We all know the Junior members of any
organization are the future of that organized group, and we should strive to
support them and lead them in the right direction as they will be the
leaders of tomorrow. Congratulations to all County and Unit Junior
activities chairmen who have accepted the responsibility and challenge to
inspire and instill in our Junior members a love and dedication towards our
organization. Our Juniors are our tomorrow and we must be prepared to teach
them how to become active and productive Senior members.
As Junior and Senior Members we must know the order of the business, the
responsibility of the chair, action on Resolutions and Constitutional
changes, procedures of nominations and elections, Flag etiquette and
Officers duties. We must be mentors and teach our Junior members on Proper
Parliamentary Procedures. We must also be an active Auxiliary member who
knows the programs, attends Unit meetings regularly, has initiative and a
good sense of humor, and we must be personable, trustworthy and a good
leader. Remember it is very important to “BE OPEN TO CHANGE.”
We must watch our Junior members in action and be alert to their needs and
frustrations. We must make them feel needed and also involve them in every
aspect of the American Legion Auxiliary. Ask your Junior members about their
interests and think of ways to add them to your programs. Teach them how to
run a meeting, how to set up their Constitution and By-Laws and also how to
set up a budget for the administrative year. We must keep them very involved
and very interested as young people love challenge and excitement. By doing
this we can continue to grow and remain the largest women’s patriotic
organization in the world.
The success of a Unit’s Junior activities program will depend largely upon
the attitude of the chairman. She can create fond memories for our Juniors
and guarantee their future participation in our programs. All of our
programs can be adapted to our Juniors so that they can participate on their
own level. Junior
Patch Program
American Legion Auxiliary
Junior members can be active participants of the organization with the
2009-2010 Patch Program. Regardless of where one lives, and whether she
belongs to an active Junior group, Junior Auxiliary members are able to
serve their communities, veterans and learn about patriotism, health,
fitness and leadership through this program.
Patches will be mailed
directly to Department Junior Activities Chairmen for distribution. The Junior
Activities Patch Program Request Sheet MUST be included
Encourage your
Juniors to continue to strive to complete this
patch program.
AMERICANISM: Americanism tends to
build character and should be an important part in your activities. Be sure
to include citizenship activities and knowledge of Flag etiquette. Instill
in them the importance of their rights as well as their obligations of being
a citizen of this great country. Let the older Juniors teach the younger
Juniors the proper salute to the flag, how to dispose of a flag and how to
show respect to the flag. Present Patriotic programs for nursing homes,
schools and other organizations. March in parades and hand out small flags.
SHOW YOUR PRIDE THAT YOU ARE PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN.
GET OUT THE VOTE
Thanks to the American Legion (National) for this info -
MUST SEE!Kids
Voting USA® (KVUSA) is working to secure the future of democracy by
preparing young people to be educated, engaged voters. It is the combination
of classroom instruction, family dialogue and an authentic voting experience
that makes Kids Voting USA a powerful strategy for achieving long-term
change in voting behavior CHILDREN AND YOUTH:Who can relate to youth better than other youths
can? Have Juniors become involved in Special Olympics, Children’s Hospitals
and other programs. Senior members can make the Juniors aware of the special
needs of children, whether it be child abuse, teenage suicide, missing
children, future concerns. Collect books and toys for needy children. COMMUNITY SERVICE:Being active in the community is a Natural for our
Juniors. Ways of helping are: beautification projects, working with Senior
Citizens, visiting nursing homes, volunteer in youth programs within your
neighborhood. If your American Legion has a Sons of the Legion, have them
both work together on projects. Participating will be rewarding and
enjoyable.
LEADERSHIP TRAINING: Promoting the use of the Leadership Course for
Junior Members will be strongly encouraged once again this year. Leadership
is one of the most misunderstood concepts in our society. There is a leader
secretly hiding in each of us just waiting to come out and shine. Remember
the Juniors of today will be the Leaders of this organization tomorrow.
