SWAMPSCOTT — The Pine Street VFW post is more than just a bar — it’s a place of remembrance, camaraderie, and community.
For many veterans, it’s a home.
The post has been struggling to reopen after shutting down in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is a relatively small building with a wraparound bar in one corner and a dart board, lottery machine, and pool table in another. Flags and pictures of servicemen adorn the light blue walls.
Against one wall a small table is set for one, dedicated to Prisoners of War and those who went Missing In Action.
“Before COVID you could have 15 or 20 people in here and I could go through and name every single one of them,” said VFW Commander Malcolm Maloon.
“It became a place where you’re with friends and you’re not afraid to talk about things. And some things about the service are not that pleasant to talk about.”
Last week, Susan Bishop, a social member of the Swampscott VFW, started a Gofundme page in hopes of raising $15,000 to reopen the post, though she estimates that they may need as much as $25,000.
Since the onset of the pandemic, the post has accumulated months of utility bills, which has been a struggle to pay off because it is no longer bringing in revenue.
In addition, they must make a significant investment to meet new restrictions on businesses that serve alcohol. They hope to expand the kitchen by adding an oven or fryolator, which will allow them to operate under state COVID-19 regulations.
They also intend to train some of the veterans in the SafeServe course, so they can operate the kitchen.
As a non-profit, they are not eligible for many of the grants that are available to businesses.
This shutdown of the VFW post, which also serves Disabled American Veterans (DAV), the American Legion, and the Marine Corps League, has left a void in the Swampscott veteran community.
VFW Sr. Vice Commander Bob Lennon explained how the lack of a physical meeting space had been hurting their efforts to reach out to new members.
“We try to recruit younger veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars to keep the lifeblood flowing,” he said. “It’s not easy to do it now.”
“As far as I know there’s no place like this for young veterans,” said Maloon.
The post also helps facilitate events for the community, including spaghetti dinners, a pancake breakfast, and a bike run to raise money for breast cancer.
“The most recent one was a food drive for the local food pantry, where the veterans went out of their way to help our small community,” said Bishop. “And now we need the help from the community to reopen.”
Similar financial struggles are being felt by VFW posts throughout the North Shore. The post in Marblehead had to raise $10,000 to set up its kitchen, which allowed it to re-open.
In addition to the Gofundme, the post is also accepting checks made out to Swampscott VFW Post 1240 and sent to 8 Pine St.
Bishop hopes that, with community support, the Swampscott post can reopen with SafeServe certification by Christmas.
“It’s an establishment where you can go and know that your brothers and sisters have been through the service as well. You don’t necessarily have to talk about it, it’s just a comfort place and it’s their home,” said Bishop. “And it’s very important that they get that back.”
Guthrie Scrimgeour can be reached at [email protected].
