Our new American Legion National Commander, Jay Bowen, is A Paid-Up-For-Life member of Neal Thomas Jr.-Centennial Post 209 in Colorado Springs and a retired U.S. Army warrant officer. Commander Bowen is a staunch supporter of The American Legion’s Be The One suicide awareness and prevention message. https://www.legion.org/about/leadership/nationalcommander “The past four national commanders’ themes have been of Be The One. Be the one to help prevent veteran suicide,” Bowen s

At the August 2026 meeting of the Belville Board of Commissioners, Belville Mayor Charles Bost appointed and swore in Thomas M. Powers (Tom) as a new member of the Belville Parks & Recreation Board. In that role, Powers will serve as a bridge between town residents and local government and provide recommendations to the town commissioners on park development, improvements, and community recreational events and needs. His new role dovetails with the role Powers assumed in May,

For many years, suicide was rarely discussed openly. In 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO), in partnership with the International Association for Suicide Prevention, established World Suicide Prevention Day, observed annually on September 10. According to WHO statistics, suicide claims more than 720,000 lives worldwide each year. In 2008, to align U.S. efforts with the alarming rise in suicides nationwide, Congress designated September as National Suicide Prevention Aw

On Friday, August 21, 2026, the John E. Jacobs American Legion Post 68, represented by Jim McAvoy, 1st Vice Commander, presented a $1,500 check to the East Carolina University (ECU) ‘Smiles for Veterans’ program. Legion Post 68 members have supported this program for several years. Held annually, the ‘Smiles for Veterans’ event serves pre-screened veterans who do not qualify for Veterans Administration dental care or cannot afford their own care but need a variety of dental p

Supporting Veterans · Provide direct quality of life assistance to local veterans in need. · Honor veterans in local nursing homes, including end-of-life pinning ceremonies and funeral services at the request of the family. · Support veterans’ healthcare through donations to the “Vet Smiles” free dental care program and other veteran-specific support programs. · Help connect area veterans with VA benefits, healthcare, and other resources by engaging l

A Great day for Leland and our post. Was it warm? Yeah just a little, But we had a breeze! Over 30 members attended. Thank you Elliot for your great camper trailer thing, it looked like it was a trailer from the future! Very impressive! Thank you Lane and Debbie Adrian for the trailer and the decorations, "IT WON the first annual FLOAT AWARD! Thanks to Jeremy and Billie Gunn for pulling the Post trailer. Always there for us, I thanked him and told him we would paint any hous

Good morning my fellow brothers and sisters, As we have done during the past year, the Post is conducting "Buddy Checks" for this Memorial Day season. As a member of the Post, you will be contacted via telephone (or email if you haven’t listed a phone number with us) to check on your overall health and welfare. A simple phone call will allow the Post’s leadership to identify our members that might need connection and/or assistance. It is our responsibility to continue to w

To Post 68 Legion Members and Friends, This morning, as I enjoyed my morning walk, taking in the bright colors and listening to the myriad sounds of our Leland Community, I continued to feel somewhat dazed and humbled after yesterday evening. It was a totally unexpected honor to be selected by Mayor Bozeman as the Leland Citizen of the Year for 2025 for my work on the Legion’s Be the One (BTO) program. I am grateful and humbled beyond words to receive this recognition. The B

To our Comrades, First and foremost, I have to sincerely thank the following members of our Post that stepped forward and generously volunteered their time to undertake the 2025 Post 68 Holiday Buddy checks: Margo Chestnut, Jo Anne Britt, John Hacker, Frank Pain, Gary Bryskiewicz, Ed Barkley and Gordon Humphries. According to all, this year’s Buddy Check program was a huge success! We were able to contact almost all the members of the Post whether in person, via email or