The Canteen Bar Wall has been modified to allow servers to enter and exit from both sides now. This project was 100% funded by volunteers, both time and materials. Thanks to all of you who assisted! To complete this job we needed plumbing, demo, carpentry and electrical work. We are not quite complete (some more lighting and finishing touches, but we are functional and ready to use the new entry for setting up the Patio bar for this Saturday's Adult Daycare and M*A*S*H night.

Yesterday Stu arrived on site to begin the cut out.



After a few measurements came the first cut



Then the second



Bryan Kitching joined Stu for some more measuring



The big reveal



And the first delivery by Carrie Roy



No need to alter our existing cabinetry, all our bartenders easily fit beneath the new opening.

And then some more electrical work. Bryan Thornton added a quad outlet on the inside of the bar wall and a dual on the customer facing side.



The last piece will be to add dimmable LEDs so the bartenders can have better lighting where they need it. Coming soon.

Tags: Canteen

VFW Post 6796 participated in the Dallas Veterans Day Parade this past Monday which was held at Fair Park this year. Beau Mitchell graciously provided a 48 foot trailer and drove us along the parade route. According to all who have ridden on the deuce, he was a much smoother driver than the current commander with his FMV (former military vehicle).



Doug Sanders provided transportation for the breakfast crew.



Traditional field chow including SOS, scrambled eggs and roasted potatoes. Jerry Greene's daughter Brooke had her first "canned" breakfast.



Line up and set up chairs



And off we went, flags flying



Our intrepid riders had fun



Children waving



The nearly empty review stand...



Rhea with our Post Poster



And that was it. Twenty minutes, a beautiful day, and no one fell off the trailer. Three of our riders were first timers, including our very own Susan Soch and Jerry Greene's daughter Brooke, who had a blast and apparently was live-casting.

Meanwhile, back at the Post we readied food for vets and our families. Thanks to Mark D$ for donating the brisket and sides and to Ron for donating and cooking brats, Logan who cooked the brisket, Sandra, Susan and Mike for being the A-Team of the Kitchen. A special shout out to Sprouts Farmers Market for delivering delicious sandwich trays, deviled eggs (gone so quickly) and more! They also donated a $100.00 gift certificate to the Post. And thanks to so many others who contributed during the day and asked me to not put their names out.

Tags: Veterans Day, Parade, Food

We are going to be participating in the Veterans Day Parade this year and the weather looks better than it has in years (but it's Texas). The parade is on Veterans Day, Monday November 11th.

We have sent printable parking passes to key members of the Post and Auxiliary. Early birds (with trailer) will be departing Post around 8:30 am on this coming Monday, November 11th. Others plan to car pool out at 9 or a little later. We will be serving breakfast out of mermite cans at the parade ground for those who ride.

The Post will be serving brisket (thanks Mark D$, Mike and Logan) after the parade. We are number 40 (great slot) so sometime around 1pm. The Post is also serving brats, dogs and burgers to serve throughout the day. Come hungry!


Maps:









Here are the instructions from the parade coordinator:

2024 Greater Dallas Veterans Day Parade
November 11, 2024

Your Unit Name:        Veterans of Foreign Wars
Chapter or Unit Name: Dallas VFW Post 6796
March Order No: 40
Parade Date:           November 11, 2024
Parade Theme:         CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF THE ALL-VOLUNTEER FORCE
Greetings. On behalf of the Dallas Veterans Day Parade Committee and the Greater Dallas Veterans Foundation we thank you for your participation in the 27th anniversary of the Greater Dallas Veterans Day Parade. Each year of course we request participants exhibit a patriotic theme. Where possible, parade participants should wear caps or clothes identifying their military connection. It is desired that all participating organizations provide a banner identifying their parade group. As noted we are excited to return to Fair Park after several years. The following staging instruction details are provided below.
Timing:
• Parade units may start forming at 9:00 A.M
• The official Parade Check-in tent is located at Gate 12 (Lot 12C) NOTE: Check in is imperative to confirm your parade position and obtain a Parade position # sign to be displayed prominently at the front or the RIGHT side of the vehicle or parade entry.
• The Parade will begin about 11:15 A.M. Specific instructions and locations will be provided at check. Parade will begin at the direction of the Parade Boss.
Entry into the Park:
• School buses will enter through Gate 11 (also known as the Lagow Gate).
• All other entries come in from Gaisford Street (no Gate #, but the Check-in tent is at Gate 12).
• Animal units (horses) enter on Gaisford and go down to the street between buildings 24 and 25. That way they can park their trailers and horses will not be "twitchy" over the bands; they'll have a relatively quiet area to wait and will be fed in as the parade passes this street.
• Personal vehicles can be parked in Lots 10B, 9B, 9A.
• After dropping the kids (bands, ROTC units), the buses will come down Pennsylvania to park in Lots 8A and B to wait.
Parade Marching Instructions:
• Units should maintain a close interval with the unit in front of them and prevent gaps from developing between units.
• Once organizations are moving in the parade, they are not allowed stop on the parade route unless so directed by a parade official, police officer, or when there is something physically impeding forward movement.
• Bands will not stop anywhere on the parade route for maneuvers or demonstrations except as outlined in rule 5 above. Such maneuvers or demonstrations are allowed if the Band continues forward progress and maintains a close interval with the unit in front of them.
• Horse Units must provide fecal cleanup for their animals following directly behind throughout the parade.
Other instructions:
• Portable Toilets are located 12B
• MAPS and a Parking Pass are attached
• No items are to be passed from parade participants to the spectators (City Ordinance). This includes but is not limited to food, drinks, candy, beads, clothing, etc.
• No alcohol is to be brought into or consumed in the staging or parade areas.
• Golf carts will be available to shuttle older participants from the parking area to their assigned starting point.
Organizations participating in the parade will be judged as they pass the Reviewing Stand in front of the Hall of Nations. Awards will be presented to the top units. Bands should be playing as they enter reviewing stand area, and we suggest a patriotic song with a marching cadence as units pass the Reviewing Stand. Please do not stop or offer a performance on the route, and do not throw anything from within the parade. We request that Bands play predominantly patriotic songs, along the parade route.
The entire committee thanks you for your participation. If you have any significant changes or issues related to your entry, please notify David Iverson, at 309-287-2936 or David.iverson48@gmail.com. For specific questions about the staging area and check-in, please contact Donna Plunk at 214-398-9440 or dplunk62@gmail.com.
*IN CASE OF COLD WEATHER AND/OR RAIN BRING COAT / RAIN GEAR. If the parade is cancelled due to a severe weather situation, or other issue, we will attempt to notify participants by radio/TV, and contact as many as possible directly.
David Iverson
Parade Operations.

