The Auxiliary Spirit Volume 29 February 2016 Issue 7 American Legion Auxiliary 2015-2016 Department President Susan Wade Our Veterans “Depend” on You Department Officers 2015-2016 President—Susan Wade 1st Vice President-Tammy Workman 2nd Vice President—Lisa Cadwallader Secretary/Treasurer—Paulette Anderson Chaplain—Rhonda Best Historian—Irene Weber District Presidents 1st District—Donna Freeland 3rd District—Carla Wilfong 4th District—Cathy Post 5th District—Beth Kilgore 6th District—Peggy Swartz 8th District—Mary Bess 9th District—Susan Cook 10th District—Sharon Glassford District Vice Presidents 1st District—Donna Leek 3rd District—Roxie Nicholson 4th District—Nancy Sundstrom 5th District—JoAnn Hastings 6th District—Rita Alley 8th District—Rose Reese 9th District—Pat Calain 10th District—Sharon Kauffman Hello Ladies! I want to Thank all of you that sent cards to me and kept my family in your pray- ers. The passing of my Sister-in-law was a very difficult time for my family. I want you all to know how much I appreciate your thoughtfulness! I hope to see a big turnout for Mid-Winter Conference! I know the weather will be a big factor on the attendance. I pray for decent weather and safe travels for all planning on attending! We do not have very many responses on the Membership Luncheon as of today. I need to remind you that the deadline is January 29th. We need an accurate count for the hotel. I know some of you are not thrilled about attending but the Department Membership Team is working hard to have a very nice luncheon. A lot of thought and preparation goes into this and I feel the least we can do is support our Member- ship Team. We are a Team and we need to work together to accomplish our Goals!! I want to remind everyone about the Comfort Item Drive. I want to remind everyone about the Auction on Friday evening after Joint Ses- sion. All proceeds will benefit the Mountaineer Boys State and Rhododendron Girls State Programs. The Silent Auction on Saturday will benefit the Welfare Fund. I want to thank all those that are working on Membership. I appreciate those Dis- trict Vice Presidents that are working with the Department Vice Presidents! Remem- ber we are a Team and we need to work Together! God Bless Our Veterans! God Bless Each of You! Susan Wade Department President Remember Our Friends Connie Pyles’ husband passed away this past month. Connie is a Past Depart- ment Historian, and member of Kirby Unit #134. Condolences may be sent to Connie at: Connie Pyles 848 Rock Oak Road Rio WV 26755
Hello Ladies!I want to Thank all of you that sent cards to me and kept my family in your pray-
ers. The passing of my Sister-in-law was a very difficult time for my family. I wantyou all to know how much I appreciate your thoughtfulness!
I hope to see a big turnout for Mid-Winter Conference! I know the weather willbe a big factor on the attendance. I pray for decent weather and safe travels for allplanning on attending!
We do not have very many responses on the Membership Luncheon as of today. Ineed to remind you that the deadline is January 29th. We need an accurate count forthe hotel. I know some of you are not thrilled about attending but the DepartmentMembership Team is working hard to have a very nice luncheon. A lot of thoughtand preparation goes into this and I feel the least we can do is support our Member-ship Team. We are a Team and we need to work together to accomplish our Goals!!
I want to remind everyone about the Comfort Item Drive.I want to remind everyone about the Auction on Friday evening after Joint Ses-
sion. All proceeds will benefit the Mountaineer Boys State and Rhododendron GirlsState Programs.
The Silent Auction on Saturday will benefit the Welfare Fund.I want to thank all those that are working on Membership. I appreciate those Dis-
trict Vice Presidents that are working with the Department Vice Presidents! Remem-ber we are a Team and we need to work Together!
God Bless Our Veterans!God Bless Each of You!
Susan WadeDepartment President
Remember Our Friends
Connie Pyles’ husband passed awaythis past month. Connie is a Past Depart-ment Historian, and member of KirbyUnit #134.
