Thanks to a May 2 grant from the Libertyville Sunrise Rotary Club, American Legion Post 329 is remodeling the bathrooms in its historic downtown Libertyville building.
Though Post 329 is not in peril, post Commander Al Proia said he wants a new generation to join the cause and one day takeover the well-managed organization.
“Our goal is definitely to get younger members, because even the Vietnam guys are getting old,” said Proia, 79, of Vernon Hills. “We have to develop some reason for them to join. I don’t know what that is yet, but if someone else does we’re willing to listen.”
A placard in the building says the structure was first built 1894 and used as Libertyville Town Hall until it was sold to the American Legion for $35,000 around 1973. After the sale, the indoor bathrooms and office area was built onto the lower level.
The American Legion’s $2,000 grant was one of 45 awards the Rotary Club gave out on May 2, according its website. Proia said his team had targeted the bathrooms as a possible project and all were pleasantly surprised by the club’s gift.
“We probably could get along without doing this work, but we want to make them more modern for the people who are enjoying our venue,” Proia said while a contractor walked by. “They’re not broken or anything, it’s just time.”
While American Legion posts have been dealing with enrollment declines, Libertyville Post 329 is financially supported by weekly bingo competitions, event rentals and a parking lot rental agreement with the village.
“Our bingo is making money and we rent the hall at least two, if not three weekends a month,” Proia said. “Structurally the building is in great shape, we completed some electrical upgrades a while back and a Boy Scout painted our walls a few years ago as part of his eagle scout project. We’re doing pretty well.”
Financials aside, Proia said he’s still uncertain about the American Legion’s future since a large portion of the Libertyville post’s 150 members are in their 80s or 90s.
The American Legion has two annual dinners and a monthly membership meeting. Proia said only 15 people showed up to the May 8 membership meeting.
July 1 is the American Legion’s upcoming deadline for renewing memberships. In the push to remind current members to renew, Proia said he would like to get new perspectives and extend the group’s resources to a new generation of veterans.
“One of our main purposes is to help other veterans in need,” Proia said. “Granted, we’re in Libertyville and we don’t have a lot of problems.”
After paying its bills, Proia said portions of revenue go into savings while others go toward promoting veterans in Libertyville, sponsoring high school students’ attendence at the Boys State summer constitution workshop at Eastern Illinois University and routine donations to the Lake County Veterans Assistance Commission.
Proia said there’s a commonly overlooked reason why American Legion posts everywhere are shrinking.
“Something important to realize is during World War II we had far more people in the military than all these other wars,” Proia said. “The legions are shrinking, but there was a greater demand in the past if you look at the size and timing of current events.”
Norman Arnswald, 93, of Mundelein, served in World War II and acts as a liaison to the Veterans Assistance Commission. He said the group helps homeless and struggling veterans, including a widow who was recently given a car after hers broke down.
A couple of veterans from Libertyville’s post routinely visit other veterans going through substance abuse detox and recovery at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago.
“Sitting alone in places like that is no fun. It can be a real help to talk with someone who’s seen what you’ve seen,” Arnswald said. “And if nothing else, having an extra person to fetch stuff is always a positive.”
Howard Pratt, 86, served in Korea and was Post 329’s membership committee chair for several years. He said ideas and needs often come out while people are building camaraderie.
“The young guys, they have a lot more social and recreational options these days,” Pratt said, noting the younger veterans can use social media to keep in touch with colleagues instead of joining fraternal organizations to find like-minded people.
According to Pratt, Libertyville’s post does have a few veterans from recent conflicts, and he wants to encourage some of them to come up with activities or causes to support.
So far, however, Pratt said the post has a group that served in the Vietnam War and a few from the 1989 invasion of Panama, and they would likely have to take over soon.
As time goes on, so does Libertyville. Pratt and Proia noted the town is getting bigger.
Libertyville officials recently approved a Transit Oriented Development, which guides future development within a diameter around train stations.
“It’s worth over $1 million now,” Proia said on the legion hall. “Some people tell us we could make a fortune selling it, but I always tell them they’re crazy. It’s a great resource for the legion and a point of historical value to our community.”
The hall, however, is among few buildings in that area not slated for commercial redevelopment.
Prospective applicants do not need to live in Libertyville to join Post 329.
