Lafayette Jackson Veterans Organization

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The LaFayette-Jackson Veterans Organization' is a community service organization established on July 4 of 2005 in LaFayette, Jackson Township, Allen County, Ohio. Its' founding members, [Phillip E. Hawk, Michael J. Risner, Wetzel Ray, John Schmiedebusch and David E. Paxton], started the organization as a direct result of the desecration of the American Flag and Civil War Monument in LaFayette, Ohio by 4 vandals. Of the 5 founders 4 are veterans of the Vietnam War. All but David Paxton were in the Army; David was in the U. S. Navy.

See Ada Herald Article of the organizations formation here.[1]

All four vandals were caught and sentenced to 500 hours of community service in LaFayette but all as of May 6, 2007 have failed to fulfill their obligations to the community.

Another project that has been ongoing is to provide live buglers for memorial events and burial services with the assistance of Bugles Across America ->[2] See Ada Herald Article on this subject here ->[3]

The LaFayette~Jackson Veterans Organization have begun several projects to help beautify the village of LaFayette, Ohio. One of which is also a direct result of the vandalism. On Memorial Day of 2006 at the Request of Founder David Paxton, The village was officially nicknamed "Patriot City U.S.A." and the Veterans Organization have since obtained donations from individuals and area businesses to purchase and install large red, white and blue banners throughout the village with the new nickname.

As of the fall of 2006, The Veterans Organization began to seek to obtain 4.1 acres of ground for the village of LaFayette at the location of Allen East School (which is to be torn down) for the purpose of constructing a large community park which would be named the "LaFayette Jackson Veterans Memorial Park" The park would be used to memorialize those former students of LaFayette High School and Allen East who were killed in action in defense of our freedom, and would include memorials, war implements and play areas for families. The intent is that the community would have something beautiful to use after the school is torn down and the children would be playing in the shadows of those memorials to remind them how they have their freedom.