Good Day Outpost 1,
We have quite a few things going on in the Veteran community to be aware of. Take the time to digest this email and share in your appropriate channels.
📢 ALL HANDS ON DECK ⚠️
My fellow Veterans and friends of Veterans,
This Wednesday, September 23rd, the Tallahassee City Commission will decide whether VET, Inc. must cover approximately $8,000 of the Veterans Day Parade — after the City paid 100% last year.
John Pantoja of VET, Inc. has been informed the City is prepared to underwrite only 71% of the cost. The remainder falls on VET, Inc. That item is now on the Commission agenda this Wednesday.
We have three days.
What we need: Veteran Service Organizations and nonprofits that serve veterans in the room, in uniform, asking the Commission to withdraw the $8,000 demand and restore full City funding — as they did last year.
When and where
City Hall, second floor
Meeting begins at 3:00 p.m.
The parade item is late on the agenda — expect it around 3:50 p.m.
You do not need to sit the entire meeting
Veterans: arrive by 3:50 p.m. wearing your VSO cover and shirt
Questions from VSOs go directly to John Pantoja: 850/345_4048.
If your organization can put even a few members in that chamber Wednesday afternoon, it matters. The clock is already running.
Be at City Hall, 2nd floor, by 4:00 p.m. Wednesday, September 23. Wear your cover. Call John Pantoja at 850_345/4048 if you are coming or have questions.
2026 FAMU NROTC Navy–Marine Corps Birthday Ball.
On behalf of the Florida A&M University Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps, it is my pleasure to invite you to join us for the 2026 FAMU NROTC Navy–Marine Corps Birthday Ball.
This formal event brings together our Midshipmen, officer and enlisted staff, university partners, alumni, family members, and friends to celebrate the proud heritage and traditions of the United States Navy and Marine Corps. The evening will provide an opportunity to honor those who have served before us while celebrating the next generation of Navy and Marine Corps officers.
The event will be held Friday, November 13, 2026, at 225 Champions Way, Tallahassee, Florida 32304. Cocktail hour will begin at 5:00 p.m., followed by the formal ceremony at 6:00 p.m. Additional event information is available through the QR code provided on the attached invitation.
We would be honored by your presence as we commemorate the enduring legacy, service, and traditions of our Sea Services and recognize the Midshipmen who have chosen to carry that legacy forward.
Please feel free to share the attached invitation with others who may wish to attend. We hope you will be able to join the FAMU NROTC Rattler Battalion for this special evening.
Very respectfully,
CDR Michael S. Cloud
Executive Officer
NROTC Florida A&M University
Tallahassee, FL 32314
Cell: (850) 633-7840
Office: (850) 599-3915
Greetings, Team
This past Monday, Sept 14, the Leon County Veterans Treatment Court, set a record by admitting 5, maybe 6 new Veteran defendants into the program. This good news is the result of the new procedures for admission to the Veterans’ Court because of the legislation sponsored by Representative Patt Maney (Ret. Gen.USA) HB 199, which loosened the admission procedures for the 32 “specialty” Veterans Courts around the state.
This week, our Thursday, 9.17.26, clinic team of 20 Volunteers, including 6 attys, worked with 19 Veterans and family members at the American Legion Post 13. New volunteers came to help! On Wed, Veterans Sam Adams, Eddie McMillian and Levar Parker distributed the truck and trailer load of food again this week to at four housing sites around the county.
The next session for Veterans Court will be Monday, September 28, 3pm, in the Leon County Courthouse, Courtroom 2E.Hope you can come observe, and may consider becoming a Veteran Mentor for one of the Vets working their way through the program
Redux: Training was available just last week for TVLC attorneys to hear and receive materials for handling VA cases for local Veterans. Another Tallahassee lawyer, former Army JAG Brady Ward, took advantage of the opportunity and expands our Tallahassee capability to keep serving. We still need more volunteers to address this one special need: The number of issues with the VA is outstripping our local resources to keep up with the complications, new claims, and VA delays; so, any other attorneys wanting to join our “VA Law team,” we need you, and have training and national legal resources available to bring you into the fray. Were you a JAG? Have you helped with Social Security or other federal agencies that you already have a headstart on picking up VA law?
What else?
Thank you,
Dan Hendrickson, for the Tallahassee Veterans Legal Collaborative www.Tallahasseeveteranslegal.com
PO Box 11091, Tallahassee, Fl 32302, 850/ 570-1967
FROM CRAIG BENNER
Good morning. We just found this Certificate of Service in our store room here at the Kirkman Building.
Neil Kirkman, Department Commander of the American Legion 1923-1924. I thought you would appreciate seeing this.
Craig
ON A PERSONAL NOTE
This past Saturday I had the honor of being sworn into the New Mexico Society Sons of the American Revolution. My journey started in Florida and took nearly 2 years but it was worth the work. I look forward to learning how Commanders Coalition can assist SAR in reaching more Veterans across the nation. With just over 35,000 members nationwide, SAR is ensuring that the ideals and principles on which our country was founded survive and thrive.
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