Happy Veteran's Day

A few years back, the Harris Middle School in Shelbyville, TN asked their students to draw pictures of a Veteran's Day stamp they'd like to see.

Shown at the left is one of their suggestions.

If you want to see what else they came up, go to http://www.bedfordk12tn.com/harris/veterans.htm

What a great way to promote the hobby and honor our nation's veterans at the same time.

It occured to me, we could all do something similiar in own communities next year.

Contact the principal at a local elementary school. Ask if you (or your club) could sponsor a Veteran's Day stamp design contest during October (National Stamp Collecting Month).

Then get in touch with a local veteran's organization (American Legion, VFW, etc) and see if they would like to work with you as judges and perhaps even as co-sponsors.

Then on Veteran's Day (Nov. 11) , hand out certificates of particpation to all the entries and give out as many prizes (stamp collecting kits perhaps) as you can for the best designs. Be sure to alert the media. It's a good story and you'll probably get some coverage.

Your thoughts and comments are welcome. E-mail me at donschilling@worldnet.att.net.

PS- Happy Veteran's Day 2005 to all the men and women of our armed forces - past and present - AND their loved ones and families.