SAN ANTONIO – Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 76 carries a high profile as “The Oldest Post in Texas.” Veterans travel from across the country for ceremonies in San Antonio.
It’s a local favorite that sits along the world-famous River Walk.
“It means a lot to me,” guest Ruben Segovia said. “I like the way it looks. It reminds me of what San Antonio used to look like historically.”
The beauty of the 110-year-old house is starting to fade. At one point, guests could not use the restrooms, but building committee chair Steve Trevino said the post has completely overhauled the plumbing.
“It’s a solid fix. Solid fix,” Trevino said.
After years of patchwork fixes, Trevino is now ready to install long-lasting upgrades.
“I don’t want to be where we have beavers making a wooden dam or we need Army Corps engineers,” Trevino said.
The post is working alongside the San Antonio Historic Preservation Office, drafting an assessment of the house’s needs and hopefully with the city’s connections so they can start finding donors that want to help.
“We should be kickstarting a fundraising campaign soon. We’re reviewing how and what can be donated as far as monetary and from whom. So we want to be able to make sure that we’re not limited by nonprofit status,” Trevino said.
One of the descendants of the Petty family — the family who donated the house to the post — has already made a donation.
“This is his house and I take great pride in knowing that we have one surviving member who was raised in this house. And I just owe him a lot,” Trevino said.
They also submitted a grant to the San Antonio Conservation Society to make some repairs to the roof.
“It might not be the full 50K. We’re going to have to be happy to take whatever the award is,” Trevino said.
If you’re trying to support VFW Post 76′s preservation process, you can drop off donations of any amount at the canteen inside.