A Community of Volunteers Serving Veterans, Military, and their Families

DEPARTMENT OF UTAH NEWSLETTER

JANUARY 2020

SAVE THE DATE: NATIONAL PRESIDENT NICOLE CLAPP WILL BE MAKING HER VISIT TO UTAH FEBRUARY 25 – 27, 2020. WE WILL LET YOU KNOW WHAT ACTIVITIES SHE WILL BE PARTICIPATING IN. ONE OF THEM WILL BE THE VA CREATIVE ARTS FESTIVAL – FLYER ATTACHED. STACEY’S STUFF:

Hello Auxiliary Members!

Hope the New Year is treating everyone well. I am excited to see what 2020 will bring. February 25th

through February 27th the Nation President, Nicole Clapp, will be here in Utah for the Creative Arts

Festival. I hope that you will come out and meet President Nicole Clapp. She is a truly inspiring

person. My President Project is Continue Mission. They help veterans continue the mission against

PTSD through physical activities and friendships. Thanks to all who sent in mid year reports. We

want to know all you have been doing, and we all know it is a lot. We have some of the most

amazing Units here in Utah and we love to brag about every one of you. You all make this

organization so special. I want us all to remember for the new year to think outside the box. Thinking

outside of the box is bringing a fun way of doing our programs. If you have any questions for me or

anything that I can help with please let me know 435-630-4692 or my email

Stay amazing!

Stacey Campbell, Department President 2019-2020

Stacey.campbell92@gmail.com

435-630-4692

FIRST VICE PRESIDENT - MEMBERSHIP: Membership Corner

Utah is currently at about 66% of our National membership goal. Please keep those membership

renewals and new members coming in. Second notices will be mailed from National on January

15th. Remember that retention of members is just as important as signing up new members. Let’s

make this 100th anniversary year a great one!

Silvana Watanabe

801-718-6688

Silvana.watanabe@gmail.com

SECOND VICE PRESIDENT - LEADERSHIP: Here is information about upcoming National trainings and those available on line.

Mission Training 101: Delivery helps American Legion Auxiliary members better understand our mission of serving veterans, the military, and their families. These meetings will be held in conjunction with the national Junior meetings.

Who should attend?

Any enthused, new, or newly active member who wants a deeper understanding of how to use tools the Auxiliary provides in mission delivery.

When & Where?

Las Vegas, Nev. – Jan. 25, 2020 (the last day to register is Jan. 15!)

Mission Training 201: Development: This training helps members overcome common hurdles in mission delivery.

Who should attend?

Volunteers with a desire to make a big difference in how we serve our mission, who have a passion to see our organization greatly improve, and those who are seeking to be part of a team to attract, engage, recruit, and retain others.

When & Where?

Hartford, Conn. – March 14, 2020 Albuquerque, N.M. – March 21, 2020 Nashville, Tenn. – March 28, 2020

The ALA Academy is a training program designed to give all members, at all levels, the tools they need to grow. There are currently eight valuable courses available:

How to Deal with Conflict The ALA Fundraising Course ALA Juniors E-Learning Course ALA Branding and Why it Matters to Me Establishing an ALA Culture of Goodwill ALA Leadership: Living our Motto of Service Not Self ALA Communication Methods ALA 101

Courses are useful for anyone in the ALA, from juniors and new volunteers to experienced leaders. Encourage other members of your unit to take courses too!

Melissa Sullivan Msullivan415@gmail.com 801-403-5201 CHAPLAIN: Attached below is a deceased member form. Please send me information about your members who are ill or who have passed away so we can send out cards to them or their families. Please note this is a new e-mail address for me. Linda Schwartz Lmschwartz51@outlook.com 801-465-3938

HISTORIAN: 100 years, 100 photos

For my history project I wanted to do a power point presentation for the history of the American

Legion Auxiliary (ALA). I want to show people the reason why all of us stay in the Auxiliary. Here are

some guideline on what I want the photos to show or be. ★ Why do you stay in the Auxiliary? ○

Family ○ Veterans ○ Social Aspect ○ Husband/Wives being part of the Legion ○

Grandfather/Grandmothers in the service ○ Kids or grandkids that are serving now ○ Other family

members that have been part of the Auxiliary ○ Anything that inspires you to continue to stay ○

Histories of the Units ○ Your favorite programs/projects. The only way I can make this project is with

all of you. Taking pictures is my passion, and I would love to come take photos if you want me to.

