VFW District 8 Newsletter
CWO5 Randle M. Tolliver, USN (Ret)
Commander
For veterans in crisis, the Veterans Crisis Line's number is "988” then press "1”.
Homebound veterans requiring assistance please contact any member.
Veterans experiencing, or at risk of homelessness, please contact any member or the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at (877) 424-3838.
Buddy Checks! Please call or go visit elderly or homebound veterans and see how they are doing and if they need help.
We, the VFW, are an organization of war veterans, our mission is to assist veterans, their families and to serve our local community. We are always looking to have veterans who are eligible and want to continue serving our community to join us. If you are interested, please contact any member or post.
Reminders:
The next VFW District 8 meeting will be on 8 February 2026 at VFW Post 2210 in Ste. Genevieve. The address is 852 Memorial Dr, Ste. Genevieve, MO 63670 and the meeting starts at noon. This will also be our Voice of Democracy, Patriots Pen and Teachers of the Year Awards Presentation, and all members are encouraged to attend. There will also be ZOOM access at the posts. More information will be provided via Facebook and to the post Commanders.
The next meeting of the VFW Department of Missouri Council of Administration will be held on February 20-21, 2026, at the Resort at Lake of Ozarks 3076 Bagnell Dam Blvd, Lake Ozark Missouri. All members are encouraged to attend.
The 2026 VA disability Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) increase is 2.8%. Payments reflecting this increase will start in January 2026.
The Social Security COLA increase for 2026 is also 2.8%.
Women veterans enrolled in VA health care system can now schedule appointments directly with VA gynecology providers without a referral from a primary care provider.
Veterans, their families and caregivers should contact their local VA for information about eligibility and how to apply for burial benefits. Too often, no preparations are made and the families are left searching for the required documents and other information at the worst time. For more information, visit https://www.choose.va.gov/burials-memorials , or call 800-827-1000.
Local events:
The time and place of these and local post meetings and other events are provided on each post’s Facebook site; come join us!
Every Tuesday, VFW Post 5331 in Cedar Hill host "Veterans Coffee Talk” at 9 am at 1 Lynn Lane in Cedar Hill. If you have questions or would like more information, please call EverTrue @ (314) 446-2539, Col. (retired) Ted Hodgson @ (314) 221-2096 or Mark Newton @ (636) 222-3521.
Every Wednesday, VFW Post 5896 is hosting an "all-you-can-eat” breakfast at 814 E Karsch Blvd, Farmington. Food service is 7 to 9:30 am and the cost is $8 and children under the age of 10 eat for free.
Every Saturday, VFW Post 1831 is hosting a Shooting Match at 1651 Veterans Dr., DeSoto. Doors open at 10 am, practice at 11 am and shooting starts at noon. Clubroom will open for drinks & appetizers. For more information call (636) 586-9271.
On 18 February, Post 5331 in Cedar Hill will hold a "Texas Hold Em” tournament starting at 2 pm. The address is 1 Lynn Lane in Cedar Hill. For more information call (636) 285-5501.
Legislative news:
The Missouri legislature is in session, and we ask you to support Missouri Veterans. We need to fully fund the Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC). The MVC manages the seven Missouri Veterans homes and six cemeteries, Veterans Service Officer and other veterans’ programs. Since 2020, MVC has yearly required crisis funding support. A solution is required or these critical programs may be lost. We also need to update the Real and Personal Property Tax exemptions for 100% disabled veterans. The currently tax exemption is only for veterans that are 100% disabled AND former Prisoners of War. We need to change the language from "and” to "or.” Finally, we need a Missouri law to fight unaccredited companies (Claim Sharks) that charge veterans for services in obtaining disability benefits. Claim Sharks prey on veterans through aggressive and misleading advertising by offering to file VA claims, charging fees as high as 40% of retroactive and the first year of benefits for services that veterans service organizations such as VFW, DAV and American Legion do for free.
Please contact your senator and representative to voice your support for Missouri Veterans. You can find your representative at https://house.mo.gov/legislatorlookup and your senator at https://www.senate.mo.gov/LegisLookup .
Now let us talk a bit about our history:
244 years ago, Continental Army forces commanded by Brigadier General Daniel Morgan, defeated a better-equipped, more-experienced force of British Army regulars and Loyalists commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Sir Banastre Tarleton. The battle, fought near Cowpens, South Carolina, was the beginning of the American recapture of South Carolina. The American force of approximately 2,000 were west of the Catawba River foraging for supplies, and raising local patriot morale. The British believed Morgan intended to attack the British fort called "Ninety Six’, located in the western Carolinas. Considering Morgan's army a threat to his left flank, General Charles Cornwallis sent Tarleton. Tarleton’s brigade began pursuit when he learned Morgan's army was not at Fort Ninety Six. Morgan had selected two low hills in open woodland near the Broad River to defend, expecting the aggressive Tarleton to make a headlong assault. He deployed his small army in three main lines and Tarleton's army reached the field exhausted, and he attacked immediately. Morgan’s defense-in-depth absorbed the impact of the British attack and entrapped the British penetration into the third line where the disciplined American regulars were placed. The British attack lost cohesion and Morgan's double envelopment overwhelmed Tarleton's force. American losses were 25 killed and 124 wounded. British losses were 85%, only Tarleton and about 200 British troops escaped and his brigade was no longer combat effective. Cowpens, coupled with the British defeat at the Battle of Kings Mountain, led to the Battle of Guilford Court House and his eventual defeat at the Siege of Yorktown in Virginia in October 1781. For more information I recommend "The Battles of Kings Mountain and Cowpens: The American Revolution in the Southern Backcountry” by Melissa A. Walker.
I offer this from John Marshall, Founding Father and Fourth Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court about Cowpens "seldom has a battle, in which greater numbers were not engaged, been so important in its consequences as that of Cowpens."
Bulletin Board:
The VA one-stop telephone number is 1-800-698-2411 and press "0” for immediate assistance. The VA one stop website is VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs .
For more for information concerning VA "End of Life” benefits and services see www.va.gov/initiatives/end-of-life-benefits/
Veteran employment opportunities! Please visit https://news.va.gov/138283/hiring-veterans-job .
The Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC) one-stop Benefits and Resource Portal is (573) 522-4061 or www.veteranbenefits.mo.gov .
To pre-certify for burial in a Missouri Veterans Cemetery, apply at https://my.mo.gov/gsp?id=vcp_preapplication . For information on burial eligibility, visit https://mvc.dps.mo.gov/cemeteries .
The Missouri Job Center offers no-cost employment assistance for veterans and spouses. Contact (417) 257-2630 or visit jobs.mo.gov/vets.
To order military service documents such as a DD 214/Separation Document or Official Military Personnel File (OMPF), contact the National Archives, National Personnel Records Center at https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records, or call (866) 272-6272.
For more information, follow us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/967395123712841 or visit movfw.org
"Here to Serve”
