Legion Post 331 to Send 4 Coast Guard Members Home for the Holiday

STONE HARBOR — Four active duty members stationed at the Coast Guard Training Center in Cape May will fly home for the Christmas holiday courtesy of American Legion Post 331 in Stone Harbor and Avalon.
The post will award the airline tickets for the holiday trips during an event at the Stephen C. Ludlam Post 331 in Stone Harbor Dec. 8, at noon.
“This is our way of showing how much we appreciate these young men and women who serve our country proudly in our home county,” stated American Legion Post 331 Commander Tom McCullough in a release. “For four consecutive years, and thanks to the generosity of our friends and neighbors, we are able to send active members and their families home for Christmas to be reunited with loved ones.”
American Legion Post 331 has partnered with the Coast Guard Training Center to provide the trips home for interested active members at the rank of E6 (1st petty officer) or below.
The USCG collects the names of the interested individuals and random drawings are held to select the members who fly home. They receive round-trip airfare to and from their destinations, and limousine service to and from the airport courtesy of Avalon Limousine.
This year, members and their families will be flying home to California, Alaska, North Carolina, and Texas.
The idea for this program was initiated by former post commander James Fleischmann, who served in the Air Force from 1967-71.
“I remember literally having to hitchhike from McGuire Air Force Base to my home in northern New Jersey for the holiday season because we had no money in those days to get home”, Fleischmann stated. “I thought of this idea to help facilitate the reuniting of active duty member families during the most special time of year to create cherished holiday memories.”
The active duty members work out the days and amount of time they are able to have off with the Coast Guard.