Call, text, or email me. Thanks

Cassandra Hawkinson

71 S 100 E

Helper, UT 84526

435-299-5413

Cass.nicole.hawkinson15@gmail.com

SECRETARY-TREASURER NOTES: GENERAL AND RESTRICTED ASSESSMENTS ARE PAST DUE. Units who have not paid their assessments were mailed letters last week. Units will not receive a quota of girls for ALA Utah Girls State. Donation opportunities are listed on the reverse of the first page of the transmittal form. These assessments ensure Units are bonded, that there are funds for any Utah member wishing to become a candidate for National office, to defray costs of Department Convention, and to provide restricted monies for such activities as Gift Shop. PLEASE make sure that your Unit Officers have paid their current ALA dues. A member cannot hold an office if they are not current with their dues. New membership applications are available with the new eligibility dates and adding the words “male spouse”” and “female spouse”. I have ordered new ones but you can still use your older forms. Please don’t hold membership. Remember, they may have paid their dues to the unit, but the final renewal is not effective until it has been processed at department. See the note under membership above about second renewal notices. Check us out at the website or on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/deptutah/ American Legion Auxiliary Department of Utah

www.aladeptutah.org/2701.html

Normally I am in the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Feel free to e-mail at alautah@yahoo.com or call and please leave a message if I don’t answer – 801-539-1015. There are many pamphlets and resources available to you as Units and members to use for the Auxiliary programs. Let me know what you need and it may be something we already have. Cary Fisher Department Executive Director alautah@yahoo.com 801-539-1015 AUXILIARY EMERGENCY FUND: Since this is the season for giving and there have been so many disasters, now is the time to dig deep into your pockets and donate your spare change to the AEF to give to those who will be going without this year. Any and all would be greatly appreciated. The Auxiliary Emergency Fund is separate from the Legion Emergency Fund. The AEF goes to Auxiliary members who are in need. Thank you for your support. Donna Sibert Department Chairman Auxiliary Emergency Fund

AMERICANISM:

It is that time of year to put the ALA’s Americanism Essay Contest into high gear for students in grades 3-12 and please include students with special needs in your schools. Have you made contact at your schools? Have you made yourself accessible to answer all questions about the contest? It is so important that when making contact with your school staff, they know you are only a phone call away for questions and help on any Americanism-related issue. By promoting patriotism and responsible citizenship you help meet our Strategic Planning (Goal 5) – Branding - “With the American Legion, Raise Awareness to Build Brand Loyalty” by giving US citizens an opportunity to participate in the ALA mission by showing our patriotism in a positive visible way.

Utah’s deadline for Unit first place essays is Monday, MARCH 16th, 2020. Please note, I am not able to take essays after the deadline. I do accept essays anytime between now and the deadline. Our theme this year is: “How can address the health and well-being of our veterans, military and their families.” Our theme addresses and important need, not just locally but nationally. I have fielded some concerns with this year’s topic, especially for the younger participants and received the following explanation from Denise Conrad, our Americanism National Chair:

“I am researching at National for a set of possible guidelines. However I will let you know that in the event they choose a topic other than that of the National President then they become ineligible for a Divisional National award. They may choose another topic and be awarded winners by the Unit, District or Department but will not be considered for the Divisional National Award. Children have incredible imaginations if they are prompted to use them. In this case, for younger essay writers asking them what they think would help or make life easier with an act of kindness for a veteran or military family in their neighborhood might spur their writing. Is there a lonely veteran who doesn't get any visitors, do they need help walking their dog or someone to walk with them while they get a little exercise? How about raking leaves, carrying groceries, entertaining little ones while mom does house work, making sure the lonely veterans have a special meal on the Holidays and there are so many more ideas. They need to state what the act of kindness was and how they completed the

project and the outcome if any (example: the Thankfulness of the recipient). I hope this will help. If there are other guidelines I will pass them on as I receive them.”

