60 Continuous Year Legionnaire Honored by Post

The Department of Florida sends a weekly Florida Legion News email in an attempt to inform our membership about important topics and events. As a response to that effort, David W. Goodwin, a long-time Legionnaire, reached out to inquire about an honorary membership. What transpired next is a true testament to the true American Legion values set forth over 100 years ago.

The Department contacted the Post Commander and Adjutant of Paul W. Airey American Legion Post 392 in Panama City. Adjutant Gregg Pennington quickly took action and requested an Honorary Membership and recognition award from the Post’s Executive Board. On October 21, 2023, Post 392 held a special celebration in honor of Mr. Goodwin’s 60 years of continuous membership and presented him with an honorary membership to the Post.

During the event, Mr. Goodwin shared about his time serving in the Army and the different positions he held within the American Legion over the years. He originally joined Broad Street Park American Legion Post 313 in Trenton, New Jersey, and served as the Post Commander and Department Baseball Chairman.  He eventually transferred his membership to Post 392 in January 2021.

Mr. Goodwin joined the United States Army in 1951 and became a part of the Individual Mobilization Augmentee (IMA) Program. He later entered the Army Reserves to teach reading and writing to new Army basic recruits at Fort Dix in New Jersey. At the age of 57, Mr. Goodwin was reactivated and deployed to the Middle East to serve in Desert Shield and Desert Storm and eventually retired as a Master Sergeant.

The Department would like to applaud the efforts of Post 392 in taking the time to recognize and honor Mr. Goodwin’s service to our country and great organization. It is because of moments like this that we get to witness the true beauty of The American Legion and are reminded that the extra mile we often go for our veterans means a lot to them.