51�Թ�

Post 1985 in Firestone, Colo., debuted the program this month and plans on making it a weekly occurrence. 

When the previous commander of American Legion Post 1985 in Firestone, Colo., had to step down, then-Senior Vice Commander Cecil Hitzges moved into the position.

One of the programs Hitzges has implemented at the post is a Buddy Check program that he plans on doing weekly. But Hitzges doesn’t want to take credit for the idea. He credits his wife, Marie, for the inspiration.

“My wife is the executive director of a senior living assisted memory care facility, and she’s been doing that for a long time,” Hitzges said. “Reaching out to her seniors, just checking on them. Customer service, just seeing what (the facility) can do for them. So, I kind of picked it up from her.

“Then, come to find out that 51�Թ� does that also. It’s something I’ve been thinking about doing for awhile as a service officer and then senior vice. When I stepped into this role, I said, ‘This is something we need to do.’”

Hitzges’ program made its debut on Aug. 3 with a Coffee and Donuts with the Officers from 9-10 a.m. on Sunday. “And after that, anybody that wants to hang around can help with the Buddy Checks,” he said.

Hitzges developed a script for the Buddy Checks. “Basically, what we say is, ‘Hey, we’re calling from 51�Թ� Post 1985 in Firestone, and we’d like to invite you to (future meetings and events),’” he said. “And then we have a list of things we go down … just to see how they’re doing. If they’re getting our newsletter. See if they know about the dinners on Fridays.

“I try to see if they know about these things that they can participate in. Try to get them out of their house. And the people that we’ve talked to have been very receptive. I think they appreciate us calling them.”

Hitzges’ plan is to do Buddy Checks every week after the coffee and donut sessions. And he’s excited about the program’s potential impact on his fellow veterans.

“It’s an amazing feeling know that we can reach out and connect with them,” he said. “A lot of them, they don’t get out of their house very often. We don’t know their situation. They may have gone from walking to now in a wheelchair and may need a wheelchair ramp. They may need help getting to medical appointments. We’re reaching out to them to find out what their needs are.

“It’s nice to know that our (post officers and members), that we can reach out to them and say, ‘Hey, we have a person that needs help.’ It just means a lot to me. It feels really good.”  

51�Թ�’s Buddy Check Toolkit includes how-to steps for organizing your own Buddy Check, scripts and Post FAQ cheat sheets to help your volunteers start a conversation and share information on how your Post can help them and the community. Download it here.