We thank Denise for her knowledge and her reply. I am excited to see what our contestants come up with. If you have any questions, concerns or comments, please contact me. Mail your first place essays in each category to: Donna Birk, 296 South Main Street, Manti, UT 84642. Be sure to include a complete cover sheet for each essay and verify the word count is within the requirement for each category.

The cover sheet is attached below.

Donna Birk Americanism Chairman

donna.birk@snow.edu

CHILDREN AND YOUTH:

This is just January, but here is some information for you to help planning. April is Children & Youth

Month. It is also known as Month of the Military Child (#MOMC). With its inception by the US

Department of Defense in the mid-1980s, military support organizations and agencies have used the

month to recognize military kids for their sacrifice and bravery on the home front. The American

Legion Family is no exception and now is a great time to start planning.

As a part of the entire month of April’s celebration of the Month of the Military Child, there is also a

day put aside to add an extra emphasis - Purple Up! For Military Kids is a day for communities to

wear purple to show support and thank military children for their strength and sacrifices. April 3rd is the

date the ALA is recognizing for Purple Up! this year, but that surely doesn’t mean that any day during

the month or throughout the year isn’t a wonderful time to recognize our children. Wearing purple is a

visible way to show support, but how many other ways can we recognize the Military Children?

1. Ask other organizations or community business to wear purple.

2. Asking teachers to have some kind of a military theme in the classroom in recognition of the

military children.

3. Schools can help by also wearing purple possibly advertising in their school paper or assembly

or sports.

4. Hospital and clinic employees, including doctors and nurses, can be contacted to support

Purple Up!

5. Military institutions and other government entities might have the latitude to celebrate, but you

need to make them aware of Purple Up! Make sure to include FRGs.

6. Of course, don’t forget the entire Legion family!

7. And finally, don’t forget to promote before, during and after on websites and social media.

Share your activities and photos using the hashtag #PurpleUp #MOMC

These are just some of the ideas; there are many more that each of us can do for our military

children.

“Why purple?” you might ask. It symbolizes all branches of the military, as it is the combination of

Army green, Coast Guard blue, Air Force blue, Marine red and Navy blue. This is our chance to raise

awareness and build support to help our military children who meet the unique challenges they face

every day.

There are many websites that provide ideas on the Month of the Military Child and Purple Up!,

including https://militarybenefits.info/month-of-the-military-child/.

Did you know that the dandelion is the flower of the Military child?

The Military Child is Like A Dandelion

It puts down roots almost anywhere.

It’s almost impossible to destroy.

It’s an unpretentious plant, yet good looking

It’s a survivor in a broad range of climates.

Military children bloom everywhere the wind carries them.

They are hardy and upright.

Their roots are strong, cultivated deeply in the culture of the military, planted swiftly and surely.

They’re ready to fly in the breezes to take them into new adventures, new lands and new friends.

*Author Unknown

Please continue to look for those children who deserve a Good Deed Award or a Youth Hero award.

You hear them on the news or see them in the newspaper. It takes some research to find out who

they are and how to contact them, but we need to recognize the good things that our youths do.

Cary Fisher

Children and Youth Chairman

Fisherc98@yahoo.com

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS:

Due to all the recent changes, all Units need to update their Constitution and ByLaws/standing rules,

or write them if your Unit is new and doesn’t have them. Part of it is easy – it is the National

American Legion Auxiliary constitution. The by-laws/standing rules portion needs to reflect your Unit

specific information such as meeting place and time, dues amounts for senior and junior members,

how long your officer’s terms are, etc. The office has copies of many Unit constitution and bylaws

(some are really old) if you need a starting point. Please also send a copy to the office when you

update yours. Remember, you need to publish the changes to your members – then invite them to a

meeting and/or send out the changes to them for a vote. If you need help, contact me or the office.