Teach them well.
MEMBERSHIP:
Junior membership is open to any girl up to the age of 18 who has an
immediate family member in the American Legion or who has a deceased
veteran. Bee spectacular and bring in all of those New Bee Members. Also
don’t forget to fill your membership bee hive and achieve a 100% goal plus.
Have your Juniors become involved in membership by having them ask their
friends from school or their neighborhoods. Have them help with initiation,
installation, memorial services and graduation ceremonies. “Teamwork is
Key to our Success.” Remember our Juniors are our Future Leaders.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Every community has men and women serving in our
armed forces today. It’s very important to support the families that are
left behind, particularly remember the military children. Have your Juniors
adopt a military child in your community. Remember a child helping a child
is very rewarding. POPPIES: Teach our Juniors about the origin of the poppy as our official
flower. Tell them about “The Beautiful Poppy Story” and invite them to
assist in the distribution of the Poppy within your unit. Remember to
have Juniors participate with poppy entries for awards under the poppy
program. Public Relations and Publicity: Publicize...Publicize...Publicize... It
is very important that the Juniors be given recognition for all of their
hard work. Utilize Newspapers, Radio Stations, Local Cable companies, web
pages and American Legion Post and/or Auxiliary Newsletters. Make sure that
the Juniors have their own web page. Utilize Facebook which has a special
section dedicated to the Juniors. Send photographs and stories to the
American Legion Auxiliary National News which has a special section
dedicated towards the Juniors. You could consider a subscription for your
Honorary Junior Unit President as a lovely gift for her.
VA&R & FIELD SERVICE:One of the main programs of the American Legion
Auxiliary is our service to our veterans and this should be stressed.
Encourage our Juniors to become volunteers at the VA Hospitals or any NY
State Veteran’s home. Remember our Veteran’s throughout the year – visit
them, sing for them, bring them a special ray of sunshine that only the
presence of children can provide – PUT A SMILE ON THEIR FACE AND ONE ON
YOUR FACE TOO!!!
We have a Junior Activities handbook that will help with ideas and
suggestions for each of our programs. Other resources are available to help
you with their programs. A list has been included in this bulletin for your
information.
As we work with our Junior members, we must remember to Listen to their
ideas and suggestions. We need to act as role models and work with
enthusiasm for all of our programs. We must remember our President’s theme
this year, “TEAMWORK IS KEY TO OUR SUCCESS!!” We can guide them, encourage
them, but LET THEM DO THE WORK!! RESPECT THEM AND IN RETURN THEY WILL
RESPECT YOU.
Mid Winter Junior
Conference: The
Junior Mid Winter Conference will be held at the Marriot in Albany on
January 22 – 24, 2010. This will “BEE an Extravagant and Very Important
Conference.”” The American Legion Auxiliary will mark their 90th
Anniversary. Be there and try to bring other Junior Members.
Let’s strive to make this the largest Junior turnout.
We will be electing the
Department Honorary 2010 – 2011 Junior President and other Officers.
It is anticipated that the National President may be attending this
conference. The 2010 – 2011 Junior Honorary President will then be
installed in Syracuse with the Department Officers on July 17, 2010.
Let’s strive to continue to support our future for tomorrow and Bee there
for our Juniors of today. A more thorough program follows. It is
sure to “Bee A Spectacular Mid Winter Conference.”
We all know the Junior members of any organization are the future of that
organized group and we should strive to support and lead them in the right
direction as they will be the leaders of tomorrow. On January 22 and January
23, 2010 our Juniors will gather once again at the Albany Marriott, 189 Wolf
Road, Albany, New York where they will have a "Bee Spectacular' Mid Winter
Conference. They will be led by our Honorary Junior Dept. President Tenasha
Lee and her Officers. At this conference the Juniors will elect their 2010 -
2011 Officers for the next administrative year and the Honorary Junior
President will be installed with the Department President at the Syracuse
Convention in July 2010.
