The objective of the survey is to measure customer satisfaction with a score from 0 to 100. The federal government’s ACSI score for 2022 was 66.3. The VA National Cemetery Administration received a score of 97 in 2022, which is the highest score ever achieved by an organization by ACSI since its inception in 1994. This is the seventh consecutive year that the NCA has earned the best overall score nationally! The NCA rating was based on ACSI’s surveys of veterans and their families. Services provided by VA include a grave in one of the VA National Cemeteries with available space, opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, headstone, government marker or medallion, flag funeral and a presidential commemorative certificate. Some veterans may also be eligible for burial benefits. The NCA now provides 94% of veterans with burial sites within 75 miles of their home. In 2022, the NCA rested 147,737 veterans and their family members. Additionally, the VA has a Veteran Legacy Memorial digital platform dedicated to the memory of the more than 4.5 million veterans buried in VA National Cemeteries and State, Territory Veterans Cemeteries. and tribal funded by VA. The VLM enables family, friends and others to preserve the legacy of their veterans by posting tributes, uploading images and sharing their veterans’ accomplishments, biographical information and historical documents. .

In these times of massive cultural change, the following quote seems even more important than it did in Lincoln’s day.

“The philosophy of the classroom in one generation will be government policy in the next.” – Abraham Lincoln