Nancy Aerts, Constitution and ByLaws Chairman

tigerlillynan@msn.com

801-809-6158

EDUCATION:

National Awards: Junior Member Loyalty Scholarship - $2,500 Spirit of Youth Scholarship - $5,000 Children of Warriors National President Scholarship - $5,000 Non-Traditional Scholarship - $2,000 Now is the time to get the scholarships out there.

There are 4 different scholarships - Children of Warriors National President

Non- Traditional Student - Spirit of Youth - Junior Auxiliary Loyalty

Scholarship applications are available for download on the national website

www.ALAforVeterans.org/scholarships

Deadline March 1, 2020 for scholarship applications to go to the Unit. All scholarships need to be

sponsored by an ALA Unit. Remember that the Department gives funds for these scholarships also.

If you have any questions fell free to email me or call Cary at the office.

Jeannie Twitchell

Education Chairman

jeantwitchell57@gmail.com

GIFT SHOP:

Gift Shop was a huge success again this year thanks to the Legion family donations and their time. The number of the residents in the Veterans Homes in Ivins and Salt Lake (Christofferson) participating this year increased from 2018. A total of 165 residents from the two facilities selected over 400 gifts. At each Veterans home volunteers spent two days with the residents in helping them select Christmas gifts for themselves and their family. Items were then purchased and volunteers returned to the facility to wrap and deliver them to the resident’s rooms so that they could be given to family members. Volunteers from the Legion family and the community spent 228 hours at the Ivins facility and 98 hours at the Salt Lake (Christofferson) facility to make Gift Shop successful. Ivins had huge participation from the community residents who volunteered 106 hours in helping.

Gift Shop at the VA Medical Center this year had 165 veterans who selected gifts for 701 people including themselves, spouses and immediate family members under the age of 18. The number of veterans participating was significantly less than last year. In addition, this year items from Gift Shop were given to 57 Veterans in assisted living facilities. The Legion family volunteered 420 hours with 330 of those hours by the Auxiliary members including Junior members during the 3 day event. This year again we received donations from local businesses. Two companies actually had staff join us this year volunteering their time to see how the program worked.

Total hours volunteered for making, collecting and shopping for items in addition to volunteering at all the facilities during the Gift Shops was 2417. Hats off to Myton Unit members who volunteered over eight hundred hours in making items for Gift Shop as well as donating $3600.00 in items. Christmas

trees were also decorated again by Auxiliary volunteers at the VA Medical Center giving members including Juniors the opportunity to serve the veterans.

Judy Daybell

VA&R Chairman

ALA UTAH GIRLS STATE:

The past several months the Directors and Education Staff reviewed and updated all the ALA Utah

Girls State policies which had not been reviewed or updated in several years. They were presented

before the ALA Utah Girls State Board and ALA Utah Executive Committee in December. Although

most changes were minor, several major changes addressed current social and legal concerns.

For the first time, we added a sexual harassment policy for all staff and participants. Michelle

McCullough, Alicia Summers and I were able to attend the fall ALA Girls State Training in Indianapolis

and recognized the absolute necessity of this policy. We were grateful that several other states had

already implemented this into their programs and we used a policy document suggested by several

state program personnel.

Another significant change enacted to our program was to update our dress policy. Our ALA Girls

State Board reached out to past staff members and citizens about the current dress policy of

mandating that both staff and citizens wear a dress or skirt/professional shirt every day while at the

ALA Utah Girls State session. In recent years, we have had notable public backlash with this policy

that has brought negative publicity to the ALA and ALA Utah Girls State. It has also resulted in

harassment of ALA Utah Girls State Directors. We agreed that it was time for a change that both

protected the ALA and aligned with current female professional dress attire. Thank you for the

support surrounding this change.

