The Lampasas VFW post was renamed the Charles “Choc” Gillen post in 2013 to honor its first commander and a founding member. Courtesy photo
The Veterans of Foreign Wars post opened in 1946 in an old barracks as the Lampasas Memorial VFW.
VFW Post 8539 is located at 481 North U.S. Highway 183 in Lampasas. The post was chartered on Oct. 15, 1946 as a post in District 14.
The 7.9 acres of land the post originally sat on was sold to the post for $1. By the end of the first year, they had 51 members.
The first commander was Charles “Choc” Jam…
