Jewish War Veterans Department of Illinois

09/11/2026

A Message from National Commander Selina Kanowitz on the
25th Anniversary of September 11th Terrorist Attacks

JWV Remembers and Will Never Forget

The Jewish War Veterans of the USA pauses to mark a solemn milestone: the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. A quarter of a century has passed since that fateful Tuesday morning, yet the memories of the 2,977 innocent lives lost at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, remain vivid and undiminished. May their memories be a blessing.

As the nation's longest-serving active veterans’ organization, JWV expresses lasting gratitude for the extraordinary bravery of first responders, military personnel, and everyday heroes who ran toward danger to save others. We also honor the entire generation of service members, many of whom are in our ranks, who answered the call to defend our nation in the years that followed.

At Ground Zero in Manhattan, the names of the victims of this attack on our nation will be read aloud by their family members and loved ones at a solemn remembrance ceremony. Moments of silence will mark the exact times when the hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center’s iconic twin towers and when the towers fell. Vice President Vance is expected to attend.

At the Pentagon in Virginia, the 184 service members and civilians killed when hijackers steered a jetliner into the U.S. military headquarters will be honored. President Trump is expected to speak at the ceremony.

And in a rural field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, a similar ceremony, marked by moments of silence, the reading of names, and the laying of wreaths, will honor the victims of Flight 93, the hijacked plane that crashed after crew members and passengers attempted to storm the cockpit.

While these events are solemn, they also demonstrate the commitment and resilience of our American spirit to stand against terrorists, remain united in the fight against terrorism, and defend the United States Constitution. JWV vows to continue educating Americans, especially our youth and those born after 2001, about the significance of 9/11.

In the Jewish tradition, remembering—Zachor—is a sacred obligation. We do not merely look back to mourn; we remember to carry forward the light and legacy of those who perished. On this significant anniversary, we pray that the victims' memories remain an enduring blessing.

We also recognize that this 25th anniversary is a unique moment of reflection for our community, coinciding with our preparations for the High Holy Days at sundown and throughout the weekend. As we enter a season of introspection, renewal, and prayer for peace, let us reaffirm our commitment to unity and resilience and to defending our shared freedoms.

I urge all in JWV to honor, in their own way, those lost on September 11 and to remember the survivors, family members, and first responders whose lives were forever changed that day. JWV recognizes those currently serving to protect the freedom we enjoy as Americans. JWV remains steadfast and condemns all terrorist actions, past, present, and future.

To the families of the victims, the survivors, the first responders, and the veterans who bear the physical and emotional scars from that day and the wars that followed: JWV stands with you. We will never forget their sacrifice.


JWV Participates in Rosh Hashanah Celebration at Israeli Embassy
Focuses on Costs Reaching $48 Billion

On September 8, JWV’s Ken Greenberg attended the Embassy’s Rosh Hashanah celebration, welcoming in 5787, which begins at sundown on September 11, 2026. The invitation-only event was hosted by Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S., Michael Leiter. It featured a keynote address by Deputy Chief of Mission Nevo Barchad, who highlighted the significance of Rosh Hashanah and noted that, for the first time since 2014, there are no hostages in Gaza. Maryland State Senator Cheryl Kagan and West Virginia State Senator Jay Taylor, both strong supporters of Israel and the Jewish communities in their states, emphasized the need for continued resilience, the need to combat the rise in antisemitism, and Israel’s right to defend its borders and its citizens.

09/11/2026

On 9/11/2026 have meaningful remembrance and wishing you a good and blessed year ahead—hoping that the coming year will be filled with happiness, health, peace, and good things.

09/05/2026

We Jews would call this a Shonda, but those of us who served just say typical SNAFU.

BREAKING🚨 The Air Force told a Gold Star widow with three kids under 3 that she isn't eligible for some of her husband's combat benefits, because nobody ever officially declared the Iran war a war.

Libby Klinner's husband, Air Force Major John "Alex" Klinner, 33, was one of six airmen killed on March 12 when their KC-135 refueling tanker crashed over western Iraq during Operation Epic Fury. He was promoted to major in January. He had been deployed less than a week.

He left a 2½-year-old son and 7-month-old twins, a boy and a girl.

Klinner wrote on Instagram that the family's casualty assistance officer told her what was missing from her husband's final paycheck: "The missing benefits are combat pay-related, such as hostile fire/imminent danger pay, combat zone exclusions, etc."

"The Air Force recently told me that because we haven't officially declared war, my kids and I aren't eligible for some benefits," she wrote. "So, not only was my husband killed in a war he never wanted to participate in, but now the benefits we're left with are being dictated by semantics and public perception."

On Thursday, Trump posted on Truth Social that reporters covering mu*****ns shortages were "treasonous" because they'd rather see America "LOSE a War that we're easily WINNING." Hours later, JD Vance hosted the White House briefing and said he "wouldn't call it a war."

