Leading candidate for national commander: 'It is family first'

As Denise Rohan stood behind the podium and looked out at the audience in front of her, she declared the theme for her year if elected as American Legion national commander – “Family First.”

“I believe that having a wholesome and cooperative relationship at every level within The American Legion, the American Legion Auxiliary, the Sons of The American Legion and the Legion Riders is vital to our success. Working together, we are making extraordinary things happen across this nation. It is family first,” said Rohan of Wisconsin, the leading candidate for 2017-2018, to attendees of the National Membership Workshop on July 29.

Rohan is a 33-year Paid Up for Life Legion member who chose her theme upon the idea that in order for the organization to sustain membership growth, it comes down to putting family first. “We have our American Legion families, our military families, our veterans' families, and in reality when you look at our four pillars it’s The American Legion Family who is taking care of our nation’s family,” she said.

Rohan added that membership growth within the organization also comes down to adhering to four principles identified in the five-year strategic membership plan. They are that the Legion’s foundation will always be for God and country, and organization will:

1. Provide services to all veterans that are eligible to be members and to those that are not eligible to be members;

2. Have a presence in all communities across this nation and posts will serve as pillars in their communities;

3. Strive for central leadership and mentorship and will culture an outreach program for everyone that is still serving; and

4. Foster a family and welcoming relationship at every level.

“We need to make sure that our members feel welcomed and they feel needed,” she said. “As leaders in your department, you are responsible for helping our members fit in and feel like they are part of a family. You have the responsibility of taking care of this family.”

Rohan also laid out her action items and challenges for the coming year if elected as national commander. They are:

• Increase retention rate by 5 percent nationwide; the Legion currently stands at an 86 percent retention rate.

• Continue 100 percent honor ribbon and see 1,500 or more of the ribbons awarded. Last year, 370 posts received a total of 841 honor ribbons for achieving 100 percent Legion family (defined as a post and any combination of an Auxiliary unit, Sons squadron or Legion Riders chapter) membership.

• Contact members who traditionally pay after Dec. 31 and encourage them to renew by Veterans Day. Rohan said there are more than 239,000 members who traditionally pay their membership dues after the first of the year. Early renewal will save time and money on renewal notices, and the early dues will support programs for youth, veterans and their families.

• Invite the community to Veterans Day activities and use the hashtags #SaluteService and #VeteransDay on all social media channels. “We want The American Legion to trend on social media as we show what we do best and that’s taking care of each other, feeding our communities and their veterans and their families,” Rohan said.

• Invite veterans in the department holding post into a post home for a meal or social event, and invite them to transfer into a local post.

• Work toward 100 percent submission of Consolidated Post Reports. There were 13 departments that achieved 95 percent or higher reporting and they are Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin.

• Achieve a 5 percent increase in every department for the Post Excellence Award. Last year, 90 posts from 16 departments applied for and received the Post Excellence Award. The award honors posts that show excellence in membership (have to have one member more than previous year), youth activities, community service, and support for veterans and troops.

• Report how your post, district or department is reconnecting with deploying or returning military personnel. The form is now added to the National Membership Awards Points Manual.

• Get a 10 percent increase in the American Legion Extension Institute, the official training program for officers, members, Legion College applicants and those who simply want to expand their knowledge of the nation’s largest veterans service organization .

• Welcome everybody and recruit for the entire American Legion family.

“Together, we can all stand proud knowing that we are the ones who veterans and their families, who are keeping this country strong, (come to for support) and that we are continuing to lay the foundation for all of our future leaders,” Rohan said. “We do it because someone did it for us. And we know that even though we have taken off our uniforms, our service and our dedication to this nation will never, ever end.”