Local Vets Say Membership on Decline at Coraopolis VFW

Ken Ochman, quartermaster for the Veterans of Foreign War Post 402, knows the number by heart: 390. 

It's the number of members now enrolled in the Coraopolis-based VFW, and it's a number that Ochman said gets smaller by the year. 

"We loose probably 25 to 30 members a year," Ochman said. "And I think last year we signed up only four new members. Maybe five." 

Membership has declined steadily at VFW posts throughout the country since national membership peaked in the 1990s at 2.2 million. Today, 1.45 veterans are members of the organization—more than 30 percent of them are older than 70, according to VFW statistics.  

Ochman said deaths among the Post 402 ranks are the reason for its dwindling numbers. He said most of the veterans enrolled at the post served in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam. 

He said the Mulberry Street post, like many around the country, struggles to draw in younger veterans. 

"It doesn't look good," Ochman said of the future of VFW posts. "Pennsylvania is supposedly the state with the largest (VFW) enrollment. I really don't know why (membership has continued to decrease) we try to do as much as we possibly can to join the community." 

Ochman said Moon Township's military community, which includes the 171st Refueling Wing , the 171st Air National Guard and the 316th Army Reserve Sustainment Command Expeditionary, has not bolstered Post 402's membership. 

"We do try to recruit from the local bases," he said. "But with a lot of the guys being part-time they're from outside of the area so they maybe join where they are living. It's a big problem." 

The VFW can help veterans navigate Veteran's Affairs benefits and re-acclimate to life after military service, Ochman said. 

"We try to help people and guide them," Ochman said. "We try to get the word out to these younger people that if they're trying to figure out what's all available to them online they'll never find anything." 

Post 402 today will host its annual parade on Fifth Avenue, an annual event that pays tribute to Moon-area veterans. Ochman said it's a part of an effort to "keep visible" to the community and attract new members. 

"There's a sense of community," Ochman said. "We have a post commander and a post officer and we try to distribute all the information we get (to veterans). And we try to help out with anything that we can." 

Check back with Patch for parade coverage.