By Shelby Stewart
Staff Writer
For their 10 year anniversary, staff at the Village Funeral Home started a blog titled, “Living Life Well,” to highlight those in the community living life
to it’s fullest. For the month of July, Ortonville VFW Post 582 commander Dennis Hoffman was selected.
But Facebook had other ideas.
Following a “boosted” Facebook post funded by the funeral home to assure more people to see the blog —the ad was rejected.
“The text and/or imagery you’re using is about social issues, elections or politics, based on the definition we’re using for enforcement.
However, your Page is not authorized to run these types of ads,” was the statement from Facebook for the reasoning of rejecting the ad.
“The censorship of Commander Dennis Hoffman’s blog has me confused and angry,” said Roy Langolf, owner of the Village Funeral Home. “He simply relayed a factual, historic account of what happened during and after his time of service. He served his country honorably and continues to serve his country and community on a daily basis. Now the part of freedom he fought for is being censored. Here we are 50 years later and he is still being disrespected.”
Hoffman feels that the censorship of the story speaks to the political climate today.
“I think it just shows how political Facebook has become to censor stuff like that,” said Hoffman. “There couldn’t be anything political about it. It just shows how people don’t want to know what really happened. But at least Roy is still going to pursue the issue and fight for it. The basis of that article was just about how well veterans are doing in this community. If Facebook is dead set against those veterans, they need to take a look at themselves.”
| The story that Langolf wanted to share reflects Hoffman’s military career and contributions to thecommunity. To Our Veterans: Thank You for Your Service Ortonville VFW Post 582 Commander, since 2014, and VFW Charter Member Dennis Hoffman has been instrumental in the process of designating Ortonville not only as a Purple Heart Trail, but also having M-15 within the village limits designated as a Purple Heart Highway. His service to our community and our country is honorable. We thank him and all veterans who have served our great country and we share Commander Hoffman’s military history to honor those who sacrificed to serve and protect us: Commander Hoffman was drafted to the Army in June 1968. Following boot camp at Fort Bragg, North Carolina and advanced infantry training at Ft. Polk, Louisiana, the USS Pueblo was seized by the North Koreans in international waters on January 23, 1968 and the crew held hostage. Due to this new conflict, his battalion in October was split in half, some going to Vietnam and some, including Commander Hoffman, were sent to the DMZ (Korean Demilitarized Zone). “I was disappointed,” says Hoffman. “I was trained for jungle warfare and I wanted to fight. I didn’t fight the draft; I just felt it was part of my duty as a US Citizen.” He was shipped to the DMZ and read shortly thereafter in the USA Times that half of his battalion sent to Vietnam was killed in the first day of the Tet Offensive, a series of surprise attacks by the Vietcong and Chinese to annihilate the Americans. “It was rough, and my brother was a helicopter mechanic in Vietnam,” Hoffman explains. “We were just trying to get through the time.” He patrolled the DMZ for 13 months and dealt with conflicts as people tried to sneak through the fence. There was a mile to the military demarcation line, and it was filled with bunkers and fox holes allowing Hoffman and his battalion to patrol the area. He left the Army after his two-year draft period was complete. He flew into Fort Lewis, Washington in January 1970 and then was bused to Oakland, California. For two days in sat in his uniform waiting for a flight home to Detroit, no flights were available, and he was called names. Finally, a gentleman said to him, “If you change into civilian clothes, you will get a flight.” He did just that, immediately was boarded on the next flight and changed back into his uniform when he landed in Detroit. He came back to a world with many changes – angry American citizens who wouldn’t place him on a flight and with a lack of telecommunications, he found out his grandmother had passed away and his parents were divorced. When the Ortonville VFW Post was chartered in 1984, he joined and continues to give to the 16 programs supported by the VFW – Honor Guard Rifle Team, Voice of Democracy Essay Contest, Oakland County Camp Out, Poppy Program, VFW National Home for Children in Eaton Rapids and local food banks and the list goes on…. Thank you, Commander Hoffman, for all you and your fellow VFW members do for our community! |
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