Condolences may be sent to Connieat:
Connie Pyles848 Rock Oak Road
Rio WV 26755
Department Headquarters—JugglerMission Statement
In the spirit of Service Not Self, the mis-sion of the American Legion Auxiliary isto support The American Legion and tohonor the sacrifice of those who serve byenhancing the lives of our veterans, mili-tary, and their families, both at home andabroad. For God and Country, we advo-cate for veterans, educate our citizens,mentor youth, and promote patriotism,good citizenship, peace and security.
Mandatory Funds: Bonding, Educa-tion, Girls State, Veterans 1st Fund, Pop-py Order, and 10% Poppies Proceeds.They are due each year by July 31st to bea Unit in good year. Make checks paya-ble to “Department Treasurer, ALA”Units that haven’t paid their 2015 Manda-tory Funds are: Mannington Unit #40,Lewisburg Unit #69.
Membership Remember to put JuniorBirthdates on new applications. All appli-cations must be signed by Post Adj. NOTMEMBER OR SECRETARY). Onlyexception is if a female veteran is joiningthe Auxiliary under herself. THEN theSecretary may sign the application. Na-tional is waiving the $9.00 fee again thisyear for New Female Veterans. You mustput “Honor Our Women Veterans” at topof application to get the credit for yourUnit.
On February 1st if you send in dues for2015 only, they will be counted for 2016year. This comes from National.
Please limit your article to no morethan 250 words as you have only onecolumn to use. Spir it is limited to 20pages (including front and back) to send.At times I have to add different pages (ex.quarterly reports, forms, etc.)
Department Headquarters
Office Hours: Monday-Friday
9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Office Phone 304-455-5007
Toll Free 1-888-604-2242
Fax: 304-455-5825
Available 24 hours
Mailing Address
1251 Doolin Run RoadNew Martinsville WV 26155-7808
Department Headquarters Website
www.wvaux.org
Email: alawvsec@frontier .com
Rhododendron Girls State Websitewww.wvgirlsstate.org
Filling The Big Top With MembersMembership Chairman
Happy Valentine Day!Which is our next target date of 75%
goal “I promise to show my love for ourveterans”. We have 5 units that areshowing their love already, and 4 unitsthat are a cat whisker short of reaching75%. We have a month yet to work ongetting that membership in.
The next Department award from Na-tional of $500.00 is Valentine Day whichis 85% of Renew/Rejoin. This money isto be used on mission outreach or mem-bership efforts, plus a special recognitionat 2016 Washington D.C. conference. Asof January 13th Department is at 73.41%Renew/Rejoin. Keeping work that mem-bership. Wheeling #1 we are waiting foryou to join us.
At this writing second dues notice arebeing sent by mail from National. Na-tional will not be emailing any notices tomembers. Department Secretary Paulettewill have the postcard past due noticewith her at Mid-Winter. Get at least onethen you can make your own and sendout to your delinquent members in lateFebruary, if there no response from theNational notice.
Have a great day and see you at CheatLake.
Susan Brown, PDPMembership Chairman
1st Vice President
Hello Everyone,Over here in our “Lion Keeper” den
our District Vice Presidents have beendoing a great job with the monthly contactand reporting. We understand everyone isbusy but please take a few minutes toreturn their calls or to send them an emailto let them know how your units are do-ing with membership. I know this mayseem like an inconvenience, doing it eve-ry month, but the results have been verybeneficial.
We have one Goal Unit, Charles Town#102, Fantastic job Ladies!!! We alsohave a few units who have already metTarget #5 with 75% or more, Unit #166Jane Lew, Unit #94 South Charleston, andUnit #152 Keyser. Awesome work La-dies!!! The majority of our units in Dis-tricts 3, 5, 8, &10 are above 50% rightnow and several are very close to meetingtarget #5. This is fantastic!!! There is stilla little time before the February 14th tar-get date, so send in dues as soon as youget it. I know you can do this!!!
