by Dennis Dalman
news@thenewsleader.com
Jerome Supan, a U.S. Army veteran, was recently honored by the American Legion St. Stephen Post 221 at a Legion meeting April 5.
Supan, now 80, is the first recipient of a monthly honors meeting for veterans. The tributes will take place at The Rusty Nail bar and restaurant in St. Stephen. This is where the American Legion meets because they don’t have a building of their own.
Supan, who still lives in St. Stephen, served in Germany in 1957. He was a member of the American Legion-St. Stephen for 48 years, was a member of the Color Guard the whole time, Legion Chaplain for 15 years and is known for always selling the most tickets at Legion fundraisers.
Supan, now retired, worked for many years on road construction projects. He and his wife, Dolores, have two children – daughter Cheryl Lovitz and son Jeff – as well as several grandchildren.
Legion member Leo Supan, a first cousin of Jérôme Supan once removed, explained the honor meetings of veterans of the month. Leo was a member of the United States Air Force from 1984 to 1993, having served in Florida, Colorado and Germany at Kapaun Air Station. He is now regional manager of Honeywell Smart Energy.
Legion membership committee members recently decided to honor a veteran each month.
“A lot of us veterans are getting older,” said Leo Supan. “So we’ve decided to honor a veteran every month, and we also hope this will help more veterans join the Legion. We received a few new ones recently, but we would love to have many more.
There are currently over 60 members of the American Legion-St. Stephane. Most of them, Supan noted, are Vietnam War-era veterans.
Next month’s winner will be Joe Raab, a 96-year-old World War II veteran. The feast/ceremony will take place during the regular monthly Legion meeting at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 3.
The American Legion—St. Stephen meets at 7:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month at The Rusty Nail. Anyone interested in joining can simply show up for a meeting.
Jérôme Supan holds a plaque in his honor for his military service given to him on April 5 by the American Legion of St. Stephen. He is the first recipient of the “Honor the Veterans” program in which a veteran will be honored each month in St. Stephen. Surrounding Supan are family members (front row, left to right) wife Dolores, Jerome, daughter-in-law Linda Supan, daughter Cheryl Lovitz; (back row, left to right) son-in-law John Lovitz, granddaughter Annie Supan, son Jeff Supan and grandson Sean Lovitz.
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