The Sons of The American Legion was created in
1932 as an organization within The American
Legion The S.A.L. is made up of boys
and men of all ages whose parents or grandparents served in the United States
military and became eligible for membership in The American Legion. Together,
members of The American Legion, The
American Legion Auxiliary and the Sons of The American Legion make up
what is known as The Legion Family. All three organizations place high
importance on preserving our American traditions and values, improving the
quality of life for our nation's children, caring for veterans and their
families, and perhaps most importantly, teaching the fundamentals of good
citizenship. Sons have always assisted Legionnaires with Legion Family
programs. Our Family boasts a combined total membership of nearly 4.2 million
members. This year, Sons attained an all time high national membership of
over 307,000. The largest Detachment, Pennsylvania, has over 38,000 members.
Trophies and awards are given to Detachments and Squadrons for the largest
membership and the largest increase in membership.
Just as each Legion post
determines the extent of its service to the community, state, and nation, each
S.A.L. squadron is permitted flexibility in planning programs and activities to
meet its own needs. The S.A.L. has study programs recommended for younger
members. One such program, called "The Ten Ideals," teaches the
elements of patriotism, health, knowledge, training, honor, faith, helpfulness,
courtesy, reverence, and comradeship. If a member completes the Ten Ideals
program, he is eligible to continue with another program called the "Five-Point
Program of Service." This program covers patriotism, citizenship,
discipline, leadership, and legionism.
Sons focus on much more
than just membership. At all levels, Sons support The American Legion in
promoting a wide variety of programs. Sons assist their Posts in other
activities such as Veterans programs, Veterans Administration home and hospital
volunteerism, Children Youth projects, and fund raising. In just the past
ten years, Sons have raised more than a million dollars for The
American Legion Child Welfare Foundation. Members have volunteered over
177,250 hours to date in 2006 in Veterans Hospitals throughout the country and
raised over $3,147,033 that has gone directly to VA hospitals and VA homes for a
variety of items including TVs, radios, medical equipment, and clothing for the
patients.
There are many men who
are members of, both, The American Legion and the Sons of The American Legion.
Often, these indivduals started out as young members of the Sons. Then, when
they were old enough to serve the military, they also became eligible to join
The Legion. Such individuals are known within our organization as dual members.
The Sons of The American
Legion is one of many organizations that sponsors and supports the Citizens
Flag Alliance, a coalition formed to secure flag protection legislation through
an amendment to the U.S. Constitution. S.A.L. volunteers work to establish local
networks by having petitions available and handing out informational material.
They alert their communities to the importance of respect for the flag and they
encourage flag education programs in schools and other local organizations.
Activities of the Sons of The American Legion are covered, in-depth, in their newsletter National Update which is produced three times per year.
SAL meets the 1st Tuesday of each month 7:30pm
COMMANDER ~ Ernie Lash
1st VICE COMMANDER ~ Tom Olsen
2nd VICE COMMANDER ~ Charles Squires
FINANCE OFFICER ~ Al Hendrick
SERGEANT AT ARMS ~ Mike Wooden
CHAPLAIN ~ Ed Barch
HISTORIAN ~ Tom Yamin
ADJUTANT ~ Brad Sims
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