After her post spread, the Air Force's director of mortuary affairs contacted Klinner and opened an audit of her benefits.

A spokesperson said officials spoke with her on Monday to make sure she gets "all eligible benefits she and her family are entitled to." The Air Force has not explained why she was told she wasn't entitled to them, and would not say whether other Gold Star families have been told the same thing.

Eighteen U.S. service members have been killed and 757 wounded in the fighting, according to the Defense Department. The Pentagon does not count four of those deaths, from an Iranian missile strike in Jordan in July, as part of the operation.

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09/04/2026

Congrats Selina 🫡🇺🇸🫡

The Jewish War Veterans of the USA is proud to announce the installation of Selina Kanowitz as our new National Commander—the first woman ever elected and installed to lead our organization in its distinguished 130-year history.

A veteran, longtime JWV leader, and dedicated advocate for veterans and military families, Selina brings decades of service, leadership, and commitment to this historic role.
Join us in congratulating National Commander Kanowitz as she leads JWV into its next chapter.

Read the full announcement: https://www.jwv.org/jwv-makes-history-with-installation-of-selina-kanowitz-as-first-female-national-commander/

08/28/2026

JWV’s 131st Convention completed business today and adjourned. Stating with blowing the shofar during this Hebrew month of Elul to awaken us and ending with passing the flag of JWV from the outgoing National Commander to the incoming National Commander. Wishing our new National Commander, Salina Kanowitz, a healthy, happy and successful year at our helm.

08/25/2026

The JWV 131st convention opened yesterday. Several of us from Illinois are participating both in person and online. 🫡🫡🫡🫡

08/16/2026

Happy National Airborne Day, but did you know Halacha forbids putting oneself into severe, avoidable danger for mere recreation or adrenaline, though exceptions exist for a livelihood - like airborne troops.

Did you know that the concept of a parachute was drawn by Leonardo da Vinci in 1485? The first patent for a parachute is credited to Gleb Kotelnikov. In 1911 he demonstrated a body harness and fabric folding into a backpack with a static line to pull the chute open. In 1940, forty-eight soldiers of the 29th infantry regiment trained at Fort Benning to become the first US Army airborne infantry force. The first successful airborne combat drop was in 1942. The 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment flew into Algeria capturing airfields near Oran. During Operation Overlord, the 101st and 82nd airborne dropped behind enemy lines contributing to the success of D-day. In 2002 a presidential proclamation made August 16 National Airborne Day. When visiting our D-Day exhibit look up to see paratroops making their jump.

08/16/2026

Remembering VJ Day, 81 years ago, New York City, Times Square, August 14, 1945: Celebrating Victory over Japan Day, Photo by: Alfred Eisenstaedt, Life Magazine.

08/04/2026

For the Coast Guard’s 236th Birthday, Here Is Its Story and That of Its Veterans

From Military.com by Amanda Miller published on August 3rd

The United States Coast Guard turns 236 years old this Aug. 4 — older than the Navy's current organizational form, older than the Marine Corps as a permanent standing force and older than the country's income tax by more than a century. It's also, by a wide margin, the least understood branch of the U.S. military, in ways that go beyond people simply not knowing what it does day to day.

From 10 Ships to a Fifth Armed Service

The Coast Guard's roots trace to Aug. 4, 1790, when Alexander Hamilton, then secretary of the treasury, persuaded Congress to authorize construction of 10 small vessels called revenue cutters. Their job was narrow and unglamorous: Enforce tariff and trade laws and stop smuggling that was starving the young federal government of revenue it desperately needed to survive. That force became known as the Revenue-Marine, then the Revenue Cutter Service in 1894.

The modern Coast Guard didn't fully take shape until 1915, when the Revenue Cutter Service merged with the U.S. Life-Saving Service, combining law enforcement and armed maritime authority with organized search and rescue under a single command. Along the way, it also absorbed the Lighthouse Service and the Bureau of Navigation, giving it a mission set that stretches from drug interdiction and port security to icebreaking, environmental response and saving people out of the water in conditions almost no other agency is equipped to operate in.

The One Real Structural Difference That Confuses People

Since 2002, the Coast Guard has operated under the Department of Homeland Security rather than the Department of Defense — the only one of the six armed services that doesn't answer to the Pentagon during peacetime. In wartime or when the president directs it, the Coast Guard can be transferred to operate under the Department of the Navy instead, something that's happened during both world wars and, briefly, other conflicts.

That DHS arrangement is the source of a persistent and largely baseless myth: that Coast Guard service somehow counts less, or that Coast Guard veterans have to clear a different bar to access Department of Veterans Affairs benefits than veterans of the other branches. They don't. Federal law explicitly includes Coast Guard service as qualifying military service for VA benefits, and the eligibility rules, funding fee structures and benefit amounts are identical to what apply to the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Space Force. A Coast Guard veteran qualifies for the VA home loan, the Post-9/11 GI Bill, VA disability compensation and Veteran Readiness and Employment under the exact same statutory framework as anyone who served in the other five branches. The organizational chart the Coast Guard occupies has no bearing on any of it.

