National Awards Committee Chairman
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 Gordon
C. Brenner joined the MOPH in 1990 and has held numerous leadership positions in
the local chapter and department. He held offices of Department Jr. Vice and Sr.
Vice Commander and was the Illinois Department Commander for 4 years. He was appointed
by three National Commanders to serve as National POW-MIA Coordinator for 1 year
and National Awards Committee Chairman for the last 2 years. Since March 2008, he
completed training and is now working as a National Service officer for the MOPH.
He holds life memberships in the VFW, DAV, and MOPH, which is his most active membership.
. . . . In 1996, Patriot Brenner was drafted into the United States Army from his
apprenticeship courses at the Caterpillar Tractor Company. After basic and advance
training in the Army, he was ordered to Vietnam and joined the 25th Infantry Division
in the Central Highlands around Pleiku. While serving in the Infantry, he was twice
wounded with the second being a gunshot wound to the right thigh that resulted in
extensive surgeries in Japan. He was then evacuated to Ireland Army Hospital at
Fort Knox, Kentucky for rehabilitation, later being transferred to Fort Leonard
Wood, Missouri to finish my service time. After discharge from the Army, he returned
to Caterpillar Tractor in Joliet, Illinois to complete his Community College courses.
He left Caterpillar Tractor to take a job at York Division of Borg Warner in Decatur,
IL, where he worked as a Machine Repairman until the Plant closed in 1983. . . .
. At this juncture, Brenner and his wife decided to “control their own destinies
“ by opening a T-shirt and Jacket Embroidery business in a local mall. They operated
from that location for 16 years and then decided to concentrate on just the Jacket
Embroidery part of the business from their home. In 1990, he also purchased a small
local Vending company, machines and equipment. . . . . In 1985, he became politically
active, running for a seat on the Macon County board. He stayed politically active
and at one time held two elected offices, Decatur Township Highway Commissioner
and Macon County Board member. In 2004 he was re-elected to his second four-year
term as Decatur Township Highway Commissioner. . . . . He became more aware that
many local Veterans issues were not being addressed and thought that it was time
to try to do something about it. He was elected Chairman of the Macon County Veterans
Assistance Commission in 2002 and served in that position until 2006. Delegates
from 14 Veterans organizations in Macon County make up the Commission. He also holds
positions on the boards of the Illinois Governor’s Veterans Advisory Council and
Attorney General, Lisa Madigan’s, Veterans Rights Council. . . . . His political
offices and membership in various Veterans organizations helped him develop a good
working relationship with local and state elected officials. In April of 2005, he
was instrumental in getting legislation passed that named Interstate Highway 72,
Purple Heart Memorial Highway, a project that took almost 7 years. . . . . Patriot
Brenner currently heads up Committees that are working on two War Memorials. The
first is called Freedom Walk, a walkway that is lined with bricks of engraved Veterans
names, memorializing their service to our Country. The memorial is an addition to
the all Veterans Memorial that already exists at our County Courts building. The
second is a World War II memorial that will display the names of 360 Macon County
Veterans who were killed in action or died of wounds in World War II. . . . . He’s
been married to G. Diane Brenner for over thirty-nine years and they have two children
and four grand-children.
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