We have a few who need to work alittle harder to catch up. Please rememberthat by now you must have 10 seniormembers paid to be a unit in good stand-ing. All officers and chairman should bepaid. Remember there is no (I) in Team!So if your membership secretary needshelp or if she is sick or going out of townmake sure the unit will have someoneavailable to process membership and sendit to department.
I hope to see everyone at Mid-WinterConference. Our membership team willbe doing a ‘Circus’ act at the luncheon.District Vice Presidents remember tobring your clown gear. If our DistrictPresidents or any junior members wouldlike to join in with our clown act bringyour clown gear and a small bucket orbox, decorated if you want. We can meetfor a short briefing on Friday eveningdirectly after the joint opening session sowe can do a quick walk through of theplan. The whole thing might take tenminutes but I know it’s going to be fun!
1st Vice PresidentTammy Workman(Lion Keeper)
2nd Vice President
Hello Ladies,I’m proud to say we are ahead of the
lions in both numbers and percent. Pleasekeep up the good work. Our next targetdate is Valentine’s Day for 75%.
We really need to get units who have 0members updated. At this point thoseunits are not in good standing. If you arehaving problems getting membership,please let your District Vice or myselfknow so we can help.
Vice’s from the Elephant side, I lookforward to seeing you in your clown gearfor our Mid-Winter luncheon. You don’tneed to go all out, a wig, or red nose,some make up, old clothes, a stick withbag, any of these work, just a little fun.
I’m sorry to say no district met thechallenge of the first district to reach 75%by Jan. 1, would be presented an item toraffle during your Spring conference.I’m including the “Keeping the promise”for Feb. - March from National:February: I promise to show my lovefor our veterans Membershipfor Life: Show your love for our veter-ans for life. Get your Paid Up for Life(PUFL) Membership today! MembershipAwards Deadlines: 85% Renew/RejoinAchievement Award by February 14,2016 Promise Date: Valentine’s Day,February 14, 2016 – 75%March: I promise to breathe life intoour organization Members Help-ing Members: Spring is in the air!And so are spring storms! The Ameri-can Legion Auxiliary Emergency Fundoffers assistance to members whoselives are affected by natural disasters.Donate today to help fellow auxilia-ry members in need! PromiseDate: Legion Birthday, March15, 2016 – 80%
Welcome to Winter!I look forward to seeing representa-
tives of all 4th Districts Units in attend-ance at Mid-Winter; hopefully we don’texperience weather like the last time inthat area.
I am happy to report that one unit hasbeen realigned and on their way to futuresuccess, and we continue our vigilance instarting up another unit.
Make sure you have your reservationsfor conference in order, all your auctionitems and comfort items. We have expe-rienced several losses recently in our fam-ilies; my prayers go out to all.
Again I remind you of Ms. Ann’sChallenge of wearing red, white andBlue on Saturday at Midwinter.
Please visit our page on Face book andadvise us of your activities, and accom-plishments. I would enjoy partaking inthese with you. Please contact me for anyhelp that I might offer. Looks like Ms.Nancy our Vice President/membershipchairman is seeing a great increase indues being paid. Congratulations!!! Seeyou soon……
Service not selfCathy Post4th District President
5th District President
5th District Vice President
Membership is coming in but it issomething we have to work on a continu-ing basis. Send that membership in assoon as you get it and make the 5th Dis-trict shine in the Department. I am soproud of the work each Unit is doing.Your care and compassion for our veter-ans and the community as a whole is une-qualed. Keep up the fantastic job.
During these cold winter months,please check on your neighbors and theelderly during this time. Check on ourveterans (especially the homeless) and dowhat you can so they have as warm placeto lay their heads at night.
I am looking forward to seeing manyof you at the Mid Winter Conference,Feb 5-6th in Morgantown.
I am here for each of you so just giveme a call.
Service not self!!Beth Kilgore5th District President
I know everything is running slow.Should start to pick up again.
