New Legion scholarship honors Arkansas couple

U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton congratulates the family of Bob Legan — Connie Wilson (center left), Ken Legan and Carol Erdmann — after a ceremony to honor their father Saturday during an American Legion conference in North Little Rock.
U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton congratulates the family of Bob Legan — Connie Wilson (center left), Ken Legan and Carol Erdmann — after a ceremony to honor their father Saturday during an American Legion conference in North Little Rock.

During a celebration of the organization's 100th anniversary, members of the American Legion gathered Saturday to honor two lifelong constituents who they say made a difference in the lives of veterans across the nation.

R.D. Kinsey, state commander for the Arkansas branch of the American Legion, and U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., announced Saturday the naming of an oratorical scholarship after Bob and Ruth Legan, both of whom were members of the Legion for more than 50 years.

The American Legion is Arkansas' largest veterans service organization and provides local programs for veterans and their families across the state. Cotton, who is a 10-year member of the American Legion, said though they'd joined the organization almost 40 years apart, he had heard of the Legans' contributions and leadership.

"Bob and Ruth Legan were members of our post," said Cotton, who was a member of the same post as Bob Legan and who grew up in Dardanelle, just across the Arkansas River from the Legans' Russellville farm.

"They made a lot of contributions to the American Legion civics programs and to the growth of the American Legion over 50 years of service."

Connie Wilson and her sister, Carol Erdmann, present to members of the American Legion Auxiliary a quilt made by their mother, Ruth Legan, before she died last year. The sisters appeared at an American Legion conference in North Little Rock on Saturday.
Connie Wilson and her sister, Carol Erdmann, present to members of the American Legion Auxiliary a quilt made by their mother, Ruth Legan, before she died last year. The sisters appeared at an American Legion conference in North Little Rock on Saturday.

Kinsey said the Legion voted unanimously to name the scholarship after the Legans and that alongside their commitment to veterans was a devotion to youth. Bob and Ruth Legan's three children -- Carol Erdmann, Connie Wilson and Ken Legan -- accepted the award on behalf of their parents, both of whom have died in recent years.

"They both loved the Legion so much," Wilson said Saturday after Kinsey presented her with a plaque commemorating the day. "This means so much to us, and I know it would have meant so much to them."

Bob Legan was the state commander for the Arkansas American Legion and Ruth was the president of the state's auxiliary unit. Ken Legan said his parents met with seven different U.S. presidents, lobbied Congress for funding to aid veterans and restore national cemeteries, and founded the American Legion Foundation of Arkansas, a philanthropic institution.

When they weren't in Washington, D.C., the Legans were farmers, Ken Legan said.

They raised chickens and Polled Herefords in Russellville until 2002, when they moved to Oklahoma to be closer to family, when Bob Legan's health began to fail, Ken Legan said.

Wilson said her parents were high-school sweethearts who married in the heat of World War II. When Bob was stationed in Fort Hood, Texas, and feared he may soon be deployed, Wilson said her mother boarded a train from Missouri, where the two grew up, and rode down to meet him.

"They found the nearest people to be witnesses and they were married," Wilson said. "They were so in love. They did everything together."

While living in Russellville as a young mother, Ruth Legan learned to quilt, Wilson said. For the rest of her life, Ruth Legan made quilts for everyone in the family, including four quilts she stitched in the year before her death two weeks ago at the age of 92.

One of those quilts, red, white and blue with intricate stitching and dozens of American flags lining the edge, she made especially for the American Legion, Wilson said.

The Legans presented this quilt to Kinsey on Saturday, saying her mother wanted it to be auctioned to raise money for the American Legion Foundation.

"This organization meant so much to them," Ken Legan said after presenting Kinsey with the quilt. "And it means so much to us. We are very proud of our parents."

Metro on 01/13/2019

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