Latest / Brian Thomas / Brian's monthly chat with our friends at The Clermont County Vets 5/6/2026

Transcript

Brian's monthly chat with our friends at The Clermont County Vets 5/6/2026 · Brian Thomas

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Seven kc DE talk station. Brian Thomas always happy to
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: see the clemic cuty Veteran services folks in the studio,
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: and that would mean, of course Steve Belso, the executive
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  Speaker 1: director of the Clima Cutty Veteran Service com Mission. But
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: we also have a new character in the room, Louke
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  Speaker 1: Gordon's his name, Steve Belzo. Good to see a man.
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  Speaker 2: What's with lou Brian? I'll tell you what.
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  Speaker 3: It's always a great morning when I get to come
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  Speaker 3: in here and see the energy of Brian Thomas and
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  Speaker 3: what you do for veterans.
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  Speaker 1: So love the veteran that's the thing. It'll get me
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  Speaker 1: out of bed.
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  Speaker 2: I don't know about that.
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  Speaker 3: There's plenty of aggravated stuff out there, keep and Brian
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  Speaker 3: Thomas going. But I have, I have, I have pulled
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  Speaker 3: the stinger away. And I didn't say a thing about
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  Speaker 3: Lou that you asked me. So this is how we
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  Speaker 3: do it in radio and television, isn't it?
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  Speaker 2: Nonetheless?
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  Speaker 1: Wells, Lou you called it succession planning.
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  Speaker 2: I wait a second, I did, Steve Belzo.
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  Speaker 1: You got to foot out the door already.
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  Speaker 3: You know I'm still learning to spell succession. So that
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  Speaker 3: is why this is so unique that I even said the.
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: Word Brian, well, we know you, what about Lou? It
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  Speaker 1: was so accri we'll talk about Memorial Day. I know
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  Speaker 1: why you're here, but I have a feeling we're going
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  Speaker 1: to see We're going to see Lou Gordon in the studio,
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  Speaker 1: maybe more down the road. Sometimes that is correct.
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  Speaker 2: That is correct.
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  Speaker 3: So with most places, especially in a business concept, veteran
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  Speaker 3: service officers, large budget identified by the state. How much
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  Speaker 3: you want to ensure that someone taking over as the
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  Speaker 3: executive director has an understanding and background and business so
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  Speaker 3: that budgets are developed, spending is done in concert with
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  Speaker 3: You have a mission of the office that you ensure
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  Speaker 3: it's going correctly. Lou came to the office one day.
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  Speaker 3: We're talking. He's got a master's from Xavier. He's doing
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  Speaker 3: another degree at U. See, he won't get his nose
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  Speaker 3: out of his books. He's got a callous on his nose.
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  Speaker 3: His books are in his noses in the books so much. Nonetheless,
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  Speaker 3: talented young man exceeds me. So surround yourself with white
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  Speaker 3: people as.
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  Speaker 1: I would expect. Steve Bells is looking out for the
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  Speaker 1: American veteran that's served by the Clemont County Veterans Services
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  Speaker 1: on into the future, anticipating it someday, Yes, like all
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  Speaker 1: of us, the will not be in that role. So Lou,
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  Speaker 1: I'm glad to see you man. I wish you all
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  Speaker 1: the best on your future role and we will be
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  Speaker 1: talking more soon. But you know you came in here
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  Speaker 1: today and I mean to sidetrack you talking about lose
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  Speaker 1: so much. Memorial Day, Memorial Day, and some people confuse
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  Speaker 1: Memorial Day with Veterans Day.
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  Speaker 2: That are barbecue grill Day.
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  Speaker 3: I'm not sure, but there is a big distinction between
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  Speaker 3: Memorial Day and Veterans Day. And how many Sunday mornings
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  Speaker 3: in church, how many times that's off track. It's embarrassing.
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  Speaker 3: And people look at me when I won't stand up
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  Speaker 3: on Memorial Day and you want to jump up there
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  Speaker 3: and say stop, it's not about us.
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  Speaker 1: No, it's about those who gave the ultimate sacrifice and
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  Speaker 1: service of their country.
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  Speaker 3: Let's look at the definition of the day. It's a
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  Speaker 3: memorial right, Yeah, it's Memorial Day, So you would answer
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  Speaker 3: the question front it does words have meaning? And when
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  Speaker 3: I look for that definition, it's not about Steve who's
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  Speaker 3: still upright on his two shoes, so it's just one
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  Speaker 3: of those messages to get out there is one America.
