Allied War Veterans Council: New leadership and an upcoming event

The Allied War Veterans Council is putting the past behind it and ushering a new era of leadership.  Southie resident and Army National Guard member – Dave Falvey is now the new commander of the AWVC.  Falvey, 35,  grew up in Billerica and moved to Southie in 2009.  This past September he married his wife Lindsey, a nurse at MGH.  He works as an Air Force civilian project manager doing acquisitions full-time at Hanscom Air Force Base and he’s been in the Army National Guard for 15 years.  He was deployed to Iraq in 2007 and Qatar in 2012. Since 2013, he’s been involved in the Thomas J. Fitzgerald VFW Post #561 he currently and serves as senior vice commander.  This past June, Falvey was voted into the position of commander on the AWVC.

On November 13th, a special South Boston Veterans Day Social has been organized by the council.  A new St. Patrick’s Day Parade logo will be revealed at the event in addition to food, friends and fun at Capo from 6pm-9pm.  T-shirts will also be on sale at the event. All proceeds will go to the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.  We recently sat down with Dave and had a little Q&A.

What can people expect from the new leadership of the Allied War Veterans?
Expect new energy from the council & hopefully they’ve already seen some of that. Expect transparency: we’ve established a Facebook & Twitter accounts to provide the community updates as to what we’re up to. We’re also working to build and strengthen partnerships, between our 5 South Boston posts and beyond. And the community can expect pragmatism from our leadership. We’re not looking to make national headlines. We want to honor our fellow veterans, celebrate the St. Patrick’s Day holiday, and  we want the community to be proud of us.

Tell us about your event at Capo?
On November 13th from 6-9pm in the back dining area of Capo we’re hosting a free event: a ‘Veterans Day Social’ that serves a few purposes.  It’s our opportunity to reintroduce ourselves to the community, we’ll unveil the official St. Patrick’s Day Parade logo (with t-shirts on sale), we’ll introduce the 2018 parade Chief Marshal (an amazing individual). It will also serve as an opportunity for the community – especially vets and  those who support them – to come together and have some fun andeat some free food. It’s also an opportunity to find out how you can help out or join a local veterans post and how you can help make the 2018 parade a success.

Anything new and exciting planned for this year’s parade?
One new feature is the logo we’ll be unveiling. The parade is intended both to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day AND to honor Evacuation Day. I think this new logo, designed by Southie small business owner Casey Smith, does a terrific job of incorporating both themes and will be a symbol of the parade Boston will be proud of for years to come. Aside from that, the U.S. Marine Corps Band from Quantico, VA will be performing in the parade and we’re hopeful that the U.S. Navy will have a ship docked in South Boston as well.

How can people get involved?
One great way would be to stop by Capo on November 13th for our event! Also, a huge priority for us is to establish a fundraising committee tasked with raising enough money to hold the parade. The parade can’t happen without raising the necessary funds and we need some help. Traditionally, the Southie community has come together to help raise the money needed for the parade and that has kept this great tradition going. If you’re great at fundraising or have strong business ties that you think could come in handy, we would love your help. Attending our event at Capo is a great way to find out more about this opportunity, or you can reach out to us through social media.

See you on the 13th!  Come on out!