Poppy drive to benefit local veterans

The Simsbury Metacomet Post 1926 VFW will be holding a Buddy Poppy Drive in honor of national POW/MIA weekend, with the proceeds benefiting local veterans.

The drive will take place at Fitzgerald’s Foods, from Sept. 18 to 20.

Lee Wilson, Army veteran and the post’s senior vice commander, explained that the poppies are made by disabled veterans at homes throughout the country, and purchased for drives.

“They make them, we buy them and they get paid, so it’s money they can use for their needs,” Wilson said.

National POW/MIA Recognition Day takes place Sept. 18. A 1979 U.S. Congress resolution established the day of observance, and it was held on various days until 1986, when it was set for the third Friday in September.

The day is observed by remembering the more than 82,000 U.S. military members who are still missing in action, dating back to World War II. It is also one of the six days each year when the POW/MIA flag is flown.

Wilson said the drive is also a chance to bring awareness to what POW/MIA means, especially to younger people who may not be as familiar.

“We want more people to understand what it means. Some don’t know what it is,” he said.

The VFW poppies are red, Wilson said, and will be sold in a safe, contact-less way. Donations can be dropped into a container, and the poppies will be able to be picked up by donors.

The sale’s proceeds will benefit veterans and their families in the local community, directly through the VFW post. Wilson said many veterans are struggling because of unemployment and health issues during the pandemic.

The familiar red paper poppy, normally worn in the lapel, is a symbol from WWI memorialized in a poem written in 1915 by John McCrae about Flanders Field, Belgium, where, in 1914, American soldiers were engaged in battle in the fields of poppies that grew there.

The Buddy Poppy Drive will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 18, 19, and 20 at Fitzgerald’s Foods 710 Hopmeadow St. in Simsbury. Those wishing to make a donation may do so by making a check out to Simsbury VFW Post 1926 and mailed to: P.O. Box 211, Simsbury, CT 06070. Please note in the memo line: For Poppy Drive.

Another drive, Wilson said, will likely take place on or near Veterans Day.

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