American Legion post renamed

Walter Sprague
NLJ Arts & Culture Reporter
 
Tuesday morning the American Legion held a veterans breakfast at Weston County Senior Center. The post was newly renamed the Monroe-Bland Post 3 in honor of two fallen heroes from the area. 
In 1919 George Monroe was killed in action during World War I. He was a homesteader from Missouri, back in the day, and had a ranch near the town of Cambria. In 2015 a helicopter crash in Afghanistan took the life of Newcastle’s own Brian Bland.
“We’re blessed to be able to rename our post,” Commander Deb French said, “It’s important to remember those who gave their lives serving our country.”
During the breakfast two members were honored by the Legion. Leonard Nack has served for 51 continuous years with the Legion. Due to Covid, his 50th year celebration was cancelled last year, so they honored him this year with a certificate and a 50-year pin. Don Dafoe, commander of the post from 2011 through 2021, when French took over as post commander, was given a cap for his 10 years of service. 
After honoring Dafoe and Nack, Weston County Commissioner Marty Ertman gave a heart-warming speech honoring the fallen heroes that rushed into the twin towers on Sept. 11, 2001, and also honored the 13 fallen servicemen who were recently killed in Afghanistan. She also read a letter she composed to the newborn daughter of U.S. Marine Rylee McCollum, the Wyoming Marine who was killed in Kabul during the recent attack, who was born after his death.