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  Speaker 2: Remember why it's called.
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  Speaker 3: Memorial Day and who we are memorializing, and basically for
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  Speaker 3: the freedoms we have in this country still, whether you
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  Speaker 3: think we still have them or not, we are still
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  Speaker 3: the freest country on God's green Earth.
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  Speaker 1: I wish people wouldn't lose sight of that.
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  Speaker 2: Please.
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  Speaker 1: That's one of the reasons I appreciate supporting the American
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  Speaker 1: veterans and the causes because they represent the freedom that
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  Speaker 1: our country has when sim we would not be here.
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  Speaker 1: So don't go away. Morris Steve Belzow from the Climat
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  Speaker 1: County Veteran Services We're going to talk about what is
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  Speaker 1: Decoration Day. We'll talk about also what services the Veteran
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  Speaker 1: Service Organization offers family members who have lost members in
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  Speaker 1: service of our country. Seven fifty eight fifty five kc
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  Speaker 1: DE talks Station Climate County Veteran Service Mission. They're there
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  Speaker 1: to help the American veteran the Clairemont County area. Steve
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  Speaker 1: Belzo the executive director of the Clamou County Veteran Service
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  Speaker 1: Commission in studio, we're talking about Memorial Day. No, it's
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  Speaker 1: not Veterans Day. It's for those who died in military service,
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  Speaker 1: paying the ultimate sacrifice for your freedom and my freedom,
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  Speaker 1: and gobless each and every one of them. It used
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  Speaker 1: to be decoration day.
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  Speaker 2: Steve, it did, right, Yeah, when this.
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  Speaker 1: Decoration does not define the day like Memorial Day does.
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  Speaker 3: No, it doesn't when you think of decoration Day. This
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  Speaker 3: whole Memorial Day concept has variable beginnings depending on who
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  Speaker 3: you talk to that originally they believe the well, they're
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  Speaker 3: known as Buffalo soldiers later on, but the African Americans
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  Speaker 3: that fought in the Civil War down in the Carolinas
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  Speaker 3: were recognizing their war dead and certainly proud of what
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  Speaker 3: they were fighting for during that war. Talk about a
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  Speaker 3: vested interest exactly, so the honor of their own kin
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  Speaker 3: have died in the war. They were decorating the graves,
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  Speaker 3: and then another state picks up. So that's pretty neat
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  Speaker 3: what they're doing, and it just continued to porpoise from
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  Speaker 3: there that other people. Pennsylvania then started one and they said, well,
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  Speaker 3: we started the first one. And so there's no real
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  Speaker 3: definitive answer who started this, but yet we know that
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  Speaker 3: this started as a decoration day of decorating the graves
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  Speaker 3: of those who have given their lives.
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  Speaker 2: That makes it for freedom.
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  Speaker 1: That makes sense, and of course that tradition is still
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  Speaker 1: going on, is absolutely more toward Memorial Day. But what
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  Speaker 1: about the families. I mean, part of the tragedy of
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  Speaker 1: all this is you know, anytime someone dies that leave
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  Speaker 1: behind grieving family members. Are family members a part of
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  Speaker 1: this remembrance process?
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  Speaker 3: They are, and it's I want to say, yes, it's
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  Speaker 3: in design, but they're often left behind. Everybody remembers Sergeant
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  Speaker 3: Joe from my high school class, but they don't think
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  Speaker 3: of Sergeant Joe's family exactly or mom. So back during
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  Speaker 3: World War one and two, we had the blue Star families,
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  Speaker 3: and it was a little flag you would hang in
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  Speaker 3: your window that you had a family member serving in
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  Speaker 3: the war, and so you hang a little flag and
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  Speaker 3: had a little blue star on it. But when you
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  Speaker 3: lost your loved one, that blue star changed to a
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  Speaker 3: gold star, and we were able to identify the families
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  Speaker 3: who lost a loved one in the war. Then that
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  Speaker 3: morphed into gold Star mothers, gold Star family, gold Star spouses,
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  Speaker 3: which is true right, and it's just another way to recognize,
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  Speaker 3: especially during Memorial Day. It's not about the veterans still breathing.
