VFW Auxiliary craft show fills all vendor spaces in Jacksonville
Forty-three vendor spaces filled before the doors opened at a Jacksonville craft show that raised money for veterans, scholarships and PTSD service-dog help.
The Morgan County VFW Auxiliary Post 1379 packed its craft and vendor show with 43 full spaces and two extra sellers added in at American Legion Post 279 on West Superior Avenue in Jacksonville. The turnout gave the auxiliary a ready-made crowd for a fundraiser tied directly to veterans’ services, student scholarships and support for service dogs trained for veterans with PTSD.
The show ran Saturday, June 27, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at American Legion Post 279, 903 West Superior Ave., a Jacksonville veterans’ site that event listings identified as the host for the Morgan County VFW Auxiliary Post 1379 Craft & Vendor Show. Visitors were promised handmade and specialty items, food, baked goods and activities throughout the day.
Jodith Lewis, who coordinated the event, said all 43 vendor spaces were full and that she had squeezed in two more participants. That kind of demand mattered because the auxiliary’s fundraising reaches beyond a one-day sale. Money raised through veteran support projects, T-shirt sales and 50-50 drawings helps fund scholarship support for students and service-dog assistance for veterans living with PTSD.
Lewis said trained PTSD service dogs can cost as much as $35,000, putting a hard price tag on one of the auxiliary’s priorities. The group has already seen smaller efforts add up: a recent scrapbooking fundraiser brought in $215 for the service-dog program through shirt sales alone.
The auxiliary’s work also has had a local, hands-on side. A Morgan County VFW Post 1379 Auxiliary Facebook post said the post and auxiliary built a wheelchair ramp for an injured veteran, and the organization recently helped a local veteran who needed a ramp after becoming a double amputee. Those projects show how the group’s fundraising can translate into access, not just ceremony.
The event also reflected the cooperation inside Morgan County’s veteran community. Although the craft show benefited the VFW Auxiliary, it was held at American Legion Post 279. Morgan County VFW Post 1379 is open to the public, and its canteen offers pool, darts, music, shuffleboard, food and entertainment, making it a practical gathering place for a fundraiser of this size.
Nationally, the VFW Auxiliary says it has spent more than 100 years supporting veterans, service members and their families. Its scholarship and contest programs are part of that mission, and the Jacksonville show tied those long-running goals to local vendors, local shoppers and local needs.
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