LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
PARIS – During nearly 21 years of active military duty, Paris native Rick Maples saw the world. After a year-long stint with his hometown National Guard unit, the 1544th Transportation Company, Maples became an intelligence officer. The role brought him to combat zones in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, the Balkans and Qatar, to name a few locations.
“You name the region, I was probably there at one point in time,” Maples explained.
Maples retired from the military as a major on Oct. 1, 2011, working in law enforcement in Florida upon his return to the United States. Maples later taught ROTC at Northern Illinois University and Rose Hulman Institute of Technology before returning to Paris to spend time with his mother.
Today, Maples isn’t living in a foreign warzone, but he’s still on the front line of a different fight. Serving as the commander of General Hill VFW Post 3601, his primary objective is to remind his brothers and sisters in arms who have served in conflicts abroad that they are not alone, and their sacrifice is not unnoticed.
“Our vision at VFW is we want to make sure that the veterans have the respect for their service,” he said.
The VFW, short for Veterans of Foreign Wars, is a national organization with local clubs, called posts, across the country. Its membership is composed exclusively of veterans with combat experience who received an honorable discharge or a general discharge under honorable conditions.
Per Maples, the VFW’s mission is three-fold: to foster camaraderie among veterans of overseas conflicts, to serve veterans in all aspects of life and to support each post’s surrounding community. The number of programs offered at Post 3601 that seek each of those three ends is numerous, especially programs aiding veterans and their families.
“Their (veterans’) service has entitled them to a lot of benefits,” Maples said. “Some of them don’t know what they’re entitled to, so we give them the information or we point them in the right direction to the individual that can.”
Programs and services for veterans include but are not limited to…
For many local veterans, the Veterans Relief Fund is the last line of defense between them and homelessness. Maples explained the issue of homelessness among vets surfaces “quite a bit” in Edgar County.
“There’s so many (veterans buried) in Edgar County, but we don’t have all the names without just going (and looking at each headstone) individually … if someone has a loved one (who served), somehow get us a name,” Bridwell said.
Maples, who currently handles much of the driving himself, is seeking volunteers from the community to apply to become a driver for Post 3601’s DAV program, which serves roughly 20 local vets in Edgar County and Marshall.
The VFW’s efforts are not just aimed at combat veterans. Post 3601 paid out $9,500 in scholarships to the descendants of veterans in 2023, and currently oversees two annual writing competitions with a scholarship available to students who submit winning essays.
The VFW also sponsors or supports local Little League baseball teams, Boy Scout Troops and more – part of Maples’ efforts to support local youth while promoting civic responsibility and patriotism among younger generations. While Post 3601 is headquartered in Paris, Maples and his fellow volunteers assist veterans and youth throughout Edgar County thanks to their various programs.
“Our responsibility is to the entire county, (we are) primarily focused on Paris, but we encompass the entire county,” he explained.
In addition to the group’s philanthropic efforts, Maples noted that Post 3601 provides a space for local veterans to enjoy one another’s company and socialize – a space where the sacrifices made by combat veterans are implicitly understood and respected.
The building is “not just a club or a bar” according to Maples.
“Everything that we do, we do it as a team. It’s keeping the memories alive … It’s paying the respect (to other veterans), because veterans have sacrificed a lot somewhere along the line,” Maples said.
Post 3601, located at 601 West Court Street, is also open to the public during business hours, which was not always the case.
“We want the community to come here. Everyone is welcome,” Maples said. “No one is turned away, and everything that we do here goes to support the veterans and the community.”
For Maples, his mission of supporting his brothers in arms on the homefront only grows more urgent by the day, as the number of servicemen who saw action in the 20th century continues to decline sharply.
“We’re losing veterans all the time … World War II (vets are) pretty much gone. Korea – there’s very few left, and then Vietnam, these guys are in their 70s now, so they’re getting up there,” he explained.
Still, Maples and Post 3601, as well as the relatives of veterans who compose the Post 3601 Auxiliary, stand firm in their commitment to returning a token of gratitude to every veteran for their service.
“Everything starts and stops with a veteran,” he said. “Everything that we do, every program, every donation … it starts and ends with a veteran.”
To learn more about General Hill VFW Post 3601’s member requirements or volunteer opportunities, call 217-466-3110. The community is encouraged to support members of Post 3601 and members of the American Legion as they present the colors (flags) during the upcoming Veterans Day service in Paris.