Tags: Veterans Day, Brisket, Food

For any of you who couldn't make it to the Post last week, it was nothing short of amazing. We had the Ukrainian Cultural Forces performing live at our Canteen on Halloween, Steak Night on Friday with the first test of our new kitchen receipt printer (orders at bar = order to kitchen, no second line), followed by the 7th Annual Dr. MRE Competition... and capped on Sunday with the Auxiliary's Superb Sunday Brunch!

The music and storytelling by the Ukrainian performers was phenomenal and we hope you all enjoyed the evening. Thanks to our karaoke crowd for starting a little late last Halloween night.



Here's a picture of Stu and Susan pointing out how to use the kitchen receipts:



The MRE competition is fierce. Teams select a random MRE and then head off to the "Black Market" to doctor their meals up. Mock military script is available for a donation and that's what contestants use to "buy" their black market foods and spices.

Here is Omega "Black-Market" getting the store ready-



The rain kept many of you away, but not Cruisin Al



All but two teams bowed out. But the Marine Brothers were there and so was the Auxiliary Team (Logan Roy, President)

Here are the two rivals getting prepared; Logan Roy the minimalist



and Shawn Handlin (our Post Quartermaster) with his shock and awe tent



Then came the judging (with a big thanks to Kelley, Kathi and Karen!)



The judges decided to move inside to deliberate leaving our competitors to wait



and wait...for over 25 minutes

A bottle of champagne sat on the bar shelf in anticipation of victory by the Reigning Champions.



But it was not to be. This year the Post Auxiliary team took First Place in a stunning upset against the Post! Of course Shawn's entry did win Best Presentation. Congrats and thanks to all who came out to support our Post.

Tags: MRE, Ukraine, Kitchen

Over the next few days we have a lot going on at our Post and I hope many of you can come down and join us.




On Thursday (Halloween) we will be hosting the Ukrainian Armed Forces musical group from 6-8pm. These are combat veterans of the war in Ukraine and they are touring the United States to say Thank You to America. There is no admission charge, so please join us if you can. More information and the poster is available here.

Ronnie Ray and karaoke will start right afterwards this Thursday Night.

Friday is steak night!



Stu will be cooking 60 ribeye steaks, with baked potatoes, corn on the cob and salad. We have reduced our prices to $20.00 in case you haven't joined us lately. Those long lines are down and we have a new kitchen printer that sends your order straight to the cooks. Your name will be called in the hall as soon as your order is ready!


Dr. MRE 2024!

This coming Saturday will be the seventh year of our Dr. MRE contest. Our 'Marine Brothers' have won every year. Is this the year someone will displace the reigning champions? It's only $25.00 to compete (max 2 cooks per team) and $5.00 to taste (you get brats to eat--we wont serve MREs to our members and guests!)

The flyer is under Events and also available here . Ever wonder what's in an MRE? Find out here
Curious how the judges rank meals? Example judging sheet is here.

Last but not least by a stretch, I want to thank CL and Logan Roy for getting us a little closer to opening the canteen bar wall to the outside. The sink closest to the entrance door has been leaking for years and it was also too long to allow us to do our cut out.

Step 1: Remove old sink




Step 2: Replace old sink with second sink in Social Hall.
Now there is room to do our cut out:



That was a pretty big job--time for a cold one

Tags: Ukraine, Halloween