Detachment of Florida leaders reflect on SAL’s status and what the Sons do for veterans and their communities.

In his 17 years as a member of the Sons of The American Legion, Gerard Sambets has noticed the growth in the Legion’s acceptance of the Sons and their appreciation for the Sons’ efforts to support veterans and the community.

But Sambets acknowledges there’s still room to grow.

“Yesterday somebody called me a guest when I was here at this post … he never realized what the Sons do, ‘We never had these kinds of programs in Ohio,’” Sambets said while attending the grand reopening of John F. Murphy Post 303 in Bonita Springs, Fla., on Veterans Day.

For Sambets, who served as Detachment of Florida Commander from 2022-24, it’s important that the Sons not only support veterans and the Legion Family, but earn their well-deserved recognition.

“So every year as detachment commander, you go to headquarters in Orlando and you speak in front of the Legion College. … I stood up there and gave them facts and figures. And then I said, ‘This is a personal note, and I want to get this off my chest. You have some people who call us guests at your posts, and don’t really want the Sons in there. But one of your biggest programs that you have is Children & Youth. … The Sons of The American Legion has provided 68 percent of your money (for that),’” Sambets said.

Referencing a joke between the two, Detachment Adjutant Christian Rapp said, “We used to be redheaded stepchildren, now we are considered the biggest fundraising arm of the American Legion Family.

“We’re ambassadors; we don’t go for the glory, but we help continue to spread the knowledge of The American Legion and what they do.”

Beyond the Sons’ fundraising efforts for American Legion programs and charities, there are the things the Sons do in times of crisis, something all too common over the last several years in Florida.

“With Hurricane Ian two years ago, what we did was get all of the areas together, we got trucks, we shipped food, water, all kinds of supplies, down to this area. Spent days at different posts trying to bring things in for the people there,” Sambets said. “The Sons followed the program of what the Legion was doing. In my term as commander and him as adjutant, his area, which is all of this, the 13^th District, they paid for everyone’s dues, they kept all their programs going by everyone getting together and chipping in monies and trying to help all these posts so that they don’t falter.”

“My post in Lehigh Acres, Post 323, because we were not affected by the storm, that meant we had our power back in a couple of days, we became a staging area,” Rapp said. “I spent numerous hours down here hauling supplies, cases of water, baby supplies, you name it, any supply that could be had. We’re unloading here in this parking lot (at Post 303), littered with Conex trailers like they have out back. It was a daily thing helping out these posts, but we did it as Sons of The American Legion… typically it’s a younger generation and some had the time off, I actually took the time off to make this happen because we have the stronger backs.

“We hear it all the time, wherever you go nationwide, we are a family. At a time like this — which I hope never happens again, (although) we just had two more storms up in north Florida — it proves that we are family. That’s what the Sons do; we support everything The American Legion does.”

Sambets said he was “honored to do this because I was not a veteran.”

“I never knew I could be a part of the American Legion (Family) until after my father passed. Somebody from the Legion came to my house, I lived five doors down the street, knocked on my door, and said, ‘Sorry about your father.’ And I’m looking at this guy, I don’t know you. He says, ‘Well, I’m from the Legion, one of your neighbors said your father passed, here’s an application, come and join.’ So we went down in the beginning and it was, ‘Ooh, cheap drinks.’ And little by little, it was,’ You guys need help doing that pancake breakfast?’, ‘You need help cooking dinners?’ and it just kept mushrooming and mushrooming,” Sambets said.

“I’d say over the last 10 to 20 years, the veterans are getting older, they can’t have as many functions, they don’t have the support, and it’s your programs like your Sons of The American Legion, they have the different ideas and they make tons of money. Our thing is to have fun, raise money and give it away and start all over again. … You saw during (the hurricane recover), a lot of the Sons, the younger members and the Riders leading the way, and that’s what we do,” Rapp added.

“I could not be prouder to honor my grandfather’s service in World War II Army Air Corps.”