Commander Peter Amoroso organizes the banquet hall of the Cross Keys VFW Post 6332, former home of Williamstown VFW Post 1616.
Commander Peter Amoroso and Adjutant Gen. Bruce Wm. Taneski have been busy getting the banquet hall ready at the new headquarters of their VFW post in Williamstown.
What is now Cross Keys VFW Post 6332 met for years in Washington Township.
“This is a monumental task for us,” said Taneski, the author of five books about the Vietnam War. “Hopefully it all works out. We have been making improvements.”
They include a fresh coat of paint and a lighting change. Otherwise the hall is in good shape, he added.
“We are excited to have a home and to be able to serve the community of Monroe Township,” Amoroso noted on Jan. 17, as he organized things at the new Williamstown hall. Post 6332 was formed in 1987 and met at Washington Township’s Knights of Columbus Hall.
But shortly after New Year’s in 2023, the state VFW headquarters revoked the charter for Armistice VFW Post 1616 on Black Horse Pike in Williamstown, shutting it down after numerous violations of New Jersey law and what was described as operation outside of the VFW’s constitution and bylaws.
Taneski said that since then, the state VFW has asked officers and members of post 6332 to manage day-to-day operations at the post 1616 building. That’s why the former changed its name to Cross Keys Post 6332.
After an investigation into improprieties at post 1616 by the VFW’s Department Administration Committee, a report signed by Ken Hagemann, the VFW state adjutant and quartermaster for the committee, described some of the post’s troubling issues.
Among other things, it violated the state liquor and gambling laws daily, according to the report. The canteen at post 1616 was open to the public via the illuminated post sign on a state highway and on social media for the consumption of alcoholic beverages, in violation of state laws that restrict selling, serving or delivering alcohol to non-members of the VFW unless they are bona fide guests of a member.
The investigation also described regular illegal gambling operations and tax liabilities up to $660,000, plus penalties and interest. The post owes unpaid sales tax for years of under-reporting and years of unpaid payroll taxes. Employees were paid under the table.
“We found two sets of books and up to $40,000 plus a year in revenue is undocumented in reports or to the membership, along with $40,000 a year in disbursements that was not documented in reports or reported to the membership,” the report noted. “Records and receipts were not kept in accordance with the laws and usages of the VFW and the books and records were kept in a way that would make an audit or accounting impossible.”
After post 1616’s charter was revoked, the Department Quartermaster – on orders from the New Jersey commander – took over control of the Black Horse Pike building, Teneski explained.
The post home is owned by the state VFW, but Amoroso hopes post 6332 can raise enough money through banquet hall rentals to eventually purchase it.
“In order to get the building, we have to pay the bills,” Teneski pointed out, adding that the hall holds up to 250 seated people. The bar – or canteen as it’s known – will be closed and no alcohol will be served, according to Amoroso. For a hall wedding reception or party, the customer would need to acquire a one-day liability insurance rider, and anyone tending bar has to be a VFW member.
Both Taneski and Amoroso hope to continue programs for students in Williamstown that have been successful in Washington Township schools, including the Voice of Democracy for high-school students, the Patriot’s Pen for middle schoolers and visits to grade schools.
Cross Keys post 6332 meets every third Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m., and all eligible veterans and former post 1616 members in good standing are invited to join. Hall rentals under the control of the state VFW are available to the public. Call (609) 579-7650.
