Why Do I Belong To The American Legion? 3rd District Convention Gilmer, TX March 12, 2016

What Is Our Purpose For Existence? The Four Pillars Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation National Security Americanism Children & Youth Do we still have a purpose to exist today?

In The Beginning - 1919 Why did they join? Comradeship & new experiences A sense of belonging Concern for fellow soldiers Looking to the future A sense of patriotism How is this different today? Why did you join?

1919 Mission Statement The American Legions Success Depends Entirely on: Active Leadership Membership Member participation & volunteerism The organization belongs to the people it serves and the communities in which it thrives

Texas Membership 1919-2015 1919 = 18 Districts & 78 Posts Accumulative 25 year loss = 42,370 Accumulative 8 year loss = 35,490

3rd District Membership History 2015 = 1,264 – (48) 2014 = 1,312 – +56 2013 = 1,256 – (94) 2012 = 1,350 – (97) 2011 = 1,447 – (56) 2010 = 1,503 – (104) 2009 = 1,607 Accumulative 6 Year Loss = (343) members

Have We Forgotten Our Mission? Since 1991 the Department of Texas & the 3rd District has: Seen a loss of membership Seen a loss of Posts – (41) since 2007 Seen a lack of membership participation Seen a lack of leadership

Are We Infected With Apathy? What is apathy? Absence or suppression of passion, emotion or excitement Lack of interest in or concern for things that others find moving or exciting

What can we do to reverse our loss of membership and begin to grow? Discussion What can we do to reverse our loss of membership and begin to grow? Let’s review some possible cures!

Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Is Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation important? How is your Post serving Active Duty, Veterans and their families? Do your Post members volunteer in the VA Health Care System? Does your Post have a knowledgeable & qualified Service Officer? Does your Post have a Honor Guard?

National Security Is National Security important? Why? Is your Post involved in supporting our troops? Does your Post donate to Operation Comfort Warriors? Why? Does your Post donate to the National Emergency Fund? Why? Does your Post conduct a blood drive? Why? How can we improve?

Americanism Is your Post involved in Americanism programs? Oratorical? Why? Boys State? Why? Boy Scouts? Why? American Legion Baseball? Why? Junior Shooting Sports? Why? ROTC? Why? Legacy Scholarship Fund? Why?

Children & Youth Is your Post actively involved in… Strengthing the family unit? Family Support Network? Helping children in need? Temporary Financial Assistance (TFA) Child Welfare Foundation (CWF) Programs that provide opportunities for young people facing difficult challenges? How can we improve?

Public Relations Is Public Relations important? Is effective internal communications important? Newsletters, Hubmaster Is effective external communications important? Multi-Media, Social Media What tools are available to help us? How can we improve?

Membership Growth Why is membership growth important? Does your Post have a Membership Committee? Does your Post have a written Membership Plan? How can we improve Membership Growth? Retaining current members Recruiting new members TX345 & AD345 Transfers

Training Why is training important? Does your Post have a brief training session at each Post meeting? How many of your members are graduates of the ALEI course? Why is this important? Do your members attend Zone, District & Division training seminars? How can we improve?

Meetings Does your Post hold regular monthly meetings? Is this important? Do you have a quorum for all meetings? Why? Do you have a written and published agenda for all meetings? Why is this important? Do your Post meetings include opening and closing ceremony? Why is this important? Does your Post follow Roberts Rules of Order during its meetings? Why is this important?

Administrative Does your Post have a current Constitution & By-Laws? Why is this important? Does your Post file a Post Consolidated Report annually? Why is this important? Does your Post file a timely Certification of Officers annually? Why is this important? Does your Post conduct an annual audit? Does your Post submit transmittals timely? At what point does a Post cease to exist?

Where Do We Go From Here? Do we agree on the need to return to a focus on the 4 Pillars of the organization? How can each of us influence that in our individual Posts? Do we really want to change our direction? Are you personally ready to commit to helping institute that change of direction?