By Anthony Bynum
Fabric, What Holds a Community Together
Each day, America continues to exist and clocks turn. America is even coming up on 250 years. You can look at Washington State, Nebraska, Iowa, or Maine and the turning – or churning – continues. Butter is churned, dogs are walked and babies are burped as Sonny and Cher said, “the beat goes on.”
So why? Well, it’s bigger than you, bigger than me. Some call it glue, some call it principles. I like the term “fabric". Something ties this experiment and this machine together. I want to take a look at three different institutions that play a role. Their roles are important as we get older. These organizations can sometimes define who we are..
The other day I attended a business trade show in Severna Park at Elks Lodge 2482. The Elks are considered a fraternal organization which focuses on community service, patriotism and charity. The official designation is Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. This particular Lodge has been around for over 50 years. They offer: scholarships, youth basketball, veteran services, and college financial aid. Of course, camaraderie is very important- that sense of having something to do and someone to do it with.
The VFW is another institution with a larger than life role in our different communities. The VFW stands for Veterans of Foreign Wars. Its mission is to foster camaraderie among veterans of overseas conflicts. They offer some of the following: family financial assistance, education programs and scholarships, legislative advocacy, honor guards for veteran funerals, just to name a few. The VFW was founded in 1899 and chartered by Congress in 1936.
The last piece of fabric is the Parent Teacher Association. This group was founded in 1897 by Alice McLellan Birney and Phoebe Apperson Hearst. Its mission is to empower families and communities to advocate for all children. It is about 4 million strong.
These are just some of the different types of groups that make us who we are. No one from the government forces folks to sign up, but, if people employed in government do sign up, their role changes. They are now citizen Joe’s. Each is free to love America in his or her own way. The fabric just makes that a little easier.