Major General Stan Spears The Medal of Honor Convention is scheduled for Charleston next year, September 29 through October 3, 2010. Co- sponsored by The Citadel and the S.C. State Guard, the convention is rarely held in a city Charleston's size. This September 15, for example, is the opening day in Chicago for the 2009 Medal of Honor Convention. In 2008 it was in Denver, Colorado.

The convention brings together all the living recipients of the Medal of Honor — those who can make it — and many among their families and admirers.

Some are not well and some are simply too old. But the one who just turned 100 last month has every intention of making it, while the youngest of the recipients, who is 58, is sure to come. All told, there are 95 living recipients of the Medal of Honor, and the Chicago count will work as a good means to estimate the Charleston total.

The Charleton convention chair, attorney Eugene Rogers of Rogers Townsend & Thomas, is leading a small team to Chicago on September 15 to see first- hand how it goes this year, even to return with a critical outlook over what to avoid. Rogers is also a brigadier general in the S.C. State Guard.

John Baker The cost of the Charleston convention requires about $1.2 million in private support, and more than $800,000 has been pledged so far. The last $400,000 needs to come in long before the opening function for the convention on September 29, 2010.

The first $800,000 might have been easier to collect than the last $400,000 because all the obvious local contacts and relationships were confidently tapped out. It's now time to reach further out, and the next rounds of responses might share some daunting aspects.

And, of course, the country (world, actually) is in the worst recession since the Great Depression.

Moving forward on the financial front, Rogers and his fund- raising team held a luncheon last Wednesday, August 19, at 300 Senate Street, the former Sterling Garden Center space. The audience sitting for the appeal was mostly lawyers and other employees of Columbia- area law firms. The title of the gathering was Lawyers Honoring Valor, and the sole purpose was to raise contributions from the lawyers for the Medal of Honor Convention in Charleston in about another year.

Chuck Murray The luncheon's emcee was S.C. Supreme Court Justice Costa Pleicones of Columbia, a graduate of Wofford and USC Law and also an alumnus of the late Dave Mellichamp's internship program in title search, an honor he shared with a few fortunates in the audience.

Major General Stan Spears, the S.C. Adjutant General, introduced Columbia's Medal of Honor recipients Chuck Murray and John Baker, both retired from the U.S. Army.

Further along in the program, S.C. Court of Appeals Justice James Lockemy answered the question, "How can I support the 2010 Medal of Honor Convention?" With his command of the language and his awareness of the ethics inherent in fund raising, Justice Lockemy correctly answered his own question.

Columbia attorney Peter Korn of his eponymous firm offered support from the Marines, where Korn served as a captain. He handed over a check for $1,000 at the end of his few words, and he urged the audience to do same.

Justice James Lockemy Before topping off the occasion with everyone

singing God Bless America,

convention chair Rogers made it clear what was necessary and how much was necessary and all within what time constraints.

For further information on how to participate with the 2010 Medal of Honor Convention in Charleston, go to medalofhonorconvention. com.

Gene Rogers