Posted on Mar 12, 2020
SrA Sheila Holmes
41.3K
613
204
53
53
0
Last night a person that I know from a local motorcycle group (not Legion) said that the group honored her father who recently passed with a flag line. She said that they pressured her into the flag line even though her father never served in the military and she told them that. The headquarters President justified it by saying, “Well he received a draft notice, didn’t he?”

Later in the conversation, she mentioned one of our mutual friends as being a veteran and that he would not have allowed anything like stolen valor. I told her he was not a veteran and that we actually both belonged to the same American Legion and he grew up hanging around the American Legion post, but he is a member of the Sons of the American Legion; he is not a Legionnaire, not a dual member, and he is not a veteran. We argued for about five minutes over this and I finally hung up.

I’m returning my colors tomorrow; I never even wore them but I don’t feel comfortable with this group now.

I see the draft notice as different from actually having served. Am I wrong?

03/16/2020 Edit: Yesterday, one of the members contacted me back and clarified, "The flag lines are for anyone we want to honor, first responders, military, and our families are very high on the list." As they say here in Phila, "I'm feelin some type of way about this." I told him he needs to educate the entire group on who their flag lines are for, and as a representative of the organization, the secretary should know better.

03/23/2020 Edit: The moto group is NOT the Legion Riders -just a local moto org that promotes themselves a veterans and first responders group)

09/07/20 Edit: Well, after much anxiety, I wanted to update about this. Covid hit and I haven't been back to that group. The Sgt at Arms felt I shouldn't make any hasty decisions, but I just knew it wasn't a right fit. More recently, after watching the group respond to peaceful BLM march with "No they don't" when marchers proclaimed, "Black Lives Matter," and screaming at the marchers "Black Lives Splatter," display their flag line as if fellow protesting citizens aren't patriotic, use the local VFW with confederate flags and a woman veteran screaming and flipping off protesters, and watching two of their trucks dump black diesel smoke right in front of peacefully marching protesters, I cut ties with the group by initially removing the vast majority from facebook. The very next day, their Sgt At Arms felt the need to send me a private message on FB, "I see you unfriended me, friend," with a big ole thumbs up, which I ignored. A few days later, he sent me this big long Trump rant about how he was supporting troops (he never served) and I let him have it. I told him I don't care who he votes for, but his behavior doesn't represent me, and if he contacted me again, I'd file harassment charges -and I blocked him on messenger. Two days later he sends a text, "I've been ordered to collect our patches from you. Namely our backpatch and alpha chapter." I told him I burned them and that if he contacted me again, I'd involve the police. So that's that. Always go with your gut.
Edited >1 y ago
Avatar feed
Responses: 93
LTC James Shannon Crow
0
0
0
No, you had to have actually served. IMO, just going to boot camp does not automatically make you a veteran. I know someone who likes to claim veteran status, but never made it thru boot camp (something medical, nothing major). I don’t consider him a veteran.
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
CPL Stephen Maddaloni
0
0
0
He'

NO
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
SPC Donald Moore
0
0
0
Getting a draft notice does not make you a veteran. Having actually served in the military makes you a veteran. There is a clear line and people that want to make it fuzzy are just lying to themselves.
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
SGT Andrew Anderson
0
0
0
A lot of people who got a draft notice went to Canada, I don’t think anyone would consider them veterans!
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
LCpl Kenneth Heath
0
0
0
Does getting junk mail from Publishers Clearing House make you a millionaire?
Fuck no he's not a Veteran.
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
SSG Ralph Watkins
0
0
0
Tens of thousands of young men, maybe more got their draft notices & never served. They were either unfit to serve, had extenuating circumstances, or hightailed it to Canada. Read all of our lips: Receiving a draft notice does not make a person a veteran. Period. One guy I worked with was already a combat vet before he got drafted. He just graduated high school & went to work for Air America before he got his draft notice. He did 3 years in Southeast Asia before he came back home. He then got picked up as a draft dodger & put into the Marines. He saw more action working for Air America but it wasn't until the Marines took him that he was considered a veteran. Halfway thru his tour in Vietnam the Marines realized he spoke most of the languages & dialects in the region. Before that he was only pushing papers in the rear.
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
MSgt Kerry Lundy
0
0
0
I received my draft notice the same day I took my physical to enlist in the USAF. That did not make me a veteran but three tours in Vietnam and two years in Thailand supporting those who were still in Vietnam, the EVAC of people from Vietnam while Saigon was falling did. So all of you wanna be veterans can go p--s up a wet rope! I retired from active duty 21 years after my enlistment. The Legion and VFW turned me off after one visit to each.
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
PO2 Mike Vignapiano
0
0
0
Just because someone received a draft notice does not mean that they are a veteran. A veteran is someone who served in one of the military branches. A veteran will have a DD-214. Regardless of the type of discharge, all service members have one and a call to the VA with a person's SSN can confirm.
(0)
Comment
(0)
Avatar small
SSgt Robert Van Buhler III
0
0
0
Implying you ride with the Legion even as a wannabe vet in itself is stolen valor, not that I claim valor for being in the AL. I do admit I served proudly and would not join a group that dishonored the modest title of "veteran" by disrupting behavior at a public event. I attach dignity to my service and claim some by being a veteran, which I would not want to soil be bad associations.
(0)
Comment
(0)
SrA Sheila Holmes
SrA Sheila Holmes
3 y
Nobody implied this; nothing in my post implied this; in fact, I emphatically stated this was not a Legion Riders group. I do appreciate your support in knowing I'm not the only one who would choose to disassociate oneself from this behavior. Thank you for sharing your perspective.
(1)
Reply
(0)
Avatar small
SGT James Parker
0
0
0
Bro.. Communists b.. really
(0)
Comment
(0)
SrA Sheila Holmes
SrA Sheila Holmes
>1 y
lol
(0)
Reply
(0)
Avatar small

Join nearly 2 million former and current members of the US military, just like you.

close