Memorial Day flap led veterans council to sever ties with Willard
By LARRY HILLIARD Ledger Staff Writer larry@gaffneyledger.com

Local Marine Corps League Commandant Frank Sossamon, ever the optimist, thought the rift between Cherokee County Veterans Affairs Officer Sammy Willard and the local Veterans Council had been largely healed in a private meeting earlier this year.

But the veterans council, made up of the heads of the county's various veterans organizations, including VFW and American Legion posts, severed its relationship with Willard in June by withdrawing its 2007 letter of support for the embattled VA officer in a memo to the Cherokee County Legislative Delegation.

Willard has been the target of a South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigation, triggered by allegations brought by two clerks in the Veterans Affairs Office, Kathy Love and Michele Tucker. Willard fired those employees last Monday.

Sossamon and other Veterans Council members, including Tom Reid, commander of American Legion Post 201; Clarence Hammett, commander of VFW Post 4941, who chairs the veterans council; Joe Watkins, commander of VFW Post 10431; and Gary Martin, commander of American Legion Post 109, visited The Gaffney Ledger on Friday to explain their actions.

They said an unrelated matter to the investigation between Willard and Reid sparked the tumultuous relationship between the veterans affairs officer and the veterans council.

Reid said an angry Willard used salty language in a telephone conversation with him. Reid, who served as a Veterans Affairs Office volunteer to drive veterans in need of medical services to VA hospitals, said Willard was upset that he told several veterans who were unhappy with Willard to take their complaints to members of the Cherokee County Legislative Delegation.

"He asked me if I was going around telling people that I'm not operating the office right," Reid said. "Sammy then told me I could kiss his ass."

Sossamon and Reid said Willard boasted he made that statement to Reid in appearances at other veterans organizations.

The news that Reid was at odds with Willard surfaced at an annual Legislative Delegation meeting.

"Sammy said he was ambushed at the Delegation meeting," Sossamon said. "He started coming out saying that the Veterans Council was against him. But we never tried to get him fired."

According to state law, Willard can be removed from office by a majority vote of both the Senate and House members in the Legislative Delegation.

When contacted at home on Saturday for a comment for the story, a feisty Willard reiterated he had no intention to discuss the matter with the media and abruptly ended the conversation.

Sossamon said Willard asked to appear at a Veterans Council meeting on Jan. 28.

Instead of attempting to reconcile their differences, Sossamon said Willard began to berate council members.

"Sammy commenced to chew us out," Sossamon said.

During the meeting, Willard was asked if he, in fact, told Reid "to kiss his ass," Sossamon said. But Willard said he couldn't recall if he made that statement to Reid.

"He said he was having a senior moment and couldn't remember if he said it or not," Sossamon said.

Hoping to end the feud by convincing Willard the veterans council wasn't pushing for his removal, Sossamon said Hammett asked Willard to meet with members of the Veterans Council at a VFW post. Sossamon said former Veterans Affairs Officer Rocky Byars accompanied Willard to the 2-hour meeting.

Sossamon said he thought the meeting eased tensions between the bickering parties.

"I thought things calmed down," he said.

But the tensions escalated again when it was discovered that letters of support for Willard sent to local media outlets were being faxed from the Veterans Affairs Office.

Sossamon said the local Marine Corps detachment was asked to send a letter of support for Willard, but its members opposed the action.

However, a letter of support from the local Marine organization appeared in a local media outlet anyway.

The rift became irreparable when Willard pulled the Veterans Affairs Office's support for the local Veterans Council-sponsored Memorial Day service this year and failed to appear at the ceremony, Sossamon said.

"There is no way we can support him when he withdrew his support for the men and women at the Memorial Day service and he didn't even show up," Sossamon said.