Post 690 in Palatine brought veterans and community members together to enjoy ‘America’s Game.’
Retired U.S. Navy veteran Bobby Meadors was looking for a place to watch the Army-Navy Game presented by USAA. He did a Google search for a watch party and American Legion Post 690 in Palatine, Ill., came up.
“I’m like, ‘I’m going’,” said Meadors, who came to Post 690’s Army-Navy Game Watch Party Saturday afternoon. “This is a really important day for Army-Navy football, so I wanted to watch it with veterans, or people who have a little bit of skin in the game.”
This is the second annual Army-Navy Game Watch Party that Post 690 has hosted since The American Legion became an associate sponsor of the game last year. Post 690 member and Navy veteran Ed Behrens said he’s proud of the Legion’s sponsorship of “America’s Game”.
“It shows we're current,” Behrens said. “That we're not a thing of the past, we're not going away, and you're introducing The American Legion to the younger generation who are watching college football. The American Legion is not just something that their grandfather or great grandfather was a part of. We’re still there. And nothing’s more popular in America than football, so to see The American Legion a part of it, I think it's great to attract and inform the younger generation.”
Behrens and Bill Borndahl, an Army veteran and post member, were instrumental in organizing Post 690’s watch party for the past two years. Borndahl first heard of and attended an Army-Navy Game watch party about seven years ago when he visited Post 703 in Fox Lake, Ill. He brought the idea back to Post 690 and built excitement around the game with “Go Army Beat Navy” and “Go Navy Beat Army” printed signs. But thanks to the Legion’s sponsorship of the game, Behrens and Borndahl have created an official Post 690 Army-Navy Game Watch Party for the whole community.
“It really opens the doors for people who haven't been to the post, so it’s a doorway to introduce us on a local level,” Behrens said. “Last year, we had people bringing their kids and saying, ‘I used to go watch it (the Army-Navy Game) with my grandfather or my father.’ I was really surprised how many people from the public came in because it was a family tradition. That was huge. So you have the Legion camaraderie component, then you have the community component. It's just a win-win.”
That camaraderie was visible even as Navy veterans outnumbered Army veterans at the watch party.
“It’s just a fun rivalry,” said Herman Staiger, a Post 690 member and Army veteran. “It’s a great time to all get together.”
“For the veterans, you can hear the banter and the fun going between us,” Behrens added. “So within the post, that is so fun because that's a big part of every Legion because the Legion is made up of all the branches. It just builds a camaraderie amongst the Legionnaires.”
During the game, veterans and community members enjoyed a free meal of pizza, chicken pot pie, subs, mostaccioli, cookies and mini cheesecakes. “We make it as easy as possible … just show up, watch the game and have fun,” Behrens said.
Behrens’ used the available resources from national to promote Post 690’s watch party to include customizable social media graphics and printable flyers.
“Having the graphics and flyer saved us so much money and time because we could just plug in our post number and event information to get the word out,” he said. Post 690 Army-Navy Game Watch Party flyers were hung on community bulletin boards like the library, Starbucks and train station. While social media graphics were posted on Post 690’s website, Instagram and Facebook page, and in its e-newsletter.
Jill Robertson, Auxiliary Unit 690 president, helped with promoting the watch party on social media and in the post newsletter, and found the social media comments part of the watch party excitement.
“It was the camaraderie of looking at comments and people saying, ‘Go Army,’ ‘Go Navy,’ ‘I’ll be at the post,’ or ‘Can’t wait to be there”. I love reading those comments.”
Behrens said a vital part to hosting a watch party is getting the word out in advance and identifying your volunteers.
“No matter if they're Legion, Auxiliary or Sons, and once you put the word out that you’re going to do something people kind of gravitate to it, and we had people volunteer,” he said. “We're very blessed to have some really active volunteers.”
That Legion Family volunteer effort was even visible before the Army-Navy Game kickoff.
Before Post 690 filled with Army-Navy football fans, a breakfast with Santa was held for community children and families. Sons of The American Legion Squadron 690 has hosted the holiday event for several years with the support of post and Unit 690 members.
“As a (Legion) family we just all come together and everybody plays a part,” said Mike Rocha, Squadron 690 commander of the breakfast. “Just watching the little kids come in, screaming Santa, makes the holiday.”
The Legion Family served scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns, pancakes, bagels and fruit while four girls of Daisy and Brownie Troop 47962 helped seat families and hand out goody bags for Santa.
Seven-year-old Ollie Serna asked Santa for a beginner science kit with a volcano that erupts. Serna said that Santa told him, “he could make it and deliver it. I’ll just be really happy because I like science.”
It’s the joy brought to children like Serna that Rocha said is why “everybody loves” the breakfast with Santa. “It brings our spirits up. It’s a lot of work but when we see the kids, it’s like ‘OK, this is Christmas. It feels like Christmas now.”
Whether it’s breakfast with Santa, hosting recruits stationed at Recruit Training Command Great Lakes for Thanksgiving, a Fourth of July festival or an Army-Navy Game watch party, Post 690 is making itself a place for the community in the heart of downtown Palatine.
“When people see that you're a valuable part of the community, it makes the post more valuable, and more people want to get involved,” Behrens said. “The community wants to support you, and you support the community, likewise. We’re really blessed to have a very supportive community.”
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