We know there will be challenges implementing it at this upcoming session but recognize that there

are challenges with the dress policy every year. We are confident we are united in how to address

any issues that arise. Please familiarize yourself with the new policy so that you can reference it

during interviews and orientations. Many girls applying will be doing so at the recommendation of

a former ALA Girls State citizen who may inform them they need to wear a dress/skirt every day.

Clarify that we now allow dress pants, dress capris, and pantsuits. Leggings and colored jeans of any

kind are still not allowed. A copy of the Dress Policy will be included in this newsletter.

A male staff member policy was also written and approved to accommodate the change in

qualifications for ALA membership.

The ALA Utah Girls State Policies will be available shortly on the ALA Utah website.

A new change coming to our 2020 session is the addition of elected School Board members. One of

our Education Assistants, Cindee Clawson, has served as the Jordan School District Secretary for

several years. She is using her extensive knowledge and resources to help implement these offices

at our 2020 session. For many of our citizens, issues that arise before their local school boards are

some of their greatest civic concerns. This addition will greatly enhance our citizens’ experience

during the week.

This month ALA Units will receive their ALA Utah Girls State Information and Registration packets.

Interviews to select citizens should be held in February and March. Once citizens are selected, send

the information to the ALA Utah Girls State secretary as outlined so that they will receive an invitation

to register on our website. Printed applications and funds must be received in our Department

office by March 31st. This deadline cannot be emphasized enough. When applications and fees are

turned in late it creates a major problem in assigning girls to cities, dorm rooms, and getting them to

attend an orientation. The best way ALA Unit and District Chairs can help the program to run

smoothly is to honor this deadline. If you have any questions or need help with interviews, please ask.

We have staff members statewide who can help you out.

Another important deadline approaching is in mid-March when we publish our Orientation schedule to

the ALA Utah website and the Weber State University website. Please email Cary Fisher the date,

time, and location of your Unit or District Orientation as soon as it has been decided.

At the ALA Executive Committee meeting in December, we did vote and approve an increase in our

program fee beginning in 2021. The cost will increase to $450 and will be set for a minimum of two

years until we renegotiate the contract with our host university.

Overall, we are pleased with the progress we are making for our 2020 session. We continue to

discuss new ideas and evaluate our program’s strengths and weaknesses. It is a constant learning

process. We are indebted to the ALA for allowing us to play such a small part in facilitating the ALA

Utah Girls State Program

Please give me a call or send me a text or email if you have any concerns, questions, or suggestions.

Sincerely,

Jenn Hinton

2020-2021 ALA Utah Girls State Director

byujenn96@gmail.com

435-830-3345

AMERICAN LEGION AUXILIARY UTAH GIRLS STATE (ALAUTGS)

Dress Code for all Meetings and Sessions

PROFESSIONAL AND RESPECTFUL ATTIRE IS REQUIRED AT ALA UTAH GIRLS STATE. ALA Utah Girls State is a highly selective program. Each day is scheduled with specific meetings and guests to the program including state, county, and local government officials, who frequently interact with citizens and staff. Consistent with those high expectations and our public visibility, please dress accordingly. Dress to be successful!!

Appropriate attire:

Dresses, skirts, dress pantsuits, dress slacks, or dress capris with professional tops are the expectation unless otherwise indicated in the schedule.

Dress/skirt length must not be shorter than 4 inches above the knee.

Tops must be tasteful and cover one’s torso, revealing neither stomachs nor breasts. Sleeves must be as wide as one’s hand.

Comfortable shoes are strongly encouraged. Sandals and tennis shoes are acceptable footwear due to the amount of walking that takes place during the week. Flip flops can only be worn in the dorms and at Wednesday and Thursday night activities.

Remember: Pictures will be taken and posted on social media and the ALA UTGS website for all to see.