The schedule for the Mid
Winter Conference will be:
Friday January 22, 2010:
Pizza And Pool party at 7:00 pm hosted by our "Bee Spectacular"
Honorary Dept. Junior President Tenasha Lee. Any Junior not attending with
a parent must have a written, signed permission slip to go swimming.
Saturday January 23, 2010:
Registration from 7:45 am to 8:15 am outside of the meeting room
Conference will begin at 8:30 am sharp. A regular meeting will be held
by Dept. Honorary Junior President, Tenasha Lee, with Program Presentations
and Guest Speakers.
The Honorary Junior Dept. President Tenasha Lee, requests that everyone
attending the Junior meeting please bring one item to send overseas to our
troops and/ or a letter to send along with the items.
Honorary Junior Dept. President Tenasha Lee, would also like to request
that everyone attending the conference bring a recipe with them that
either starts with the letter "B" or has honey in the recipe. ex: "B"rownies
or any recipe you would put honey in.
To the unit, county, or
District Advisor with the most outstanding report on her Junior Activities
emphasizing the American Legion Auxilary programs. The report is to be in
narrative form, not to exceed 1,000 words. Cover sheet must include name
of Unit, County or District with the name and address of the Junior
Advisor. Photos, news clippings, etc. may be used.
All entries must be sent
to the Department Junior Activities Chairman no later than May 10, 2010.
Junior Activities Chairmen are reminded to check the other many committee
Awards for Junior members. Encourage them to submit an entry!
National-level Objectives
1.
Objective: To have each
Junior member recruit one new junior by the time of National Junior Meeting.
Action
Steps
Spotlight department
Junior recruitment achievements monthly via the Web site and mailings
after report has been sent to National Chairman and verified.
Have each department
submit name of recruiter with date of recruitment and name of new member
to National Chairman by National Junior Meeting.
Reward department with
highest increase of new Juniors recruited with a cash prize by National
Junior Meeting after report has been sent to National Chairman and
verified.
Offer educational
opportunities for eligible Juniors through scholarships and offer
community service credit hours.
2.
Objective:
To encourage community service projects by Junior
Units and/or individual members.
Action
Steps
Encourage Junior units
to plan and execute a community fundraiser and report results to the
National Chairman upon completion of each project.
To spotlight units that
report monthly on completed projects to National Chairman via the
website, Facebook Page and mailings.
To encourage Juniors to
participate in the Junior Patch Program and submit completed forms.
Recognize Junior Units
that complete and report projects to National Chairman by National
Junior Meeting.
3.
Objective:
To learn and practice points from/in programs and activities
related to our mission of serving veterans and their families.
Action Steps
Senior members hold monthly activities targeted toward
one of the programs above during Junior meeting each month.
To share accomplishments of Junior members via Web site
and mailing by reporting to National Chairman.
To encourage Juniors to share with their peers what it
means to be a Junior Auxiliary member.
To reward a Junior member as Junior Member of the Year at
National Convention.
To educate Junior members on being a responsible citizen
by utilizing these programs.
Junior Activities
Chairman are reminded to check the other committees
for the Junior Members Awards.
Encourage them to submit an Entry!
National Awards
Department
Award: A
$500 award will be presented to a Department reporting the greatest gain in
Junior Members. The cash award will be used for future Junior program
initiatives. Entries must be typewritten including the following
information: Name of recruiter, name of new members they recruited, and the
date the new members were recruited. All entries must be sent to the
Department Junior Activities Chairman by May 10, 2010.
Unit
Award:
A citation plaque
presented to the Unit Chairman in each division reporting the Best Junior
Activities program with at least one Action Step from each of the three
objectives as stated in the Plan of Action. Entry must be typewritten in
narrative form not to exceed 1000 words. Do not include pictures,
clippings, scrapbooks, folders, etc. All entries must be submitted to this
chairman by May 10, 2010.
