VFW AND LEGION WILL WELL POPPIES TO BENEFIT VETERANS

Members of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3838 and the American Legion auxiliary will distribute Buddy Poppies this weekend at a number of locations throughout Cape Girardeau.

Cape Girardeau Mayor Al Spradling III purchased the first poppy here this year to kick off the event, which will be held Friday and Saturday.

The memorial flower became the symbol of "the tragedy of war and the renewal of life" following World War I, because poppies bloomed on so many French battlefields. Artificial poppies were sold in the United States to aid children in France and Belgium who were victims of the war.

During the early 1920s, The Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion started conducting sales to aid veterans and their families in the communities and hospitals throughout the nation.

Poppy Week and Poppy Day honor men and women who have served in the U.S. armed services. It is usually celebrated in May, the same month as Memorial Day, a patriotic holiday.

Locally, much of the money raised is used for veterans at the Missouri Veterans Home here.

The VFW was the first veteran organization to promote the annual distribution of poppies in 1923 assembled by disabled and hospitalized veterans.

More than $2,000 was raised last year in Cape Girardeau to assist veterans here.

Coordinators for the 1999 VFW event are auxiliary chairmen Bill Humphries and Sandi Goodheart.

A second Poppy Day will be held May 21 by the Cape Girardeau American Legion Post 63 and its auxiliary.