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Rose Duval Have you ever felt the need to be a part of a group or organization that gave you a sense of purpose and allowed you to offer a modicum of peace and solace? For me that is what the Arlington Ladies offer each time they attend a burial ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. The Arlington Ladies began in 1948 when the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Hoyt Vandenberg, and his wife, Gladys, routinely attended funeral
services at the cemetery and noticed that some services had only a military chaplain present. The Vandenberg’s believed that a member of the Air Force family should also attend, and Mrs. Vandenberg asked her friends to start attending services. She ultimately formed a group from the Officer's Wives Club. In 1973, General Creighton Abrams' wife, Julia, founded the Army's version of the group. In 1985, the Navy created a group, and in 2006 the Coast Guard followed suit. The Marines do not officially have a group, as they send a representative of the Marine Commandant to every funeral. Today, the Air Force, Army, Navy, and Coast Guard all have Arlington Ladies who perform similar volunteer duties, attending funeral services for active-duty service members and veterans. The criteria for becoming an Arlington Lady is different for each military service, but each Lady has some connection to the respective service, generally as a current or former military member or as a spouse of a military member. The Ladies are an official part of the funeral service, representing the military service's chief of staff or equivalent. My desire to be a part of this group has been a long-time goal of mine. The process was long, but all good things are worth the wait. For now, I am an Army Arlington Lady. My journey began when I met with the Chairperson of the Army Arlington Ladies. From there I met with three (3) other Army Arlington Ladies. This took over six months due to coordinating our schedules and the holidays. In the end the Chairperson, with input from the other ladies, decided to sponsor me into the organization. From there I shadowed 3 different ladies and then I go solo while being evaluated by the Chairperson. I will be on the substitution list for a year before I am given a permanent day. But until then I am more than happy to fill in wherever I am needed. Having been on the receiving end of the Arlington Ladies condolence card, I understand the impact and meaning of their presence. I only hope I can offer the same warmth and sincerity I received on the day Scott was laid to rest in Section 60. While Arlington National Cemetery has the Arlington Ladies, there is no reason that every cemetery across our country can’t have a similar group of volunteers. Volunteers of Gold Star Mothers that carries on the tradition to ensure every veteran or service member who dies in service of our nation has their Arlington Lady present.
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Veterans Last Patrol: Operation Holiday Salute Three years ago, American Gold Star Mothers, Inc., teamed up with Veteran’s Last Patrol for Operation Holiday Salute. Each year we have seen the number of cards collected grow. For the 2024 year, we are excited to share that we collected 26,680 holiday cards to be delivered to our nation’s Heroes who are currently in hospice care. We received cards from 37 different states! 
Members of the AGSM National Board spent the day sorting and counting the cards during their visit to Washington, DC for the Veterans Day weekend.
Some of our favorite cards were cards sent to us from children and the handmade cards sent to us from schools across the country.
After all cards had been received, sorted and counted, National President, Patti Elliott and National IT Chair, Nichole Chilton, delivered the cards to VLP Headquarters in Spartanburg, SC.
 VLP’s extensive network of volunteers across the country helps put these notes of appreciation and encouragement in their hands. To find out how you can assist in the distribution of cards, please visit VLP’s website: Welcome | Veteran's Last Patrol | USA
Thank you for helping us complete another successful collection campaign! We could not do this without you!! Mission Impossible? You decide!How do you attend several events on the same day around the same time?
The National Executive Board (NEB) members had several opportunities during Veterans Day weekend to honor those who served our military.  In just the two months that I have been on the NEB, I have learned so much about this organization and our ability to make a difference in the lives of our military and our members. Hi, I am Joan Snyder, one of the newest members to the AGSM National Executive Board for 2024-2025. My official role is National Banner Guard. I am also chairing the Community Service committee. My journey as a Gold Star Mother began on July 31, 2011, when my son, USMC Sgt Christopher Wrinkle and his military working dog, Tosca were killed in Afghanistan. Little did I know where this journey would take me. There are two reasons that motivated me to join AGSM and serve on the NEB; my son’s legacy and missed opportunities. My son did not leave behind a lot of material things, but he did leave behind a great love for his family, his friends, his church, and his country. He believed that our freedoms/rights as citizens of this country were worth protecting. Because of his sacrifice, he missed the opportunity to pursue his dreams. So, I want to ensure that our veterans can pursue their dreams. In addition to my full-time job and NEB responsibilities, I’m a location coordinator for Wreaths Across America. During my free time I enjoy working on our family farm, playing in several of our local community bands and enjoy spending time with family and friends.
 Hi! I'm Denise Torbert your 2024-2025 National Flag Guard for the American Gold Star Mothers NEB. I'm from Lancaster, Pa. (No, I'm not Amish) I joined AGSM to have a connection to other mothers who have lost a child that was serving in the military. My son USMC CPL. Eric M. Torbert Jr., or as I call him, "Jr". He joined the Marines when he was 22 . Back then I did not know about Blue Star or Gold Star Mothers. I became a Gold Star Mother December 18, 2010, when Jr. was KIA while sweeping for bombs in the Helmand Province, Afghanistan, on night pratol. Jr. was a 1st CEB Engineer battalion helping the 5th Marines that night. There is a "Combat Outpost Torbert" named for Jr. that was then turned over to the Afghan natives after the Marines left. They kept the name to honor Jr. and all others who had lost their lives protecting their people. There is also a bridge that crosses over the Conestoga River on Rt 741 outside of Millersville, PA. Jr. was the oldest of my 3 children. I have a daughter Lynn, who gave me two grandsons (Waylon and Huck) and a son Dennis who joined the Maines in 2019 at the age of 23 to honor his brother. Family is verry important to me and I consider AGSM as my family. I am looking forward to serving you this year.
 We've been at this a whole month today! Can you believe it? In some ways, it has flown and in some ways it feels like we were just sitting in Colorado yesterday.
My hope is that as the NEB has started meeting with the committees and getting thousands of emails from me, that they are still as enthusiastic as they were a month ago. I'll admit I'm tired at the end of most days, but it's a good tired. Already, I've had some incredible opportunities to meet some amazing folks and interact with some of our members and others from across the country answering questions and sharing our mission.
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