"Comrades gather because they long to be with the men who once acted at their best; men who suffered and sacrificed... They were delivered by fate and the military. But I know them in a way I know no other man."

In the beginning...

Lakeside Community Center was built 1946-48. Beryl & Roy Brick Yard in El Cajon manufactured the bricks. White Construction Co. organized the construction of the center utilizing community volunteers.

VFW Post 5867 was chartered on February 6, 1946.

Les Kephart and Bob Conley were instrumental in organizing VFW Post 5867. Les was the first Post Commander 1946-47. Bon Conley was the fouth commander.

VFW took control of the building in 1956.

Dedicated to Carter-Smith

Howard Carter & Rowland Smith, both from Lakeside, CA and U.S. Navy, were killed in action on USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars mission

is to "honor the dead by helping the living" through veterans' service, community service, national security and a strong national defense.

VFW Post 5867's goals:

• to support U.S. veterans and their families with their needs
• to support the district, state, and national VFW goals
• to support our local community
• to provide assitance and sponsorship to a Boy Scout troop and two Cub Scout packs