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BY NIC MILLER
STAR STAFF
nic.miller@elizabethton.com

State Sen. Rusty Crowe and Rep. John Holsclaw made a trip to Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2166 in Elizabethton on Thursday to present a check for $200 for renovation effort.

This is not the first time that the local politicians have donated to the VFW, as a similar check was presented to the veteran’s organization in 2019.

“Being the VFW and tied closely to the state senators and representatives, we want them to come out and and support us every chance that they can, and luckily for us Sen. Crowe and Rep. Holsclaw have been very supportive of us,” said Andy Wetzel, post commander.

The check presented to Wetzel will be put into the post’s general fund and will be used for things such as current or future renovations or helping veterans in need.

“We are currently making an attempt to drastically improve our ‘Great Hall’ which is our big room that we use for rentals,” said Wetzel. “We are doing a lot of painting, cleaning, remodeling some restrooms, and things like that to make that rental space more appealing to everyone.

“Having people rent that space is a big part of our revenue at the VFW, so the nicer we make it the more opportunities we have to rent out that hall,” said Wetzel.

“Along with our efforts in the ‘Great Hall,’ we are working on the post side of the VFW,” said Wetzel. “On the post side, we have some flooring issues that we are working on improving. Once the flooring is back to something that is feasible for us to use, we are going to make some improvements to our kitchen.”

The post is working diligently to complete these renovations, as its annual New Year’s Eve party will be making a return in the coming weeks.

“One of our annual fundraisers is our New Year’s Eve party, and it is events like this that help us sustain the post. We are completely self-funded. We do not receive any money from the state or nationally so everything from paying the water bill or any improvements comes from self-funding,” Wetzel said.

The celebration will take place at VFW Post 2166 located at 2001 West Elk Avenue in Elizabethton and is open to the public. Things will kick off at 8 p.m. on Dec. 31 with a live performance from Jerry Pierce & The Nightlife Band and will carry through the night until 12:30 a.m.

The cost is $25 per person through cash or check and a table for eight is available at the price of $200. The event will feature heavy hors d’oeuvres, dessert, a cash bar, and champagne at midnight. Tickets can be purchased at the Veterans Service Office at the Carter County Courthouse or from members of VFW Post 2166. For more information on the event, contact David Batchelder at (423) 542-1824.