Department News August 2015

American Legion, Department of Alabama

www.legional.org (334) 262-6638 or (800) 234-5544

2016 Leadership Conference, October 1 – October 3, 2015

Dates have been changed please make a note of it!

Please make plans to attend this year’s leadership conference in Montgomery,

Alabama. This year it will be held at the Embassy Suite Hotel on October 1 – October

3, 2015. Please call today and make your reservations, their phone number is 334-

269-5055.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call us and we hope to see

you there.

You may purchase these shirts on our

website www.legional.org. There are

limited sizes. All proceeds will go towards

The Veterans Retreat.

Legion Family T-shirts for Sale on our Website

Post Everlasting for August Newsletter

James Bamford Post 119 Charles O Baggett Post 76 Micahel S Cieutat Post 76 Vincent A Early Post 76 David M. Oser Post 134 Robert A Oliver Post 134 H. D. Parker Post 343 T. J. Carnes Post 94 John Cleyin Post 48 Walter J Wright Post 343 James W Dunigan Post 343 Morgan Hezzie Jr Post 9 Larry C Williams Post 137 John Wilson Post 79 Carl M. Kester Jr Post 134 J. E. Willoughby Post 134 W. H. Brantley III Post 134 Donald C Paul Post 237

Elmer R Harlin Post 67 Leo Dubose Post 81 Elmer R Harlin Post 67 Raymond E. Haines Post 208 Clarence Hammond Post 351 Suzie C Caudle Post 351 Larry C Williams Post 137 Martin Sims Post 131 Gordon H Johnson Post 26 Chester B Driskell Post 145 M T Kelsey Post 145 W K Roberson Post 145 Neal Jolley Post 39 Claude Swift Post 61 Perry R Hardin Post 123 Carlton O Hayes Post 78 George R McDuffie Post 78 John R Ward Post 59

John W Morgan Post 76 Genevieve Evankovich Post 57

Post Everlasting as of August 5, 2015

as

Commander’s Corner

Hey, Legion Family, The membership team and I just returned from National Legion Headquarters in Indianapolis; all went well. Each person in the team had a topic ready to discuss.

The incoming National Commander, Dale Burnett seemed very pleased with our presentation. His statement was that we were well prepared and he knew we would be.

When it got down to our membership goal for this year, the bickering was something like buying a used car. Our proposed goal was 18600; Cmdr. Burnett's was 19000. So we met halfway and our new goal for this year is 18800. Let's all jump on this early. Let's show National what Alabama will do.

Let's all work within our committees to have successful outcomes. When we return from National Convention we will hit the ground running. Please make arrangements to attend Fall Leadership Conference.

With your help we will succeed.

Thank you

David Hartline

Department Commander

ADJUTANT’S ALLEY

Our year is off and running. August is shaping up to be a busy month as always. Currently the

National Membership Workshop is under way. Your senior leadership is showing the power of Alabama

and educating other departments on our success. Alabama is only 1 of 10 departments to finish ahead of

where we did last year. The Department of Alabama finished 11th in the nation and only 1 of 5 in the top 15

ahead of last year. As a whole the department has done well. We do have room for improvement. Alabama

has the highest per capita veteran population in the nation at 8%. We have over 500,000 veterans of over

311,000 eligible for membership in The American Legion. The department recruited over 3,200 members

this past year; however we only finished a little over 260 ahead from last year. This tells me that the area

we need to focus on the most is retention. I have heard many say that our membership is “dying” off. The

death rate over the past 3 years has in fact decreased. We lost a reported 557 Legionnaires this past year to

the Post Everlasting. Let me breakdown the numbers so you can use within your post to push retention.

3200 New members

-260 Over last year

-557 Post Everlasting

2,383 Members that did not renew

I am proud of every Legionnaire and the efforts made this past year. Thank you for the support and

understanding as I attempt to continue to grow as your Department Adjutant. Coming up on August 21-23

will be The American Legion Department of Alabama Veterans Retreat. 30 Veterans chosen from within

the Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System (CAVCHS) will attend. This is our chance to directly

affect these veterans and prevent them from becoming 1 of the 22 we are losing to suicide. Everyone is

invited to come out to Camp Chandler YMCA in Wetumpka and take part. There have been numerous

contributors but there have been a couple of stand outs that I would like to recognize. Post 133 has raised

over $2,200, cooking lunch on the 22nd, and have many coming to perform support roles for the Veterans

Retreat in little over a month; many thanks go out to Commander Bobby (Bos) Boswell and The American

Legion Family from Millbrook Post 133. I would also like to commend Commander Jeff Gibson and the

Detachment SAL that will be preparing dinner on the 22nd for the veterans. Commander Leroy Davis and

Post 135 stepped up to prepared dinner on the 21st when a last minute cancellation took place. What this all

proves is there is NOTHING we can’t do as an American Legion statewide.

Challenges face us at every turn. To quote a rather popular movie character, Rocky, “it’s not how hard

you hit! It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward! If you get knocked down you get up

and KEEP MOVING FORWARD!”. That sums up our American Legion and this nation. We’ve been hit if

we stay down we lose but if we keep moving forward TOGETHER we can achieve any goal. There are few

out there that are in The American Legion for themselves those individuals will get hit and not get up. Let’s

stand, fight, and make this The American Legion Department we are capable of.

NO VETERAN LEFT BEHIND!

Greg Akers Department Adjutant

FROM THE DESK OF SENIOR VICE COMMANDER JIM JEFFRIES

The American Legion Family, The new membership year has begun and the good news is that Alabama has established an excellent foundation for the 2015 – 2016 campaign. We were only 1 of 5 ( out 55 ) departments to exceed prior year results and Monroe County Post 61, 31st District, won the National Race to the Top membership award – a first time for Alabama. The key components that drove the results were community involvement via The American Legion programs and effective, consistent and frequent COMMUNICATION. The public reacts and responds to what they see and hear – perception. You are the face of The American Legion and your continued excellent representation of the LEGION is essential to the success of the mission and is appreciated by your comrades in arms. POW MIA Recognition Ceremony 20 September 2015 This historic event will be at 1100 on the south lawn of the capitol. The guest speaker will be RADM Clyde Marsh, USN – Ret. and the keynote speaker will be former POW ( Vietnam ) COL Hank Fowler, USAF – Ret. The American Legion Department Of Alabama is the lead sponsor of this event which is comprised of numerous veterans service organizations, government, civic and fraternal entities. Please join us for the ceremony and render a hand salute to The American Legion Riders who will parade in before the opening ceremony. “ Don’t assume anybody knows anything unless you tell them yourself “ COL J.C. Hardee USMC August Thought: “ We will find a way or make one “, Hannibal ( 247 – 183 BC ) Carthaginian, general. Respectfully, Jim Jeffries SR Vice Commander The American Legion Department Of Alabama

From The Chapel

There is a sign on the wall behind my desk which reads: Though I don't like the crew I won't sink the ship--in fact in time of storm I'll do my very best to save it. For we are all in this craft and we must sink or swim together. "Together" is the key word here. Our country seems to be so divided. It would seem we no longer have Americans but only democrats and republicans. We have got to get back to basics for The American Legion and our country as a whole. Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us to "Trust in the lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths" I invite you to join me in daily prayer for us and our country God bless you! Duke

Congratulations to these great Legionnaires!

2015 Recruiter of the Year was David Lewis. Mr. Lewis is a 92 year old member of Dixons Mills Post 340 and

he recruited 57 new members.

2015 Veteran of the Year is Leroy Davis. Mr. Davis is the Commander of Phenix City Post 135.