Leggings may be worn under skirts or dresses. Inappropriate attire:

Clothing that is backless, see-through, tight-fitting, has spaghetti straps, is strapless, off the shoulder, extremely short or low-cut.

No shorts, rompers, or shortalls except in the dorms in the evening.

No denim blue jeans, colored denim jeans, jeggings, or yoga pants except in the dorms in the evening.

Visible undergarments including bralettes.

Leggings worn as slacks. Exceptions:

BBQ/Flag Retirement (Wednesday night) and Song Fest (Thursday night) Attire: Pants, jeans, and capris which measure 2 inches below the knee are allowed. No shorts.

Banquet (Friday night) Attire: Tasteful semi-formal attire or best dress. You are allowed dresses with spaghetti straps or strapless tops.

Graduation (Saturday afternoon) Attire: Formal, including tasteful prom dresses, or semi-formal attire is recommended. You are allowed dresses with spaghetti straps or strapless tops.

***On Friday, we encourage everyone to wear something red to Remember Everyone Deployed

(RED)*** IN THE EVENT THAT AN ALA UTAH GIRLS STATE CITIZEN, COUNSELOR, OR STAFF MEMBER IS INAPPROPRIATELY DRESSED, AS DETERMINED BY A CITY COUNSELOR OR THE DIRECTOR/EDUCATION STAFF, THE YOUNG LADY WILL BE ASKED TO CHANGE CLOTHES. THE CHANGE IN ATTIRE WILL OCCUR BEFORE SHE IS ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DAY’S ACTIVITIES. A rule of thumb—if you would not wear it to lobby at the Utah State Capitol or to a college interview, you probably should not wear it at ALA Utah Girls State. If you have questions or wonder if something is appropriate, please email the Director at alautgirlsstate@gmail.com. Jenn Hinton - Director Michelle McCullough - 1st Assoc Director Alicia Summers - 2nd Assoc Director Jenn Hinton 2020 ALA Utah Girls State Director

byujenn96@gmail.com

435-830-3345

JUNIOR ACTIVITIES:

As we start the New Year, please take a moment to look around in your communities and schools for

potential Junior members. The ALA offers so many opportunities for youth from scholarships, to

community service to awards and the patch program. Girls who are in high school are looking for

chances to serve their community as this service weights heavy on college entrances and

scholarships. More and more colleges are asking for service hours outside of school required service

and so this is a great way for us to promote the ALA Juniors program. Reach out to family, friends

and co-workers to find new junior members.

Jacci Christensen

Junior Activities Chairman

Jacci.yei@gmail.com

NATIONAL SECURITY:

Auxiliary members step up and reach out to help military families during deployments in very practical ways, such as assisting with their needs for child care and lawn work or by providing a listening ear to a spouse. Members do helpful things such as collecting coupons and sending them to overseas commissaries, hosting send-off and welcome-home events for our troops, providing them with pocket flags, and showing the gratitude of our nation by providing military families with Blue Star and Gold Star Banners. Auxiliary units are encouraged to partner with other organizations that serve the military, such as local USO affiliates and ROTC/JROTC units. Auxiliary members also assist our communities in times of natural and manmade disasters through Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) courses. These trainings prepare members to act as an emergency response resource in times of natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, and blizzards, as well as during manmade disasters. The Auxiliary’s National Security Program works collaboratively with the FEMA Individual and Community Preparedness Division, in keeping with a standing agreement. We host programs recommended by the Department of Homeland Security that assist members and communities in preparing for and/or responding to natural or manmade disasters. Honoring the Troops Display Blue Star Banners in the window to show that someone in the home is serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. Purchase banners for the families of deployed service-members as a gesture of support. Offer help to families displaying banners Honor those still missing with a POW/MIA Remembrance Service. Welcome-Home Events Our members do helpful things such as collecting coupons and sending them to overseas commissaries, hosting warm send-off and welcome-home events for our troops, providing servicemembers with pocket flags, and showing the gratitude of our nation by providing military families with Blue Star and Gold Star Banners. Download How to Plan a Send-Off or Welcome-Home Event. POW/MIA Remembrance Services The American Legion Family is dedicated to ensuring that America’s POW/MIAs be honored and recognized, not just memorialized. Legion efforts focus on the need to account as fully as possible for those still missing, alive or dead. An important way all Legion Family members create awareness and remembrance for this initiative is through conducting POW/MIA remembrance services at unit meetings and public events. Strong, united support by all Legion Family members is crucial to bringing all of our heroes home. Download How to Plan a POW/MIA Remembrance Service.

