Fundraising, Advocacy, and Outreach

BY PAUL ROGERS

Chicago Chapter 242 is a large, energetic organization that formed in 1985. One of its founders, Roger A. McGill, and fellow director Ed Oller recently updated us on the chapter’s fundraising, advocacy, and outreach efforts, including raising money to promote awareness of Agent Orange-linked birth defects.

“We made a donation of $10,000 to The Agent Orange Next Gen Campaign, which focuses on Vietnam veterans’ offspring with birth defects,” said McGill. “One of our chapter members made tee-shirts, which we sell.” Designed by 242’s Pat Stack, the shirt depicts a weeping Vietnam Service Medal with a dangling dog tag. The image is also available as a print. Receipts from sales of both are being donated to the campaign, an initiative of the Florida-based nonprofit, Birth Defect Research for Children.

In the 1980s, during Agent Orange litigation, 65,000 veterans reported that their children had been born with birth defects or developmental disabilities. Since 1990, only Birth Defect Research for Children has collected data displaying a pattern of such defects and disabilities in the children of Vietnam veterans. The organization’s Agent Orange campaign draws attention to this and raises funds for continued birth defect research.

“We have Vietnam veterans who don’t know anything about Agent Orange, still,” said Oller, who is 100 percent disabled due to diabetes, neuropathy, and kidney disease related to his service as a Navy corpsman in Chau Doc and Da Nang in 1970. “There’s a lot of guys still out there that don’t know that whatever they’re suffering from is likely related to Agent Orange or their time in service.”

Oller, who worked as a nurse for 26 years, said he didn’t become fully aware of his own PTSD and Agent Orange-related health issues until he joined Chapter 242 in 2011. “I would never think about going to the VA” prior to joining VVA, he said. “With my wife’s encouragement, I finally checked into it, and I’m so grateful.”

Chapter 242’s activities have traditionally included two annual fundraisers: the Sock Hop and Dinner in November; and Bernie Burgers around Memorial Day, named for the chapter’s late president, Bernie O’Donnell, who started the event some 20 years ago. Due to the pandemic, the chapter recently decided to consolidate both events and name it in O’Donnell’s honor.

Since March 29 was designated as Viet nam War Veterans Day in 2017, Chapter 242 has observed it with a wreath laying at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in downtown Chicago. This year a private donation of $500 provided Vietnam veterans with a special lunch afterward.

At Christmastime, the 254-member chapter makes donations to three Chicago vet erans’ hospitals, and recently it has also been raising money for victims of the war in Ukraine. After a presentation to the chapter by two area veterans of Ukrainian heritage, proceeds from a passing of the hat collected nearly $800.

Additionally, the chapter hosts special events such as a screening of the documentary Just Like Me: The Vietnam War/The American War, scheduled to be shown May 25 at Chicago’s Irish American Heritage Center. The event will include a Q&A with the film’s director, VVA member Ron Osgood.

Alongside its chapter-specific regular meetings, Chapter 242’s heartbeat has been Tuesday morning meets comprising veterans of all eras at a local Dunkin Donuts, which donated a room for the purpose. Organized by 242, these gatherings include sharing obituaries of area vets, active service personnel, and first responders, and prayers for the ailing.

McGill, a cavalry scout with the 25th Infantry Division in Cu Chi in 1965-66, also talks to the Dunkin Donuts group about VA benefits, and his chapter welcomes guest speakers.

“One of them was a psychologist who talked about PTSD and the treatments for alcohol and substance abuse,” he said. “Another guest speaker was a veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He works for Humana and gave a presentation about what Humana does for veterans.”

The Tuesday morning group, which has been a gateway to active VVA involvement for many Vietnam veterans, is so popular that it recently outgrew the Dunkin Donuts space. It has relocated to VFW Post 3579 in nearby Niles, Illinois, where Chapter 242 holds its meetings.

Given the demographic of Vietnam veterans, McGill said his chapter increasingly finds itself advising the families of deceased vets about VA benefits available to them. This is particularly pertinent as many veterans don’t discuss their Vietnam service—or related benefits—with their families. That’s why Chapter 242 encourages its members to talk about such matters with their loved ones.

Chapter 242’s future plans include supporting Pat Stack in copyrighting and licensing his Agent Orange tee-shirt design to raise additional funds for The Agent Orange Next Gen Campaign. Individual donations can be made at birthdefects.org/donate-now

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