The original VFW Post 5390
Alvaro E. Vieira VFW Post No. 5390, Portsmouth
Born Jan. 12, 1924, in Portsmouth, Alvaro E. Vieira was the son of Manuel and Lucinda (Leal) Vieira.
On March 3, 1941, Vieira enlisted in the Navy. He completed his basic training at the Naval Training Station in San Diego. As a seaman second class, Vieira was assigned to the battleship USS Arizona, which had just finished being overhauled at the Puget Sound Navy Yard in Bremerton, Wash. He reported to the ship on July 13, 1941. As part of the Pacific Fleet, the ship was relocated to Hawaii, where it was to act as a deterrent to rising Japanese imperialism.
On the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, nine months after he joined the Navy and at the age of 17, Vieira was one of 1,177 men who died when Japanese planes launched their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. He is commemorated on the USS Arizona Memorial, which was named a national shrine in 1962 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989.
Vieira was posthumously awarded the American Defense Service Medal, the World War II Victory Medal and the Purple Heart.
Fifty years ago, Master of Ceremonies J. Edward O’Brien presided over the open house and dedication of Portsmouth’s new Alvaro E. Vieira VFW Post 5390 in Common Fence Point. This photo appeared in the Oct. 28, 1971 issue of The Sakonnet Times.
SGT. CHRISTOPHER SCOTT POTTS
October 03, 1966 – October 03, 2004
OBITUARY
Tiverton, RI – Sgt. Christopher Scott Potts, 38, of Tiverton, RI, died on his birthday, serving his country in Iraq. He was the husband of Terri Ann Conley Potts. Born in Rockville, CT on October 3, 1966, he was the son of Arthur J. Potts of Portsmouth, RI and Elizabeth Miner Hackett of Middletown, RI. Christopher was a member of the Alpha Battery, 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery of the Rhode Island National Guard for over fourteen years. Before being activated for duty in January of 2004 and deployed to Iraq in March of 2004, he worked as a boat builder for New England Boatworks in Portsmouth, RI for seven years.
Chris was a member of the VFW of Portsmouth, RI. He played softball in the Middletown Softball League, for various teams and most currently for the Steel Horse Tavern, he also liked to play a round of golf if he wasn’t on his Dirt Bike having fun. Chris enjoyed both salt and freshwater fishing.
Besides his wife Terri Ann Conley Potts of Tiverton, RI, two sons Christopher Scott Potts Jr. of Middletown, RI and Jackson Benjamin Potts of Tiverton, RI, his father Arthur Potts of Portsmouth, RI and his mother Elizabeth Miner Hackett of Middletown, RI, he is survived by his paternal grandmother Eileen Stewart Potts of Middletown, RI, his maternal grandmother Meryon Miner of Rockville, CT and his sister Jerri Kim Potts Evans of Middletown, RI. His funeral will be held on Wednesday, October 13, 2004, at 11:00 AM in the Connors Funeral Home, 55 West Main Road, Portsmouth, RI. Burial with full Military Honors will be rendered in Trinity Cemetery in Portsmouth, RI. Donations in his memory may be made to the Sgt. Christopher Potts, Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 429, Tiverton, Rhode Island 02878.
J. Edward O’Brien, the designer for the new Alvaro E. Vieira VFW Post 5390 hall that was built in Common Fence Point 45 years ago, pitches in on the heavy work during construction. At the time there were 242 Post members. This photo appeared in the May 13, 1971 issue of The Sakonnet Times.