Best Regards,

Ellen Nathan

National Security Chairman Department of Utah

435-652-8333 or 435-862-6087

arneen@infowest.com

PAST PRESIDENTS PARLEY:

Let’s brag on our members, it’s time to send in unit members of the year nominations. Open to senior members who are not in an elected or appointed leadership role higher than unit president. Units must submit a narrative of 1,000 word or less describing the nominee's accomplishments and activities together with the nominee's name and address and phone number, make sure to put your unit name and number. We also need nominations for Service Members of the year. If you know an active duty service member who will write an essay for the application, please be sure to submit them. The deadline is May 1, 2020 You can send them to me Past President Parley Chairman Jeannie Twitchell 568 Janet St. Helper, Utah jeantwitchell57@gmail.com

POPPIES:

We have ordered 20,000 poppies this year and as every year we are asking for people to help make them. I am be able to provide training on “How to make a Poppy” anywhere I am asked to travel to. The poppy money goes right back into our communities and helps our Veterans and their families. This is also the time of year to prepare to visit your schools and get them involved in the Poppy Poster Contests. Financial Benefit The financial benefit realized by our nation’s veterans as a result of poppy distribution is huge; nearly 3.5 million American Legion Auxiliary poppies were distributed by units last year, raising $2.1 million. Children are involved in spreading the poppy message, too. Poppy Poster Contests are held in local schools for students in grades 2 to 12. The Miss Poppy Contest is a fun event for Junior Auxiliary members who develop local programs to promote the Auxiliary memorial poppy.

So if you can be a Poppy Maker this year and you do it with the help of a veteran you can earn

$50 for every 1,000 poppies that you make. It could be a good way to earn money for your

Unit and Post together.

Please email Cary at the office alautah@yahoo.com and let her know how many kits you want sent to

your Unit.

Best Regards,

Ellen Nathan

American Legion Auxiliary - Utah Poppy Chairwoman

435-652-8333

PUBLIC RELATIONS:

The focus of my Public Relations article is ALA Girls State membership opportunities;

How many girls attend Utah's American Legion Auxiliary Girls State?

How many schools do you give applications to?

How many educators do we communicate with?

Your unit membership could increase drastically if communication skills and incentives were used

when visiting these schools.

What better program to reach hundreds of youth to become members and future leaders of our

organization, use your talents to share the passion with these girls. As the Public Relations

Chairperson, I'm asking all units to take photos of your girls, interview them when they come

home from ALA Utah Girls State while it is fresh and write a story about their experiences. Share with

your local newspaper, or other avenues of communication - don't forget the internal school media.

And please share with me so I can share in my year-end report.

Public Relations promotes the [3] W's;

Who we are, what we do, and why we matter to all American Legion Auxiliary members, The

American Legion Family, and to the general public. We need to really emphasize on these [3] W's;

"Who we are"

'What we do"

"Why we matter"

Let's emphasize on them to our youth so that our organization remains foremost in their minds and to

remind them our veterans need their assistance.

As we celebrate our 100th anniversary this year, we need to remember this in all our programs.

Promote by word of mouth, phone calls, newsletters, Unit bulletins, local newspapers, just to name a

few. It is so important that we reach out to our youth and get them serving as members of the ALA.

Also share your Auxiliary magazine with your local coffee shops, hospital, doctors’ offices, hair

dressers, or where ever you think they will reach new members, be sure to put your Unit's info on

them so they can contact you.

