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VFW isn't fading away yet photo by Bob Pennell Somewhere along the bar at Medford's VFW Post 1833, senior active member Lenny Howlett can be found holding a cup of coffee as strong as his patriotism. The post provides a family and second home for the 88-year-old Medford Army veteran of World War II. But veterans organization is aging, and its membership rolls are shrinking By Paul Fattig of the Mail Tribune Perched on a bar stool in VFW Crater Lake Post 1833, Medford resident Lenny Howlett nurses a cup of coffee strong enough to jump-start a 1944 Willys jeep. None of those namby-pamby lattes for him. "The blacker the better," he says. "If it holds up my spoon, that's my kind of coffee. Oh yeah!" An Army veteran of World War II, Howlett, 88, is the senior active member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars post, which opened at 42 N. Front St. on Feb. 1, 1947. The local chapter was originally chartered on Dec. 1, 1930. But the members are growing old as the next millennium marches ever closer. The national organization, which celebrated its 100th anniversary on Sept. 29, is battling declining membership. Nationally, its leaders expect that nearly half their 1.9 million members -- already down from 2.2 million four years ago -- will be dead in a decade. Membership criteria require that members have earned a ribbon or campaign medal during overseas duty. "We're gearing up for a smaller but more active organization," said Steve Van Buskirk, a spokesman at the VFW's national headquarters in Kansas City, Mo. About 24.8 million veterans are alive today, down 10 percent from a decade ago. That number is expected to fall in the next 10 years to 20 million much-older veterans, according to projections by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. World War II veterans who once swelled the VFW's ranks are dying at the rate of about 1,100 a day, the agency reports. Yet some things haven't changed. In Post 1833, members who joined half a century ago would find the familiar pool tables, shuffleboard and bingo table. There is the veteran chatter. The smoking lamp is always lit. And there is the coffee that runs as strong as the members' feeling of patriotism. For 50 cents you get all the refills and camaraderie you'll ever want. "I was on that well-known slide downhill when some folks that really cared for me brought me in here," Howlett says of his joining three years ago. "I had just lost my wife of 55 years. "All of a sudden I had friends everywhere," he adds. "Family -- that's the word for it." Post 1833 once had roughly 1,000 members in the distant years immediately following World War II. It now has about 600. Yet members say they are winning the war against thinning ranks. "We're starting to bring in the younger people now," said post commander Mike Footh, born the year the post moved into the building. "As long as the older members are pro-active, we'll always be around," he added. A Vietnam veteran who served with the Army's 82nd Airborne, Footh is also a First Sergeant in the Oregon Army National Guard unit in Medford. He originally joined the VFW in Idaho 30 years ago. "If an organization is going to survive, you've got to have new people coming in," he said. "We have a future. We're starting to get in younger members." The newest is Medford resident Candace Paul, 30, a Persian Gulf War veteran who joined two months ago. A Specialist 4th Class in the Oregon Army National Guard and veteran of the U.S. Army, she enjoys the camaraderie as much as Howlett. "This is great," she said. "I want to be able to speak up for the younger generation." That's music to the ears of folks like Don Elliott, 70, a former post commander. He's an Army veteran who served in Korea just as World War II was ending. "There had been a division between younger veterans and World War II veterans but that's pretty much gone," Elliott said. "We're closing ranks now." The bottom line, he said, is that veterans who served overseas in harm's way, whether it was World War II, Vietnam, Panama or the Gulf War, share a common bond. "We all relate to each other," he said. They also understand changes that can threaten the post, he said. For instance, many are concerned about a teen dance club and activity center that opens Jan. 1 in a former bank building at Front and Main streets. Known as VIBES, it stands for Vitality in Becoming Educated Socially and operates as part of a nonprofit organization called Kids Unlimited. "We have a lot of older members who get intimidated by teens," Elliott explained. "We're not against teens." Indeed, the post sponsors scholarships for young people as well as youth baseball teams and scouting programs. Each meeting raises money for the national VFW's children's home. "We wish the teen center the best," he said. "But we don't want people to forget that we're here. We've been here a long time. We want to be around for a lot longer." James "Johnny" Walton, 65, the post quartermaster who served in the Navy and Air Force in Korea and Southeast Asia, agreed. He has been a member of the post for 11 years. "We're family," he said. "We have people here who have been in similar situations. Most of us share the same political views. "But we're also an important part of this community," he added. "Where would this country be today without veterans? We've got a wonderful country here. Somebody has to stand up and defend it, and defend other countries when they get into trouble. That's what we're all about." Behind the bar is a sign reading, "United we stand, divided we fall." "This is vets-for-vets here," said Chuck Wooten, 70, a VFW member who runs the games. "If we don't take care of each other, who will? We have to take care of our own." Back on his bar stool, Howlett, who also likes a wine cooler from time to time when he isn't sipping his black coffee, relishes the atmosphere. "We're always arguing about this and that," he said. "One time we got all lined up along the bar, swapping lies, and I told them I was right because I had 10 years on the oldest one." As for the future, Howlett isn't much worried. "The world keeps on turning," he concluded. "And, no matter what I think or do, it ain't gonna stop." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA