Gold Coast Veterans Foundation

On National Vietnam War Veterans Day, we honor the legacy of the millions who served our nation during the Vietnam War. On March 29, 1973, the last American com...bat troops left Vietnam. More than three million Americans served in-country during the war and 58,279 men and women made the ultimate sacrifice. We continue to lose Vietnam veterans every day as a result of the war’s lingering effects. Many Vietnam veterans returned home to a divided country and at times, little to no respect for their service. Today, we honor all they gave for their country. Together, we will continue to show our gratitude for our Vietnam veterans and work to ensure their service and sacrifices are never forgotten. To our Vietnam veterans, Thank you for your service and Welcome Home! https://bit.ly/3cvLSv1

They served. They sacrificed. They deserve every opportunity to succeed once they are on the other side. We at the Gold Coast Veterans Foundation are especially focused on helping those veterans who have the greatest needs - those who "fell through the cracks". : Original Air Date - March 9, 2021 on the 5:00 p.m. edition of CBS 2 News: https://youtu.be/W_RvoWNpAWA

"What we're after is healing and housing in tandem," said Bob Harris, Gold Coast Veterans Foundation's executive director. "The goal is long-term reintegration back into independence and permanent housing."

Veterans' Village is our ambitious project to further combat veteran homelessness - not only by creating our own housing, but also providing a one-stop center for resources and healing to allow homeless veterans to begin repairing their lives and getting back on their feet. Thank you to Lance Orozco and KCLU Radio for allowing us to share our solution in the hopes of more veteran success stories, one of which we feature here.

#OTD in Seabee History - 5 March 1942: The designation of construction battalions as "Seabees" and the use of a distinctive insignia on major items of construct...ion equipment were officially approved by Rear Admiral Ben Moreell. It is the observed Seabee birthday. What most people don’t know is that there were originally two insignia. The first approved insignia depicted a man with a rifle slung over his shoulder and a sledgehammer in his hands. Seabee units attached to the Marines wore it on their uniforms to differentiate themselves from Marine units. Soon after, Frank J. Iafrate submitted what would become the iconic emblem of Seabees a bee with a dixie cup hat carrying his tools and a Tommy gun! The image has been interpreted hundreds of times since, with at least 500 known variations. The original art for both designs eventually became part of the Museum’s collection. The Iafrate painting arrived in 1965 and the bronze pin arrived with RADM Lewis B. Combs collection in 1984. For more information on the Seabee Insignia read: https://www.history.navy.mil//seabee-/seabee-insignia.html #Navy #NavyReadiness #NavyMuseumAtHome #NavyMuseumFromHome #MuseumFromHome #MuseumAtHome #SeabeeHeritage #SeabeeHistory #USNHistory #Seabees #cando #usnsm #otd #5march1942 #frankjiafrate #RADMBenMoreell #RADMLewisBCombs #sledgehammer #tommygun #seabeesbirthday #construimusbatuimus

* Courtship over Chili Beans * To ring in this new year, we present in our monthly VC Star Veterans Column this feel-good lifelong adventure of two local Army veterans whose love story began over a bowl of chili beans. We hope this one will put a smile on your face and give you a sense of hope for this new year. https://gcvf.org/veterans-column-chili-beans-brought-toget/... #MilitaryLoveStory #USArmy

Have a wonderful, happy, and healthy New Year! Please note our hours for the New Years holiday. We will return to our normal hours starting on Monday, January 4, 2021.

From all of us staff and volunteers, we wish you a happy and healthy holiday season! (Please note our holiday hours for Christmas and New Years.)

Thank you to Denise Burns of the Kiwanis Club of Thousand Oaks and her team for bringing some comfort and light this holiday season with these home-cooked meals for our local homeless and homebound veterans. We are grateful for your support during these most unusual times. #ServingThoseWhoServedUs

The National Guard has more than 300,000 Soldiers across 54 states and territories, and a unique dual mission to serve our country and our states. For 384 years, the Guard has been activated to help those when they need it most, and we'll continue to do so.