BATTLE CREEK, Mich. (AP) - An American Legion post in Michigan plans to rename itself to honor an Iraq War veteran.
The Ft. Custer Post 257 of the American Legion in Battle Creek will be renamed after Michael Dickinson II on March 22, the Battle Creek Enquirer reported .
Dickinson served two tours in Afghanistan and one in Kosovo before he went to Iraq. He was killed in July 2006 when he was 26 years old, leaving behind his wife and five children. He posthumously received a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.
“I’m deeply honored,” said his mother, Vicki Dickinson. “And I really can’t think of anything more fitting than this happening to one of our local heroes, one that this generation of heroes can identify with.”
Post Commander Brian Mohlman said he hopes the name will show younger veterans they’re welcome. The post’s membership has grown to about 80 in the past few years, but the group is working to attract younger members, he said.
“Quite honestly, that’s the future of the American Legion,” he said.
Membership is open to active military members, as well as veterans who have served on active duty and were honorably discharged.
Nationwide membership numbers have declined from 3.3 million after World War II to less than 2 million as of last year, said Matt Herndon, the Legion’s national deputy director of membership.
Many young veterans are too busy raising families, going to school or working to have time to join the organization, said Roy McMillon, post commander of the Captain Oscar Brady Post 298 of the American Legion in Springfield.
Michigan has about 300 Legion posts.
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Information from: Battle Creek Enquirer, http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com
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