You may soon, if not already, be caught in our attempt to solidify memberships in our Arizona post homes.
I am using this opportunity to borrow from a response to another member’s question. I’m placing it here as well in case it can help answer at least one general question. I’ve removed identity references. Now…
“I don’t want to speculate on all the years past so please allow me to explain. There’s some terms being muddled as we have emphasized that local posts get their volunteer members to help reach out.
Contacting you was basically to help accomplish what should have happened all those years ago for many members.
When you joined in Arizona, you were assigned to Arizona Post 100. A member is a member. Being a “member at large” is a phrase suited to a local post where one is not an officer.
Post 100 is not a post except that our system design is set to place your status “somewhere” while you find your local post “home.”
Lately, and another reason we are contacting everyone, we have found that members who haven’t found a post home by their 4th year, tend to stop belonging.
The list that the posts are using to contact members isn’t making a distinction as to how long a member is in post 100. Another reason for the contact is a basic “buddy check” for anyone on that list.
Someone contacting you should mainly be doing this, hoping also that you’ll find a fit for the home that they belong to as well; especially for those who have recently joined.
Such a new member has not likely been through the verification of their discharge yet.
To my point, the volunteer calling simply knows that they need to have a verification as part of regular transfers into a local post.
Post 100 isn’t going away. It’s only an administrative assignment that needs to remain for our system. We are just trying to reduce the occurrence of veterans joining, then falling away.
This is a super simplified explanation. We want you to hold tight the membership that you have chosen to be part of in Arizona.
I am part of a team that is trying to improve the training of those who are calling members in Post 100.
The new process mandates that post 100 members be engaged; sooner rather than later. Inspiring, not forcing you, to pick a local post is the goal.
Hopefully someday, AZ post 100 members will mostly be, recently joined as we have grown better at welcoming you soon after you joined.
We will always need to verify your service was honorable. So many join online and via mail for us to verify at our office, so we ask the Posts to do so when a veteran joins, as soon as they walk in.
Thank you, for your former and continuing service. Maybe we will meet in person at a local post soon.
Mine is Post 41 in downtown Phoenix but I visit others when I can, especially at meetings, so I can keep abreast of the real work of The American Legion.”
Blessings Everyone!
Angel