Here are some ideas that might help:*Sending your members a card just to sayhi or a birthday card*Stopping by to visit
This is what Unit 14 is starting to do.We also are sending a schedule of eventsto them in the mail, due to a lot of peoplenot having the Internet. I thought I wouldshare this with you.
Hope to see everyone at Midwinter.And as always if you need any helpplease call.
Sharon Kauffman10th District Vice
Good Evening to all the Auxiliary Mem-bers. I know it is a cold and blustery dayall over West Virginia, but we need tofocus on Membership. So far Third Dis-trict is still ahead in Membership; letskeep it that way.
A couple of our Units are struggling inmembership, come on ladies we can dobetter. Surely you know someone that iseligible to be a member. Just the otherday I handed out an Auxiliary and twoSons of the American Legion membershipforms to a State Police Officer. You nev-er know until you start talking to them,ask questions, they may turn into a newmember.
Third District Vice-President Roxie andI will be starting to visit Units in our Dis-trict before too long, that is if we manageto stay healthy and the weather holds out.
If you need my Help I am just a phonecall away, you can reach me at 304-592-0247 or you can e-mail meat [email protected]
Stay safe and warm. Hope to see youat Mid-Winter.God Bless AmericaGod Bless our TroopsCarla J WilfongThird District President
Hello Ladies,I hope each and every one of you had a
merry Christmas and a happy New Year.It’s another year now and its time to
work on membership. I know the ladies inthe Fifth District are working real hardtrying to get new people into the Aux.Please try to explain to them what westand for. It’s very important to tell themthat we help Veterans and their families.
It has come to my attention that someof the units are holding the dues back andnot sending them in, please don’t do this.
Thank you all for returning my callsback when I wanted to know how you wasdoing.
Thank youJoAnn HastingsFifth District Vice President
10th District Vice President
10th District President Department Chaplain
Auxiliary Emergency Fund
Poppy
You ask, why donate? Here is a goodexample, just before the holidays, a localveteran to my area and his family fell onhard times. They loss everything theyowned except the clothes they hadon. He is working on getting his DD214,certificates, and metals replaced. Theseare some of things that means a lot tohim and can be replaced. There were anumber of items that can never be re-placed. Our unit adopted them forChristmas, hoping we helped them havea better Christmas. Think about it, whatif you loss everything, how would youfeel, how do you get back on your feet,want to admit it or not, you would needhelp, all the help you could get. Unfortu-nately, they were not members andcould not take advantage of this. How-ever, had they been eligible, this wouldhave helped them that much more. Sosee, anyone of us could find ourselves inneed of this kind of help. Please considermaking a donation today!
year now. However I want to remind allmembers to forward any prayers andpoems to me for our Department Presi-dent Susan Wade’s Chaplain Book.Also I want to inform all members thatare on facebook I am a member of theAmerican Legion Auxiliary Chaplain’spage. This page is just for prayers need-ed. If you would like a prayer request,then let me know and I will post it on theChaplain’s Page.
God Bless and Be Safe,Rhonda BestDepartment Chaplain
Public Relations
Americanism—Program of Month
We have some very importantdates to remember this month. February3,1870 brought us the 15th amendmentwith the right to vote, regardless of ourrace, color or previous condition of servi-tude.
I encourage ALL to cast your votes inthe upcoming elections, so much is on theline. On this date we celebrate an extraor-dinary act of heroism with the Four Chap-lains aboard the Dorchester. Feb. 6, 1933the 20th amendment set the date for Presi-dential Inauguration as Jan 20th. Birthdaysof two of our most highly regarded presi-dent’s fall this month, Lincoln and Wash-ington, these dates have been combinedinto one day Feb.15, 2016. Also on thisdate is Susan B. Anthony’s birthday whoworked tirelessly for women suffrage(right to vote).
This year is Leap year and that gives usone more day to go into the schools andwork with our young Americans the im-portance of these dates and our Constitu-tion. Teach our children to honor our vet-erans and show their Americanism withValentine coloring pages and send them tothe VA Hospitals and all local nursinghomes. Apples4teachers web site offers apatriot heart for them to color.
