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St. Cloud State University
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One time, one night
VFW maintains mellow mood
By Amanda Degen
Published:
Monday, April 26, 2004
Approaching the doorway of the St. Cloud VFW, one might expect it to be like any other bar at 11 p.m. on "Thirsty Thursday:" stuffy and dimly lit, full of cigarette smoke and inebriated patrons.
Inside is a mixture of older patrons and a younger college crowd. The bar is well-lit and relatively smoke free, a relaxed atmosphere. Trophies share wall space with a cabinet of hunting rifles, better accessed by the public than the bartender, minus the small lock on the side. One would hope the guns aren't loaded.
Beers and mixers were incredibly cheap and the bartender was eternally grateful for every tip she received. Like any other bar, there was a vast selection of snacks to purchase, as well as free popcorn for drinkers. The musical preference was country, but a quick turn on the jukebox could have easily changed that.
The bar was surprisingly large and spacious, complete with an abundance of tables and chairs, a dance floor and pool tables, sans waiting list.
The VFW had a local feel to it.
The bartender, Keishia Buckentine, was familiar with the bar's busy times.
"It's normally busy on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, but Thursdays not so much," Buckentine said. "So, this is a pretty normal night."
Throughout most of the evening, less than 30 customers filled the bar, but a lot of younger people left about 11:15. At that point, only a handful of patrons remained along one side of the bar. It turned out that Bob Lehmeier, manager of the VFW, was one of those patrons, while his cousin, Mike Davidson, also known as "Shwank," drank heavily next to him.
"To work here," Davidson said, "You have to be able to bench press 500 pounds and drink 200 gallons of water."
Attached to the top of the bar, on a string, were sheets of paper with money and poppies attached to them. Lehmeier explained the "poppy program."
"They're all donations for needy veterans, so that if they come into town and their car breaks, or they need gas, or a hotel room or anything, we're there to help them out," he said.
This support system is an annual fund-raising event to help out veterans in need. May 14, Veterans stand outside of Coborn's and Wal-Mart and raise money for the fund. The Legion also participates.
About 11:45, discussion turned to the war, of Pearl Harbor and the U.S.S. Arizona. Lehmeier recalled a Pearl Harbor survivor, Ralph, who comes in frequently.
"On most days, Ralph will come in around 10 a.m. for coffee and cribbage, but on Dec. 7, he drinks beer," Lehmeier said. "Only on the seventh, because he still has trouble dealing with that event."
Near the end of the evening, conversation topics focused on one of the downfalls of the city; the sign stealers that frequent the neighborhood. Due to the high rate of theft, the VFW only posts its signs for upcoming events a day or two in advance.
"We had a sign promoting a chicken dinner, with a picture of a chicken on it," Lehmeier said. "The next morning, the sign was there, but the picture of the chicken was sliced out, clearly using a knife. Now why steal a picture of a chicken?"
As midnight came, most of the patrons had left. But the friendly atmosphere remained, a testament to the misconception that the bar is a members-only venue.
"We love the guests coming in here," Lehmeier said. "If it weren't for the guests coming in here, we wouldn't survive."
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