via NBC News:  Seven decades later, some of the Marines who captured Iwo Jima returned to the tiny Japanese island to remember one of the last battles of the war in the Pacific — and the moment that gave the world the most iconic image of World War II.

They recalled a struggle that was much more difficult than the Americans had expected. What was supposed to be the quick work of capturing the island from Japan turned into a prolonged struggle.

Dear Colleagues and Fellow Veterans,

Please find the attached Plan of the Week.  For our new Spring Quarter Students, welcome to the Plan of the Week, and our Edmonds Community College Veteran Community! 

Here's a few additional notes and points of emphasis this week:

• Your Veterans Resource Center is open as usual, normal operating hours as shown in the plan.
• Our Veterans Service Officer, Max Bettman, will not be in the office.  He plans to return on April 8th.
• A very special VRC welcome to our new Volunteer Staff Members, Mike and Linda Averbush.  Mike and Linda bring a wealth of experience and passion for helping Veterans.  We look forward to having them aboard!
• Our Veterans Job Binder continues to recieve updates from employers looking to hire Veterans.  The binders are in the Veterans Lounge on the coffee table, so stop in and have a look.  Your next career may be waiting for you!
• We have a new service available in our computer lab.  Just above the printer, you will find a cork board where Veterans can post textbooks they would like to pass on or sell to other Veterans.  If you have a textbook you'd like to post, please feel free to post on our board.  Be sure to check back often!
• New titles in our Veterans' Library include 2 copies of "Breath of Freedom" by Maria Huhn and Martin Klimke, 1 copy of "War" by Sebastian Junger, and two copies of "What it is like to go to War" by Karl Marlantes.  Let us know if you have recommendations for books or would like to donate books of interest to Veterans.

Chris Szarek, MBA, USN (Ret.)
Veterans Resource Center Director
Lynnwood 215
425-640-1775

I am writing to ask for your help in getting information about the VUMS (Veterans of Underage Military Service) out to possible members and others who may have an interest in the organization.

The VUMS organization started in 1991 to honor those proud Americans who entered military service to their country under age. VUMS enlisted under age 17 for men and under the age of 20 for women during WWII, The Korean War, and beyond. More than 20,000 VUMS served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Only about 2,900 are left. We are losing about 600 per year making our longevity very short.

I would appreciate your organization putting a small piece in your newsletter about the VUMS and where folks can find more information. You can go to oldvums.org to find out more.

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This information has been added to the RESOURCES portion of the Post 234 website.

New photos from a veteran's Vietnam service collection. Check them out by clicking here! Look for people you may know. Post a comment. Share with others.

I hope you will join me for one of my town hall meetings starting on March 29. Hearing directly from you about your questions and concerns is important to me. You will find more information about the dates and locations of my town hall meetings below. I look forward to talking with you, and please pass along this invitation to others in the Second Congressional District who may be interested in attending.

Orcas Island – Sunday, March 29
2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Eastsound Fire Hall
45 Lavender Lane
Burlington – Monday, March 30 
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Burlington Visitor Information Center
520 E. Fairhaven Avenue
Coupeville – Tuesday, March 31 
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Coupeville Recreation Hall
901 Northwest Alexander Street
Everett – Wednesday, April 1
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Everett School District Community Resource Center
3900 Broadway
Bellingham – Thursday, April 2 
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Western Washington University
Academic Instruction Center Building
Lecture Hall 210
516 High Street
Campus Map

In the meantime, I invite you to visit my website for help with federal issues or legislation I have introduced and to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Sincerely,

Rick Larsen
United States Representative
Washington State, 2nd Congressional District

Dear colleagues and fellow Veterans,

Please see the attachment for this week's Plan of the Week.  In addition to what's in the plan, there a few announcements I'd like to make.

As you saw in last week's Plan, the Campus' International Night Carnival and Talent Show will be held tomorrow (Saturday the 28th) at the Edmonds Center for the Arts.  At this year's event, one of our very own Student Veterans will be representing us by carrying the American Flag in the opening ceremony.  Please consider coming out to cheer him on!  It's a fun event, and tickets are $9.00 at the door.

Also in last week's plan, we advertised that we had free food arriving for Veterans and their family members provided by Fallen Brothers Seattle on February 24th. We still have food available so please stop by!  Our next delivery is scheduled for March 17th, so I will send out another reminder when we get closer.

Next Tuesday, March 3rd at 2:00 PM in Woodway Hall Room 202, the campus is hosting its quarterly Bravo Awards Ceremony.  At this quarter's ceremony we will be honoring two staff members for their exemplary service to Student Veterans so please stop by if you are able.

Gap Funds are available, and the deadline to apply is March 20th!  Here's a link to the application:
 http://www.edcc.edu/veterans/documents/gap-funding-application.pdf

Lastly, the Edmonds Community College Foundations Annual Scholarship application just went live at midnight and will be open until April 20th.  Here's a link to the application: https://edcc.academicworks.com/  There's 4 pages of opportunities- well worth a look!

Have a great weekend and we hope to see you at the Veterans Resource Center!

Chris Szarek, MBA, USN (Ret.)
Veterans Resource Center Director
Lynnwood 215
425-640-1775

The next American Legion Post 234 meeting is Monday, March 9th at 7:00 PM. Come and enjoy making decisions for the Post!