January 13, 2016 at 6:30 p.m., representatives from Post 1760, and the Auxiliaries that support it, met to discuss and establish a working leadership Committee of the Post and Auxiliary Officers and The Chairpersons of the various committees formed to run the organization. Elected Officers, Trustees, Committee Members and Members of each organization were present.
Discussion was held regarding an overview of the purpose of the joint meeting to unite the separate entities to a more singular goal.
Discussion was held regarding the formation of a Mission statement for each arm and the unifying factors that may need to be included in such Mission. Bob Burns, chairing the meeting, made the following suggestions that may be included in formation of a Mission Statement:
To Promote:
Members and the Membership
Worthy Comrades
Perpetuate the Dead
Maintain True Allegiance
Support the Constitution
Patriotism
More particularly, to hold to the values as stated in Article 3 of the VFW Articles of Incorporation, as follows:
“The purposes of the corporation are fraternal, patriotic, historical, charitable, and educational, and are:
- To preserve and strengthen comradeship among its members;
- To assist worthy comrades;
- To perpetuate the memory and history of our dead, and to assist their widows and orphans;
- To maintain true allegiance to the Government of the United States, and fidelity to its Constitution and laws;
- To foster true patriotism;
- To maintain and extend the institutions of American freedom; and
- To preserve and defend the United States from all enemies.”
A current suggested outline for the Mission Statement for Post 1760 was read:
“Who we are and what we do Mesa VFW Post 1760
Why – Everything we do we believe in honoring our Veterans. We believe in sharing their stories of sacrifice in protecting our freedoms.
How – The way we do this is by assisting the various needs of Veterans, and sharing their heritage and stories with the community.
What – We are a distinguished and well respected organization within our community that offers many services and operates a canteen to support our cause.”
Com. Laubinger and Bob Burns presented the goals that the various VFW entities should begin to implement, in an effort to be united in purpose:
- Initiate a forum to set the business and social goals for Post 1760 for 2016
- Create a business plan for guidance in 2016
- Determine the necessity of an “Executive” Planning board for monthly meetings
- Create an environment that fosters enthusiasm and co-operation between all the entities associated with Dode Morris Post 1760 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars
Bob Burns further stated that the VFW should seek to do more community outreach activities and set a new or additional goal of serving the needs of Veterans of Foreign Wars in general.
For discussion purposes, Bob Burns read an article written by a former US Marine, Lydia Davey. (This article can be found at: https://www.military1.com/army/article/460410-4-reasons-why-the-vfw-is-losing-its-battle-for-members )
Discussion was held regarding the financial status, operation and function of the Canteen. Bob Burns presented the Profit Loss Statements and Balance Sheets for the past three years.
It was assured to present members, that the Canteen would and should remain a valuable part of the Post activities, however, that added efforts need to be made outside the Canteen to promote the purposes of the VFW in order to support expanding Membership and to have better footing in seeking donations from the community in support of the Post’s efforts to serve it’s members and other Veterans. Seeking funds from the greater community is necessary to support the purposes of the VFW and the Post, locally.
Items discussed included:
- Enlistment of volunteers to record minutes and compile a comprehensive report for all members of the Post and Auxiliaries. Erin volunteered.
- Read into the minutes of this meeting Article 3 of the VFW Articles of Incorporation and the Post Bylaws concerning behavior of members in the Canteen etc. (See above.)
- Lay out trends of finances as displayed by the accounting system
- Open the floor to discuss wants, wishes and ideas for the future of the Post
- Solidify actions to be taken by securing a “Done by” Date on anything that is an approved action or request.
Future meetings, unless rescheduled, will be scheduled Quarterly. So, the next tentative meeting will be on March 9, 2016 at 6:30 p.m.