Don’t forget to pick up your instruc-tions to meet your challenge of MissionRestore Bronze at Midwinter, there will beone set for each unit. I have sent your Mid-Year Americanism report in, sadly therewas only one. Let’s do better for the nexttime.For God and County,Cathy PostAmericanism ChairmanI hope everyone is staying warm and
safe during this cold weather we are hav-ing. I wish to thank the 3 units that tookthe time to send a Mid-Year report. I wasglad that I had a report to send to theCentral Division Vice President.
I hope all of you are working on thePoppy Posters and getting ready to bringto Mid-Winter. I will look forward toseeing you and the posters there.
Keep working on the Poppy programand do the best you can, that’s all I’masking.
See you soonRoxie NicholsonPoppy Chairman
Hello Ladies:I hope you are planning to come to
come to Mid-Winter. A reminder it willheld at Lakeview Resort, Morgantown. Itwill be held Feb. 6th though 7th. That is aFriday and Saturday. In saying that;Please remember:1. Comfort Item Drive; there is a form inthe Jan. Spirit to fill out, make sure youturn in the form to Mary Waybright soyour donation can be credited.2. PDP Rosie Nicholson will be doing theSilent Auction, this benefits the WEL-FARE FUND.3. On Saturday will be the MembershipLuncheon, deadline Jan. 29th. Send formto Paulette with your $18.50.4. There will be a Boys State and GirlState Auction. Jim Davis, Director ofBoys and Michelle Sirbaugh will be ac-cepting new and slightly used item. Thiswill take place after Friday’s Meeting.5. On Saturday, I will be going over theJunior Leadership Course with everyone,then together we will take the course.
Keep up the great work on Member-ship. I know it is tough just keep doingyour best as always. Hopefully, some ofthe members that have not renewed willdo so.
The Culture of Good Will is importantto all but most important to the Veteran’s.
Looking forward to seeing you atMid-Winter.
Sharon Glassford10th District President
I want to thank the Units that have sentme Public Relations articles for Depart-ment President Susan’s PR Book! I hopeto receive many more!
I am unable to attend Mid-Winter Con-ference, but please feel free to bring anyitems for the PR Book and give to Depart-ment President Susan and she will passthem on to me!!
I know that all Units have done some-thing in their respective communities, andI hope you shared this with yourlocal newspapers.Edna TravisWƵďůŝĐ�ZĞůĂƟŽŶƐ��ŚĂŝƌŵĂŶ
Community Service
Hello Ladies,I hope you are getting the wonderful
scholarships we offer out to theschools. If not, now is the time to do so!They are due in to the units by March 1.
Earlier I notified you about somechanges, here is some more details.1) The "Veterans in the Classroom" pro-gram will now be called "Veterans inCommunity Schools". This title moreaccurately covers things such as volun-teering in various ways in addition tosingle classroom programs. We are en-couraged to tutor, share flag educationetiquette, assist with field trips, etc. etc.and be a visible presence in ourschools. The new title will encompass"all" of those activities rather than justappear to focus on single classroompresentations. This came from an ap-proved resolution from the Legion.2) The American Legion still has the"School Medal Award Program" and hasan updated and modernized brochure forit. You can down the brochure fromhttp://www.legion.org/publications/229474/school-award-medal-program3) The American Legion has developedan "Education Development Guide"which will be published sometime inNovember, 2015. I do not believe thisguide has been released yet. I will let youknow when it has and where to find it.
not heard from any unit asking for theanswers. I will have the answers withme at Mid-Winter. Also no one pointedout some screwy spelling. Do you reallyread your Spirit?
As a committee we have received 2units and 1 district changes, and will beaddressing them at Mid-Winter. All six-ty-four units as of this date should havethe revision to member complete, andsent to Department Headquarters. Areyou in compliance?
Have a great February, and see you atCheat Lake.