National Plaque Award: This
special plaque will be presented to a unit reporting the Best Overall Junior
Activities program using the following entries: To complete three
Action Steps from each of the three objectives:
Entry
must be typewritten, in narrative form not to exceed 1,000 words. DO NOT
include pictures, clippings, scrapbooks, folders, etc. All entries must be
submitted to the Department Junior Activities Chairman by May 10, 2010.
Americanism – 35%
Memorizing the Preamble
5%
Memorizing the National
Anthem
5%
Knowledge of Flag Code &
History, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance Correctly
15%
Participation in Pocket
Flag Project
5%
Proper Observance of
National Holidays
5%
VA&R – 35%
Christmas or Holiday
Activities
5%
Donations and Collections
5%
Field Service/Home
Service/VA Hospital Activities
5%
Poppy Activities
5%
Veteran’s History Project
5%
Children & Youth
10%
Community Service – 25%
Safety Programs & Health
Programs
5%
Ecology/Beautification
Programs
10%
Senior Citizens
10%
Activity from the Plans of Work – 5%
Junior
Member of the year Award
A $100
cash award will be awarded to the National Junior Member of the Year in
recognition for her dedicated service, efforts and talents. .
The
rules are as follows:
Consideration
of only Junior members in good standing for 2009-2010.
Each unit is limited to
one nomination.
Outstanding contribution the Junior has made through a program or project
outlined in the Plan of Action and other than the office she may be
holding (based on current year ONLY.)
Her Junior Group will
select the Junior nominee with the assistance of the Unit Junior
Activities Advisor.
Nominee should not be
serving as Honorary Department Junior President.
Length of membership is
not a criterion.
Name and complete address
of nominee must accompany nomination.
Name and complete address
of nominee must accompany nomination.
A narrative, typed,
double-spaced essay not to exceed 500 words describing nominee’s
accomplishments during the current administrative year.
Each department shall
establish its own judging procedure to determine who will represent them
as the department’s “Junior Member of the Year” for 2009-2010.
Each department can determine the best way to acknowledge its “Junior
Member of the Year.
Nomination must be signed by Unit Junior Activities
Advisor, the Junior Group President and submitted to Department Junior
Activities Chairman prior to deadline for the Junior Report
All
entries must be submitted to this chairman by May 10, 2010.
REPORTING
PROCEDURE:
UNIT CHAIRMEN: Please send
Unit Report Formto reach your County Chairman by the following dates:
November 1, 2009, March 1, 2010, May 1, 2010
COUNTY CHAIRMEN: Please
send
County Report Form to reach the Department Chairman by the
following dates: November 10, 2009, March 10, 2010,
May 10, 2010
Note:
Forms are in PDF Format and can be filled out using your computer keyboard. However, you
cannot save data typed into any
forms unless you have the Full Version of
Adobe Acrobat software! Please print at least 2 copies of
your completed form, mail one
to the chairman, and save one for your records. If you try to e-mail it
without the Full Version of Adobe Acrobat
software, the chairman will receive a
BLANK PAGE...
REPORTING
One of the most important responsibilities of
Unit Committee Chairmen
is to report the activities and work
on their programs.
This comprises all of the work done by the more than 50,000 members in
our Department.
TheUnit Chairmen report to the
County Chairmen, who in turn
report to the Department Chairmen.
The Department's report to National is
the factor that makes the
outstanding reports at the National Convention.
Chairmen are encouraged to enter all contests.
Department Office Telephone:
1-800-421-6348 (518) 463-1162 FAX:
518-449-5406
112 State Street, Suite 1310, Albany, NY 12207
Secretary/Treasurer Juanita Lochner
We all know the Junior members of any
organization are the future of that organized group, and we should strive to
support them and lead them in the right direction as they will be the
leaders of tomorrow. Congratulations to all County and Unit Junior
activities chairmen who have accepted the responsibility and challenge to
inspire and instill in our Junior members a love and dedication towards our
organization. Our Juniors are our tomorrow and we must be prepared to teach
them how to become active and productive Senior members. 