Lenda Leek

Public Relations Chairman

lenda.leek54@gmail.com

435-820-0688

VETERANS AFFAIRS AND REHABILITATION: Did you know that the Creative Arts Festival (CAF) is a program co-sponsored by the American

Legion Auxiliary?

Do you know what the Creative Arts Festival program is? It is a program where Veterans can share

their talents in Visual Arts, Performing Arts and Creative Writing.

Are you a Veteran or know of a veteran who is interested in participating? The local event will be held

Feb. 26th -28th at the VAMC campus in Salt Lake. Check out the flyer attached for more information.

This year National President Nicole Clapp will be attending the activities on Wednesday. Come join

us and see the talents that our local veterans have.

Judy Daybell

VA&R Chairman

Daybell_family@netzero.net

The Department of Utah submitted some recipes from an old cookbook made to support Betty Calder’s National Presidency. You can obtain a copy by ordering it at the link below. This project was done by Unit 1879 in Colorado.

We appreciate your support of this project, which will benefit mental wellness programs for veterans, including the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival. Please forward this email to cooks and veteran supporters you know. Thank you!

http://store.alaservecookbook.com

Email us with questions:

orders@alaservecookbook.com

In the Auxiliary's spirit of Service, Not Self,

Ann Diaz, Secretary The American Legion Auxiliary Unit 1879 at CSU

Report of Deceased Member

UNIT CHAPLAIN: Please make copies of this form for your use. Upon the death of a member,

complete this report. Send one copy to the

Department Chaplain listed below and keep a copy for your files. The Unit Membership Chairman or

Unit Secretary must complete a “Member Data Form” and send to the Department. Please add the

address of Next of Kin so our condolences can be sent. Thank you

Unit Name/Number: _______________________________ District: _____

Name of Deceased Member: ____________________________________

Date of Death: ____________________ (Please attach copy of obituary)

Next of Kin/Relationship: _______________________________________

Address: ____________________________________________________

Was she a Charter Member: ____ Sr. Member: _____ Jr.Member: ______ Past President: _____

Gold Star Mother: _____

Significant lnformation:

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

American Legion Auxiliary Department of Utah Chaplain

Linda Schwartz

621 S 1150 E

Payson, UT 84651

AMERICANISM ESSAY CONTEST

2020 Cover Sheet

Each year, the American Legion Auxiliary (ALA) sponsors an Americanism Essay Contest for

students in grades 3-12, including students with special needs. Grade levels are divided into six

classes. One award in each of the six classes will be presented in each division. National winners

will receive $50 and a $50 donation in the student’s name will be made to the Children of Warriors

National Presidents’ Scholarship fund. National winners will be posted at www.ALAforVeterans.org

after convention.

UNIT WINNING ESSAYS ARE DUE TO DONNA BIRK BY MARCH 16, 2020

Essay Title: “How can we address the health and well-being of our veterans, military, and

their families”

Essay Classes:

Class Grade Level Word Requirement

I 3 and 4 150-250

II 5 and 6 250-300

III 7 and 8 350-400

IV 9 and 10 450-500

V 11 and 12 450-500

VI Students with special needs. Word count should correspond with student’s

grade level.

Essay Checklist:

Class competing in ______

Sponsoring ALA unit _____________________________

Typed or neatly written essay conforming to the word requirement for class

Completed essay coversheet as first page of essay

Word count of essay ___________

Due date for student to return to ALA unit _______________________________

To Be Completed by the Student/Parent:

Student Name:

E-mail Address:

Phone:

Address (Street, City, State, Zip):

School Name:

School City/State:

Teacher Name and Signature:

Auxiliary Use Only (Must be completed for entry to be considered.):

Sponsoring Unit Name/Number:

Signature of Unit Americanism Chairman: Unit winner due to

Department on: ________________

Department: _____________________

Signature of Department Chairman: _______________________________

Department winner due to National Americanism Division Chairman by

April 15, 2020