Susan Brown, PDPC&B Chairman
Constitution & Bylaws
Education
LeadershipChildren and Youth
Hi Ladies:I hope that many will be attending
Morgantown for Mid-Winter.REMEMBER Units to be in good
standing; MANDATORY DUES are doby July 31st each year. They are:Bonding, Education, Girls State, Veterans1st Fund, Poppy Order, and 10% poppies.10 Senior Members in good standing isneeded for all units.
To include in your Leadership Pro-gram, Mission Statement which Paulettespoke about in her article under MissionStatement. Please add this to your unitmeetings. This is not our Preamble. Thestatement tells who we are and what wedo. (I will have copies at Mid Winter ofMission Statement.)
Here are a few more items you can goover. These are words that you hear inunit and District, Dept. and National.:ratify, ex officio, majority, tellers, proto-col.
I will have all the information pre-pared for the Junior Leadership Coursefor everyone. This way we can discusseach of the questions and answers.
See you at Lakeview ResortSharon GlassfordLeadership Chairman
Hello Ladies,As our year is in full swing many of
our programs only get focused on duringtheir designated month.
However Children and Youth Programshould be a full year program. Somethingcan be done each month. We collaboratewith so many different programs such asThe American Legion Children WelfareFoundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters,Boys and Girls Clubs of America andGive an Hour. American Legion Auxilia-ry always cooperates with other organiza-tions but we also work the programswithin our program such as Youth Hero /Good Deeds Awards, Star SpangledKids, Kids of Deployed are Heroes 2(KDH2) and G.I. Josh dogs. This makesit easy to see how something can be doneeach month of the year.
At Midwinter Conference we'll col-lecting funds for Child Welfare Founda-tion from piggy banks. I'll also be talkingmore about our collaborations and ourprograms within our program.
Hope everyone can make the trip toMorgantown and I'll be praying for goodweather.
Until Next TimeDebbie FoxC & Y Chairman
I hope everyone is inside and stayingwarm on a cold night like tonight. Whilestaying inside and warm this is a goodtime to contact your Senators, State Sen-ators, House of Representatives, the Gov-ernor, and any local Official on any mat-ter that is connected with our Troops andtheir safety.
I hope that everyone who submits anend of the year report, also sends a narra-tive with it. I did not contact Pauletteabout this so I am letting everyone knownow.
If you need my help with anything,please call me at 304-592-0247, or e-mailme at [email protected]
I hope to see several people at Mid-Winter. Until then stay Safe and staywarm.God Bless AmericanGod Bless our TroopsCarla J WilfongLegislative Chairman
Hello Ladies,I wish to thank the 3 units that sent
me their mid year reports.Just remember to get out in the com-
munity to help with projects and whileyou are out in the public wear the Ameri-can Legion Auxiliary brand.
Hope to see everyone at Mid-winternext month.
Please stay warm!!!Margaret YostCommunity Service Chairman
Parliamentary Pointsto Ponder
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Jim Slaughter, Certified Professional &Professional Registered Parliamentarian336-378-1899(W) 336-378-1850(F) website – www.jimslaughter.com
Ann BuchananParliamentarian
Parliamentarian Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation
Winter has finally arrived if the coldweather we have been having is any indi-cation.
I hope your unit is geared up for ourDepartment Comfort Item Drive.HOSPITAL CHAIRMEN: I am count-ing on you or someone you designate todeliver the items back to the VeteransHospital in your area. Please don't let medown! I will try to pack in smaller boxesso that they will not be so hard to carry.
If anyone wishes to volunteer to helpme with the Comfort Item Drive, I willnot turn down the help.
As I mentioned, it's cold outside," soremember the homeless veterans in yourcommunity. Now is the time to hold adrive at your Post home or meetingplace to collect new or cleaned usedcoats, blankets, etc. for the local shelteror city mission in your community. Ifyou have such a facility in your area,please ask them what they need. Don'tforget "Buddy Baskets" for those home-less veterans transitioning into hous-ing. My home unit has been doing threeor four or more each year.
