Your donations at work

When I stood on the national convention stage last year in Charlotte, N.C, to deliver my acceptance speech as your new national commander, I set a goal for the entire Legion Family – to raise a combined $4 million for the various Legion charitable programs. I knew it could be done, and your generosity this past membership year has proven it.

More than $5.5 million has been raised to date, and donations will continue to pour in leading up to, and during, this year’s national convention in Baltimore. The efforts of the Legion Family to surpass my initial goal of $4 million is outstanding. Thank you!

Your donations over the past year have helped us meet the needs of our veterans and their families in many ways. For example, since January your donations have helped us to:

• Provide an Afghanistan veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress with a service dog.
• Deliver food, clothing, blankets, games, rehab equipment and other necessities to several VA medical centers. Visit www.legion.org/ocw to see all the VA facilities that have been grateful for your efforts.
• Provide $425,000 in Temporary Financial Assistance, helping 340 veteran families and 800 children with food, shelter, utilities and clothing expenses.
• Grant 32 college scholarships of $1,612 apiece to children who had a parent die while on active-duty military service on or after 9/11.

These are just a few of the many ways your generous donations have enabled our veterans and their families live a happier, healthier daily life. To learn more about your donations at work, read the Legion's 2015 Annual Report online at www.legion.org/annualreport.

As my time as your national commander is drawing to a close, I know the Legion Family will continue supporting those who allow us to have the freedoms that we enjoy every day because it is our duty as veterans, and sons and daughters of veterans, to uphold The American Legion’s mission of devotion to servicemembers and veterans.