Trilogy Veterans Club president leads the way

The contributions of U.S. Air Force retiree Scott Duke to the veteran world, both locally and beyond, is expansive.

The Vistancia resident has been a party to helping feed children in need, delivering care packages to military personnel deployed overseas, donating hundreds of turkeys to St. Mary’s over many Thanksgivings, and collecting thousands of toys and gifts for struggling military veterans families.

Much of this has been done through Trilogy Veterans Club, for which he is the president. And for his contributions, his work has been well recognized, including being given the Trilogy Veterans Club President Award of Merit, and most recently an induction into the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame, Class of 2023.

Duke said as a veteran, it is a great opportunity to help fellow veterans in need.

“One person can make a difference in the lives of those less fortunate,” he said. “What you might think is a small gesture of support becomes a significant difference in their lives.”

For his service to the community, Duke has been named a Peoria Independent Hometown Hero in the Veteran category.

The Hometown Heroes Awards are a celebration of individuals who live or teach in the city, and Peoria businesses for their achievements and distinguished contributions to the community and beyond.

Duke will be honored at an awards luncheon next year. The fourth annual Hometown Heroes luncheon will honor those nominated in 2024.

Duke has been president of the Trilogy Veterans Club for the past six years.

Mesquite District Councilmember Brad Shafer said Duke has done much in that time to make the club thrive and prosper.

Since he became president, the club has established a more focused mission and its membership has nearly doubled, increasing from 133 members to about 300 members. The club has become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, which has allowed the group to serve military veterans throughout the Valley to receive tax deductible donations from individuals and businesses. The club, in turn, donates funds received from fundraisers and donations to various organizations in the Phoenix metro area that benefit veterans, active military and first responders.

Shafer said that because of his leadership and determination to support military veterans less fortunate than himself, the club has tripled their donations to Valley charitable organizations in the last three years.

Shafer added that under Duke’s superb leadership, he has been directly responsible for creating and maintaining a mission to engage military veterans, cultivate fellowship, and create missions and opportunities that support military veterans in need, with a focus to undertake support for charitable, social, and community events that honor veterans and military service, as well as advocate for legislation that promotes benefits to military veterans and their families.

Duke has brought a sense of pride to military veterans within the Trilogy Veterans Club, Shafer said.

“His passion for supporting military veterans in need or at risk is infectious within the club, and every mission that supports our military veterans in the Phoenix area is always 100% filled with volunteers. ... His communicative skills in keeping the club abreast of where they can have the highest impact in supporting military veterans is without equal,” Shafer said.

Duke was born and raised in a military family — his father retired from the U.S. Army and his two brothers retired from the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.

Duke retired from the U.S. Air Force at the rank of Master Sergeant after serving 20 years. He also served 22 years in civil service and retired a second time in 2016. At that point, he and his wife Nancy, who is also an Air Force veteran, moved to Trilogy at Vistancia.

Russell Brown, retired U.S. Army veteran and vice president of the Trilogy Veterans Club, said with Duke’s extensive military background, he joined the Trilogy at Vistancia Veterans Club in 2016.

He said the club was founded on the idea and purpose of “veterans helping veterans in need,” which Duke has a passion and dedication for that is “unsurpassed.”

Brown added that Duke’s goals for the future are to continue growing the club membership and to continue to get more local community veteran clubs to combine resources to help organizations who are aiding veterans in need.

“Working with Scott on the Trilogy Veterans Club board of directors for the last four years as secretary and now vice president has been a satisfying and rewarding experience,” Brown said. “Scott is a dynamic leader and mentor who is dedicated to helping all veterans. I am happy to be his friend and honored to be one of his brothers in arms.”

Get to know Duke more here .

Philip Haldiman can be reached at phaldiman@iniusa.org, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman. We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.