New York
Department leaders are making visitations around the state, sharing their
vision and passion with local Legion Family members. Here's an example of such
a visit -- to the 5th District's Oneida County.
NEW HARTFORD --
New York Department Commander Timothy S. Van Patten has a pet peeve -- people
who don't have the right perception of the Legion.
The Legion is not about bars -- even though it's a place to get together "after we visit one of our members in the hospital or nursing home, or after we've finished interviewing our candidates for Boys' State, or after we finish judging an essay or oratorical contest after the parents and candidates have left."
It's a place to
share stories "after everyone has left our memorial service or come back
to our post after a parade for hot dogs and refreshments, or usually after we
come back from watching the baseball team we sponsor or watching our junior
shooters."
Van Patten was joined by:
-- Department Auxiliary President Sally Johnsten, who encouraged dinner guests to "remember why you joined," "renew you commitment," and "reach out" to others.
-- Sons of the American Legion (SAL) Detachment Commander John Knapp, who said he had a three-fold focus to recruitt members, encourage donations to the National Emergency Fund that helps disaster-struck Legion familes, and raise money for the Child Welfare Foundation, which provides grants to organizations that help children.
Added Johnsten:
"The best way to get members is to just ask."
Oneida County Commander Dave Riley and Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney welcomed the New York Legion Family leaders to the county. Riley served as master of ceremonies at the dinner, and Tenney, an Auxiliary member and mother of a Naval Academy cadet, praised the Legion for being "a great extended family for our veterans and families."
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| Cmdr. Tim Van Patten |
"Every once
in a while someone will say, 'Do you guys do anything but sit around the bar
telling war stories?'"
During a visit to
Oneida County Sept. 29, Van Patten told a packed banquet hall at New Hartford
Post 1376 what he says to such a question.
The Legion is not about bars -- even though it's a place to get together "after we visit one of our members in the hospital or nursing home, or after we've finished interviewing our candidates for Boys' State, or after we finish judging an essay or oratorical contest after the parents and candidates have left."
It's a place to
gather "usually after a membership meeting where we discuss how we can go about
recruiting new members, where in the community we can donate money, who we
should donate food baskets to, or after cleaning up from the Community
Christmas Party or Easter Egg Hunt that our post has sponsored."
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| Cmdr. Van Patten, Pres. Johnsten, Cmdr. Knapp |
"And
finally, yes, we sit around the bar and tell war stories after we come back
from a pass-in-review for one of our members who died, someone who dodged
bullets through the forests of Vietnam or spent months on a ship in the middle
of the ocean, someone who served years in the desert taking hits from IEDs and
watching fellow soldiers fall -- a fellow veteran who put his or her life on
the line to give you the freedom to stand there and ask, 'do you guys do
anything else besides sit around the bar and tell war stores?' "
To avoid that kind
of perception, "we need good public relations," Van Patten said,
encouraging every post to have a PR person reporting to the news media
"what we are doing and why we are here."
Van Patten was joined by:
-- Department Auxiliary President Sally Johnsten, who encouraged dinner guests to "remember why you joined," "renew you commitment," and "reach out" to others.
-- Sons of the American Legion (SAL) Detachment Commander John Knapp, who said he had a three-fold focus to recruitt members, encourage donations to the National Emergency Fund that helps disaster-struck Legion familes, and raise money for the Child Welfare Foundation, which provides grants to organizations that help children.
Knapp hopes to
raise $7,000 for those projects. His spouse, he said, is offering an incentive
to reach that goal. "My wife will dye her hair blue and gold, and shave it
into a Mohawk."
All three Legion
Family leaders put an emphasis on membership. Imagine the impact on the Legion
and its programs, Johnsten said, "if each of us would go and recruit just
one new member." Always carry a membership application with you, they
urged -- especially the simple three-way form developed by New York Department
to sign up members for the Legion, Auxiliary and Sons.
Oneida County Commander Dave Riley and Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney welcomed the New York Legion Family leaders to the county. Riley served as master of ceremonies at the dinner, and Tenney, an Auxiliary member and mother of a Naval Academy cadet, praised the Legion for being "a great extended family for our veterans and families."
