Letter from Honorably-Discharged former AD and Reserve Army Chaplain to VA Lexington Health Center Executive Director Russell Armstead “Please reconsider. Let that table be a meaningful remembrance for all.”

From: Dave P. [email address withheld]
Sent: Sunday, November 26, 2023 11:29 AM
To: VA Lexington Health Center Executive Director Russell Armstead [email address withheld]
Subject: Please Reconsider
Importance: High

Dear Leadership at and for the Lexington VA,

I am an honorably-discharged former AD and Reserve Army chaplain.  I read with great interest, https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/11/24/2207823/-VA-medical-center-petulantly-removes-ENTIRE-missing-man-table-rather-than-remove-Bible-from-it.  I was stunned that you have removed a very meaningful display honoring POW/MIA service-members at the VAMC Lexington (Troy Bowling Campus) merely because conscientious veterans have asked that a New Testament not be displayed to serve as representing the faiths of all service-members.  As my late mother used to say, “That is cutting off your nose to spite your face.”  

I am also a DoD-approved ecclesiastical endorsing agent of 575 chaplains serving mostly in the military, but also in numerous VA medical centers.  When my chaplains ask me for guidance about setting up POW/MIA tables, I encourage them to use quality bound BLANK books to represent the faiths or worldviews of all.  They can be found for under $11 at Amazon, for instance:  https://www.amazon.com/Obsidian-Journal-Diary-Antique-Notebook/dp/1441310584/ref=sr_1_47?crid=473WC69MLMW7&keywords=blank+books&qid=1701015044&sprefix=blank+books%2Caps%2C147&sr=8-47  .

Please reconsider.  Let that table be a meaningful remembrance for all.

Respectfully,

Dave P.
Honorably-Discharged former AD and Reserve Army Chaplain