Local Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter Offers Support and Fellowship To All Veterans

Weekly breakfast meeting of the Vietnam Veterans of America 
Chapter 1028 at the Grand Slam in Fenton.
Photo by Holly Shanks

By Holly Shanks

Published May 6, 2015 in The Journal, Webster University student newspaper 
http://websterjournal.com/2015/05/01/the-grand-slam-hosts/

         Tucked away, on a quiet street off Gravois Road just west of Fenton, is the GrandSlam. Every Wednesday morning this bar and grill becomes a gathering place for local Vietnam veterans.

         A civilian looking for a quiet cup of coffee on a Wednesday morning won’t find it at the Grand Slam. Instead, the restaurant is filled with a lively crowd of handshaking, backslapping and welcoming veterans who show up to offer each other companionship and support.

Vietnam Veteran Recalls Webster University’s Innovative Program

Bill DeArmond the day he was discharged
from the Army in May of 1969.
Photo provided by Bill DeArmond.

By Holly Shanks

Published May 6, 2015, in The Journal, Webster University student newspaper.
http://websterjournal.com/2015/05/01/websters-vault-program-accepted-vets-when-others-didnt/

Less than one year after he was told he would never walk again, Bill DeArmond hitchhiked toward Lindbergh Boulevard. He had just arrived at Lambert Airport on a clear and sunny day in September, 1968. He was wearing the only clothes he had with him – his Army dress uniform. A passing insurance salesman offered him a ride to a Ladue Elementary School where his mother was a teacher. He wanted her to know he was home and had survived the Vietnam War.

“I had to keep pinching myself. It was so soon and sudden,” DeArmond said. “Cause we were in the field in Vietnam just (a couple of days before) and then we’re all of a sudden home.”

Leaping For Love Abounds In Missouri's Folklore

Graphic: "Show Me . . .  Natural Wonders: A Guide
To Treasures In The Missouri Region"
By Don Corrigan and Illustrated by E. J. Thias

By Holly Shanks

Published on Environmental Echo website May 5,2015. To read on Environmental Echo CLICK HERE. 

Lover's Leap folklore is associated with several of Missouri's beautiful bluffs and cliffs. Some people find the tales romantic and others find the tales of leaping lovers a senseless suicide. Here we take a look at some of the different Lover's Leap legends in Missouri.