TULALIP — Members of American Legion Post 178 in Marysville set up a table outside of the Quil Ceda Village Walmart Nov. 20 to recruit some new members, and got one right as they started at 10 a.m.

Mountlake Terrace resident Michael Johnson served in the Navy during the Vietnam conflict, and just happened to be stopping by Walmart to shop when he saw the American Legion members.

“I should have done this a long time ago,” Johnson said as he filled out the forms. “I’ve always seen these Legion guys, but in light of Afghanistan and Iraq, I see that our boys aren’t getting as much help as they need, so I want to be part of the next generation of Legion members to help them.”

American Legion Post 178 member and fellow navy veteran Ken Cage, who served in Korea, noted that Post 178 currently has approximately 150 members on its rolls, and added that the post has nearly reached 80 percent of its recruiting goal for the year.

“When you’re in the service, you hear about the bickering between the different branches, like between the Army and the Navy, but when you were in trouble, boy, the only thing you heard people calling each other was ‘buddy,'” Cage said.

The American Legion seeks improvements in pay, housing and medical care for active-duty, retired, National Guard and Reserve military members, and assists military veterans and their family members with filing benefits claims and receiving educational benefits, VA medical care and Medicare reimbursements for VA medical services.

American Legion Post 178 is looking to reinstate its Ladies Auxiliary, which is open to mothers, wives, daughters, stepdaughters and grandmothers of veterans. Its first meeting to recruit for the Ladies Auxiliary will take place at the Marysville American Legion hall, located at the corner of Cedar Avenue and Second Street, Dec. 10 at 7 p.m.

“When our Ladies Auxiliary was last active, it was marvelous for the community,” Cage said.