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Club History

The Sun City Anthem Veterans Club is a vibrant group of veterans, their families, friends and supporters who gather to share their national pride and support philanthropic activities benefitting veterans. All branches of the US Armed Forces are represented in the club. Members share a mutual respect for service and love of country. Our members represent proud service spanning almost a full century, from World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the Cold War, to more recent conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.

The Veterans Club meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:00 pm in the Delaware Room at the Anthem Center. Our meetings feature speakers with distinguished military careers and experiences; speakers from Veterans helping agencies at both the State and Federal levels; and speakers on current topics of interest to our community. Past resident speakers include retired general and flag officers, members recruited for special covert operations during the Cold War, members on the front lines of our nuclear testing programs, former Prisoners of War, Purple Heart recipients, and representatives from the Veterans Administration and the Nevada Department of Veterans Services. Our members have unique experiences and amazing stories to tell.

Camaraderie is a hallmark of the Sun City Anthem Veterans Club. Meetings and Club Special Events are a time to gather with comrades, share “war stories”, and meet the heroes among us. Our Club boasts a membership of nearly 400 Sun City Anthem residents. Typical attendance at monthly meetings ranges between 100 and 150 members.

We have come a long way since the Sun City Anthem Veterans Club began in the Fall of 2008 as the brainchild of a handful of dedicated veterans who shared two key objectives: (1) to start a Veterans Special Interest Group and (2) to erect an Honor/Memorial Plaque honoring Sun City Anthem veterans. Herbert Blum, Davis Leonard, Wendell Jones, Steve McCarthy, Robert Burch, Asa Moore, Tim Forrest, Wanda George, and Sydney Ingram were among those leaders who developed the blueprint for what is today the Sun City Anthem Veterans Club. Their efforts transformed the plaque from an idea to a reality, debuting in a formal dedication on November 11, 2008, with 502 engraved names. A second plaque was added for 350 additional names, then a third, and a fourth plaque was added in 2021. The list of resident veterans continues to grow, and we honor their service. The Veterans Honor/Memorial Wall is located inside the Anthem Center main entrance, adjacent to the entrance to the Delaware Room.

Davis Leonard went on to become the first Club President and was honored by the Club as an aviation hero of World War II, the recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross and the French Legion of Honor. Herb Solomon created and commanded a newly formed Color Guard representing the US Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Navy. Subsequent Commanders were Roger Cooper and Arnie Mallinger, with Phil Citron the current Commander.

We thank all the Club’s past Presidents for their leadership and vision:

2008-2009 Davis Leonard

2010 Wendell Jones

2010-2012 Bill Campbell

2013-2014 Roger Cooper

2015- Herb Solomon

2016-2017 Art Lindberg

2018-2019 Paul MacDowell

2020-2021 Debbie Glazier

2022 Steve Holmstrom

2023-2024 Frank Bianca

We encourage members to participate in both the planning and execution of the Club’s  major annual events, the Red White & Blue BBQ,  the August Ice Cream Social Fundraiser and our Veterans Day Program.

Annual Veterans Club dues are $10 per person. Dues for new members are $15. On joining, new veteran members name and service information will be added to the Honor/Memorial plaques. Funds collected are used to support our veterans and their families through donations to veteran-related organizations such as the USO, VFW, Blue and Gold Star Mothers, Honor Flight of Southern Nevada, Quilts of Valor and the Henderson Veterans Court. Please join us the second Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm and share your story.

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