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Eulogizing fallen Civil War soldiers, Abraham Lincoln stated in his Gettysburg address, “from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion.”
History reflects that the citizens of Columbus have been devoted to the American cause and that many have given that full measure of service to their country.
It was recently noted that the graves of 401 World War I and 334 World War II veterans were located in the cemeteries within the city limits of Columbus.
Those veterans who returned from both wars established and grew the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars organizations. It was the WWI vets that welcomed home the WWII vets and encouraged and supported the returning soldiers to join and build an American Legion Hall in 1946.
On April 18, 1946, Mrs. Antonia Hanak sold a 2.9acre tract of land to the Trustees, Lester Hastedt, Arthur Brune, Jr. and C.C. Graves, of American Legion Post 383 for $4,329, for the purpose of building the hall. WWI vet Sam K. Seymour, Jr. and WWII vet Arthur “Bubba” Evans, a local contractor, assisted in arranging the transaction.
After receiving his discharge from the US Army in San Antonio, on May 15, 1946, 21-year-old Columbus GI Gus Miller returned to Columbus and noted a group of young men building forms, preparing to pour a concrete slab.
Miller asked his dad what that was about, to which his dad replied that those were returning soldiers, volunteering to build an American Legion Hall under the supervision of local contractor Bubba Evans. Miller said, “I’ll be there tomorrow morning to help.” And with these volunteers, the Legion Hall was built.
After the hall was completed, both organizations, the American Legion and the VFW, had a permanent place to meet and both groups manned the hall’s many profitable events.
The American Legion Hall became the most popular venue for dances, dinners, weekly bingo nights, and wedding receptions. Eventually, the two organizations renamed the hall the Veterans Community Center and established a board made up of officers from both groups to manage this important entity.
The board oversaw the income and expenses generated by the sale of beverages, hall rental fees, and bingo nights. It later became the Veterans Memorial Center. For more than 60 years the hall and meeting rooms enjoyed great success as a community center for social, civic and community activities.
In 2004, bingo nights were discontinued due to a lack of members to staff the events. By 2013, the VFW essentially dissipated because of a large decline in membership, increasing fees required by the national organization, and inability to meet utility and maintenance costs of the hall. Although the American Legion membership also dwindled, it is still active today, but with very limited membership.
The decision was made by the Veterans Memorial Center Board to deed the 2.9-acre tract, including the hall, to the Columbus Independent School District, with the agreement that any veteran organization could use the front meeting rooms at no cost and the CISD could use the back hall and grounds for school functions and parking, in return for taking over maintenance of the building and covering the utility costs.
Remaining officers of the then defunct VFW, Commander Roger Moyers, and Quartermaster Tom Foster, both Vietnam veterans, spearheaded a drive to form a Vietnam Veterans of America chapter in Columbus to fill the void left by the demise of the local VFW.
By 2016, they recruited enough Vietnam era veterans to form a chapter and in 2017 received a charter from the national Vietnam Veterans of America, for VVA Columbus Chapter 1127.
This veterans’ organization has grown to a membership of about 40 and continues the work of decorating veteran graves, performing flag folding ceremonies at veteran funerals, assisting local vets in need, promoting patriotism in our young people, and awarding college scholarships to local high school seniors.
After construction of the VVA 1127’s Walk of Honor in 2019, our membership decided to approach a receptive CISD board to deed the 0.36-acre portion of the original 2.9-acre tract, where the granite memorial, flag pole, and Walk of Honor is located, to the City of Columbus and be designated as a permanent Columbus Memorial Veteran City Park.
Several of the VVA 1127 members maintain their membership in the American Legion 383, as well, and participate in parades, funerals, decorating graves, and other events, representing the Legion.
As both the group’s age and memberships decline, we expect new veteran groups to form and continue this important work, and hopefully to add new additions to this park.