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  Speaker 3: It's about those who have given their lives and the
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  Speaker 3: families who lent their loved ones to their nation to
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  Speaker 3: die on their behalf, so that we enjoy the freedoms
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  Speaker 3: that we have.
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  Speaker 1: Well stateds the bells as always. What services does the
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  Speaker 1: VSO offer to families that have lost members in service
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  Speaker 1: to our country?
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  Speaker 2: There are the multiplicity, there is.
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  Speaker 3: One. A lot of the individuals, family wise, don't recognize
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  Speaker 3: or understand medals or ribbons that were awarded their love
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  Speaker 3: life ones. They may have documents such as on a
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  Speaker 3: D two fourteen, which is a federal document of separation
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  Speaker 3: that will list that service members decorations earned, and they'll
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  Speaker 3: come in with the document, say what what are these
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  Speaker 3: and how do we get these medals? We'll put them
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  Speaker 3: together for them. We'll actually hand the family a rack
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  Speaker 3: of ribbons that their loved one would have earned or
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  Speaker 3: the medals.
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  Speaker 1: That's wonderful, Yeah, that's wonderful. Now, insofar as Clemont County
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  Speaker 1: Veteran Services, are you aware of events, maybe you might
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  Speaker 1: want to point out that are going on in honor
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  Speaker 1: Memorial Day for my listening audience.
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  Speaker 3: Oh my gosh, they're going all over the tri State.
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  Speaker 3: Everywhere you look, it is, right, yes, it is everywhere
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  Speaker 3: you look. We have a very robust we call them
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  Speaker 3: Veterans Service organizations. Think of the VFW, the DAV that's
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  Speaker 3: Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans, the American Legion,
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  Speaker 3: and they will be out placing flags and temporary grave
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  Speaker 3: markers at veterans grave sites throughout this whole Southwest region,
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  Speaker 3: primarily Stihio I imagine as well, but there are organizations
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  Speaker 3: you can connect with, look up in your phone book
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  Speaker 3: or on Google because Google knows everything, what's my locus
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  Speaker 3: lesion and ask them if they're doing anything for Memorial Day.
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  Speaker 3: But there's also other organizations who are out there identifying
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  Speaker 3: the graves. Plus this year we have the Revolutionary War
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  Speaker 3: Soldiers coming up on the fourth of July. There'll be
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  Speaker 3: events coming up, so it's of course it's kind of
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  Speaker 3: special this Memorial Day as well, right.
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  Speaker 1: Truly special. And you know, when you get back to
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  Speaker 1: the Civil War and you look at the numbers of
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  Speaker 1: dead just from the Civil War, it's just astronomical, It
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  Speaker 1: is insane. It is really hard to really fathom and comprehend.
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  Speaker 1: But they're there for us to remember, and hopefully my
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  Speaker 1: listening audience is filled with folks who will be doing
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  Speaker 1: just that. Honor those who paid the ultimate sacrifice. This
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  Speaker 1: Memorial Day, show up at one of the events, put
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  Speaker 1: a flag on your deceased love one. Veterans are veterans grave.
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  Speaker 1: It's the right thing to do, and let's keep this
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  Speaker 1: proud tradition going, most notably in honor of the two
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  Speaker 1: undred and fiftieth anniversary of this great country.
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  Speaker 2: That's right.
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  Speaker 1: Absolutely, so many people died so making it work.
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  Speaker 3: It's yes, right, it's it's their blood that covers the
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  Speaker 3: granite foundation of what our diplomacy is built upon.
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  Speaker 1: Clamla County Veterans Service Commission. You find them online so
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  Speaker 1: easily with just typing in that. Steve Belzo, thank you
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  Speaker 1: for all that you do throughout the year for the
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  Speaker 1: American Veterans. Lou great to have you aboard. You're joining
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  Speaker 1: an outstanding organization. It's wonderful having you both in and
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  Speaker 1: you know I'll have you right back. ASA. It's always
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  Speaker 1: here for you, my friends.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you, brother. I appreciate the teamwork.
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  Speaker 1: Happy to do it seven fifty six right now, don't
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  Speaker 1: go away. After the top of the hour news. We
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: have lots to talk about between now and at eight thirty,
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: when Judge Edita Polatana returns talk about free speech. You
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: gotta take the good with the bed, says Judge Nita Polatana.
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  Speaker 1: Don't go away, I'll be right back.