What Coast Guard Veterans Have That Others Don't

On top of the full standard VA benefits package, Coast Guard veterans and their families have access to a small number of branch-specific resources that exist precisely because the service sits under DHS rather than DoD. The Coast Guard Mutual Assistance program, generally referred to as CGMA, runs more than 40 separate assistance programs covering things such as interest-free loans, emergency living expenses, adoption assistance and disaster relief, functioning similarly to how Army Emergency Relief or the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society operate for their respective services.

MyCG, the Coast Guard's member self-service portal, handles orders, training records, pay and benefits enrollment. The Coast Guard Foundation, a separate organization from CGMA, runs scholarships and family resilience programs.

VA home loan eligibility for Coast Guard members follows the same service-length thresholds as other branches: 90 continuous days of active duty during wartime, or 181 days during peacetime, with reservists qualifying after six years in the Selected Reserve. Surviving spouses of Coast Guard members who died on active duty or from a service-connected condition can also qualify.

How the Day Is Marked

Coast Guard Day is mostly an internal observance, celebrated by active-duty and reserve Coast Guard members, retirees, civilian employees, dependents and Auxiliary members through ceremonies, ship open houses and traditional cake-cutting events at units and stations worldwide, rather than a broad public holiday.

Grand Haven, Michigan, officially designated “Coast Guard City USA” under a law signed in 1998, hosts the Coast Guard Festival the week of Aug. 4 each year, one of the largest public celebrations tied to the branch anywhere in the country.

The Defense Commissary Agency marked this year's 236th birthday by highlighting continued commissary access for Coast Guard families.

"The Coast Guard's history is as unique as the brave men and women who serve in its ranks,” said Army Command Sgt. Maj. Brian J. Morrison, senior enlisted advisor to the DeCA director. “Coast Guard families serve in some of the most challenging and isolated environments in the country. We are incredibly proud to deliver the commissary benefit to our Coast Guardsmen as we celebrate their 236th birthday."

Institutions such as the National WWII Museum in New Orleans also mark the day with free admission for active-duty and reserve Coast Guard members, retirees and veterans — one small example of how the branch's birthday gets recognized well beyond its own units.

07/31/2026

A life well lived & of interest to JWV’rs:

https://www.facebook.com/share/1DkxCNpvH6/?mibextid=wwXIfr

We lower our heads in quiet remembrance as we honor the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of "Rosie the Riveter" Jeanne Gibson. A symbol of strength, resilience, and determination, she passed away on July 29, 2026, at the age of 100. Today, America loses more than a remarkable woman, we lose one of the courageous daughters of the Greatest Generation whose hands helped build the strength of a nation when freedom hung in the balance. Her legacy reminds us that true heroes are not always found carrying ri**es on the front lines. Sometimes, they wear welding gloves, stand beneath showers of sparks, and build the ships, planes, and hope that change the course of history.🕊️🇺🇸

Born in 1926, Jeanne Gibson belonged to the Greatest Generation. At just 18 years old in 1944, she answered America's call during World War II, leaving her home in Minnesota to work as a welder at Todd Pacific Shipyards in Seattle, Washington, where she helped build destroyers and other naval vessels for the U.S. Navy. She later served with the U.S. Army Transportation Corps in Juneau, Alaska, preparing cargo manifests and hatch lists that supported the movement of vital military supplies.

Like millions of women who stepped into factories and shipyards while men served overseas, Jeanne became one of the legendary "Rosie the Riveters." Their determination, hard work, and sacrifice kept America's wartime industries running and played a crucial role in securing Allied victory.

After the war, Jeanne continued a life of service. She earned a Ph.D., spent more than 30 years as an educator, earned her private pilot's license, and dedicated her retirement to preserving the history of the Rosie generation. She became a beloved volunteer and ambassador, sharing her story with students, veterans, and visitors across the country, ensuring that the contributions of wartime women would never be forgotten.

In 2024, at the age of 98, Jeanne and thousands of fellow Rosie the Riveters were collectively awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the United States' highest civilian honors, recognizing their indispensable contributions to the nation's victory during World War II.

Even after celebrating her 100th birthday in 2026, Jeanne remained committed to honoring veterans and educating future generations. Her strength, humility, and unwavering patriotism made her a treasured representative of the Rosie legacy.

Today, we remember not only a woman who helped build ships during wartime, but a woman who spent an entire century building a legacy of courage, perseverance, service, and inspiration. Jeanne Gibson's life reminds us that ordinary people can accomplish extraordinary things when duty calls.

Rest in eternal peace, Jeanne Gibson.

Jeanne Gibson
1926 – July 29, 2026
Age: 100

"The legacy of Rosie the Riveters lives on through the freedom they helped defend and the generations they continue to inspire." 🇺🇸🕊️