Page 4 - DFCS NEWS MAGAZINE 2018-2

President’s Message
Chuck Sweeney
This will be the second edition of this great News Magazine under the very capable hands of Editor Lew Jennings and our new printing firm Modern Litho. The size and quality of the News Magazine have increased significantly over the previous News Letters but so has the workload and the costs. I know that we used to publish the newsletter three times a year but based on the costs and the workload factor on everyone, the decision was made to print the News Magazine twice per year, June and December.
The Reunion Committee under Warren Eastman is making great strides to ensure that the 2019 Reunion will be a first-class event.
The 2019 DFCS reunion will be held in Dayton/Fairborn, Ohio from September 15th -19th. Details will be coming later, however, please mark your calendars for this great event with the theme “Celebrating 100 Years of American Air Power”. Facebook and Linkedin are being used weekly to apprise large groups of people about the Reunion and highlighting the accomplishments of some of our DFC Society members.
While we are doing well financially right now, looking toward the future and the decreasing number of DFCs being awarded, made us look at ways we could improve passing our legacy on to future generations. The concept of The Legacy Challenge Campaign is described later in this issue and we think it is a concept that will move us forward in a very positive way. I hope people will respond favorably when we start the campaign.
In the last issue I mentioned that we contracted out our newer memorabilia, however, some of our members seemed to have missed it or are confused about DFCS memorabilia. We have contracted with Prior Service to handle our newer memorabilia items such as hats, shirts, jackets, medals, lapel pins and license plate frames. You can order these items by going to the DFCS website (www.dfcsociety.org), click on the Memorabilia tab and it will take you directly to the Prior Service website to order those items.
Since we still have an inventory of some items such as books, patches, plaques, ties, prints, lithographs and membership directories, those items can be ordered by going to the DFCS website and clicking on the Books/Branded Items tab. We still have a few older items that aren’t listed but you can call 1-866-332-6332 option1 or email store@dfcsociety.org to inquire what is available.
Our membership continues to increase, however, we still need our membership to support us in recruiting new members and letting the public know about the DFC Society by speaking to other organizations about who we are. We need to preserve the rich heritage and historical narratives of those who are recipients of the DFC and to educate the general public, especially the youth of America, on the values of courage, patriotism and character; those very characteristics upon which America was founded. By doing so it elevates the awareness of the award itself and demonstrates to the public that a very small cross section of ordinary Americans can and have accomplished extraordinary things, under extremely difficult conditions, while in flight.
I want to take this opportunity to wish all of you a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Joyous New Year. - Chuck Sweeney
4 / DFCS News Magazine / WINTER 2018