WHERE PATRIOTS GATHER
The Waverly Area Veterans Post Veterans Center honors the veterans of yesterday, today and to- morrow. It recognizes and celebrates the sacrifice of those who served in past conflicts, those who serve today, and those whose service awaits them. These men and women and their families are ever mindful of the reality that freedom is not free. It is in this spirit that this very special home – a place “Where Patriots Gather” – was built. – WAVP
Nearly nine years ago, the community of Waverly, Iowa was devastated when the Cedar River spilled out of its banks. The floods seriously damaged and destroyed many area homes and businesses, including the AMVETS build- ing and American Legion Hall, leaving those veterans with no place to gather. At the same time, Waverly’s VFW build- ing was showing its age, having outlived its useful lifetime by more than 20 years.
The Waverly community didn’t want to lose these vital orga- nizations, something that had occurred in many Iowa com- munities due to dwindling numbers and funds. However, all three were faced with the daunting task of how to rebuild and fund their facilities. So, members of the four Waverly area veterans’ service groups decided to meet and discuss their options, including the possibility of a shared facility.
“We recognized that we needed to do what would best serve the needs of the veterans and ultimately felt we could do things better jointly than everyone doing their own thing,” explained Carl Benning, a salesman at deike Implement and U.S. Army veteran. “Once we started talking about the specifics and practicality of joining to- gether, most realized it was the only way to go.”
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Photo Credits: Waverly Area Veterans Post
The transition wasn’t easy, however, since each Post had operated with its own building, funds and board of directors. “When you have that many people involved, not everyone will have the same ideas and quite frankly, some weren’t in favor of the project,” reflected Benning. “Howev- er, once the plans were finalized and construction started, I’d say that 99% of the members had jumped on board.”
The Waverly Area Veterans Post (WAVP) was legally incor- porated June 11, 2009, bringing together the four greater Waverly area veterans organizations: American Legion Post #176; AMVETS Post #79; Marine Corps League Detach- ment #1241; and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #2208. Following all of the legal work, site selection and building needs/specs, fundraising for the new facility began in 2011 and the groundbreaking took place in April 2015.
The group’s original goal was to raise all of the necessary funds to have a debt-free facility. To date, over $4 million has been gifted or pledged of which more than $500,000 has been pledged through in-kind support from various business trades. “The community really stepped up and supported this facility,” said Benning. “This is especially true of our veterans and their families. Of the 960 individ- ual donors, more than 60% were from veterans’ families.”
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