If you have any spare time (whichcould be as little as an hour or two) checkwith your local VA facility, which couldbe either a hospital, clinic or nursinghome in your community to see what youcan do to volunteer. I call patients forthree separate clinics at the HuntingtonVAMC, but maybe that is not somethingyou would enjoy. Maybe you wouldprefer to work with patients or residentsin VA facilities or nursing homes direct-ly. I am sure those in charge can findsomething you would enjoy. Volunteersare always needed and very welcome.
I want to remind you if your unit hasdelivered comfort items or will delivercomfort items prior to our Comfort ItemDrive in early February, send me one ofthe Comfort Item Drive sheets asyou will find in the last few Spirit edi-tions. If not, place one of the sheets onthe boxes you bring or hand sheet to mewhen you get to Lakeview.Thank you for all you do for our veter-
ans.
See you at LakeviewMary WaybrightV A & R Chairman
ALA MILITARY FAMILYREADINESS ACTION
Since 1919, the American LegionAuxiliary (ALA) has dedicated itself toour nation’s veterans, service membersand their families. A century later, ourorganization remains a fundamental com-ponent of the nation’s military readinesssystem. Auxiliary members, operating atthe community level, are integral to thesystem of support for our service mem-bers and their families. Armed with per-sonal experience and an understanding ofmilitary culture, Auxiliary members canand do direct military families in need toresources and services in their communi-ties, including to Legion Family pro-grams. Also, Auxiliary members, as cur-rent or former military family members,provide a level of empathy and care totheir military peers that large institutionswill never match.
Throughout its long history, the ALAhas stood as an example of service to oth-ers. We cannot rest on our laurels. Wehave a responsibility to continue our ef-forts to ensure that the service memberswho protect us may remain assured thattheir families are also supported. The Na-tional Security Committee, through itsannual Plan of Action, suggests that ALAmembers take the following actions tosupport military families:*Support active, reserve and transitioningservice members and their families bymatching ALA units to a Family Readi-ness Group or to an individual militaryfamily in need.*Refer service members and their familieswith practical needs to The AmericanLegion’s Family Support Network.*Assist Legion departments and posts inraising funds for Operation Comfort War-riors and Heroes to Hometowns.*Greet service members and families asthey deploy and/or return from a deploy-ment, including through local YellowRibbon Reintegration Programs and wel-come-home events.*Identify and present Blue Star commem-orative materials to individuals and busi-nesses.*Identify and present Gold Star materials.*Collaborate with other organizationsrelied upon by the military community,such as the American Red Cross Serviceto the Armed Forces, Operation Home-front and USO.Beth Kilgore,Chairman
National Security
Greetings Ladies,It is hard to believe Mid-Winter is
right around the corner! Just wanted toremind everyone of the Boys State andGirls State Auction on Friday night, Feb-ruary 5th. If you are able to bring a newor slightly used item with you for theauction, it would be most appreciated asthis auction benefits both programs. Aspecial “Thank You” to Jim Davis fororganizing this auction.
In addition, we cannot forget to bringan item for our Silent Auction on Satur-day, February 6th with all proceeds goingto the Department Welfare Fund.Registrar Ann Buchanan and I have beenworking on Girls State forms. Packetswill be mailed to the high schools onTuesday, January 19th. Unit packets willbe handed out at our Mid-Winter Confer-ence. If your Unit did not submit yourGirls State Chairman’s name to SecretaryPaulette Anderson, your packet will begiven to your Unit President.
Tuition will remain at $200 per citizenthis year. Just a reminder, registrationfees cannot be paid for by an individual.However, they may make a donation tothe Unit, and in turn, the Unit can pay theregistration fee.
More Girls State information will beforthcoming. In the meantime, if youhave any questions, please do not hesitateto contact me, Registrar Ann Buchanan,RGS Chairman Irene Weber, or Depart-ment Secretary Paulette Anderson.
Look forward to seeing each of you atMid-Winter!
Sincerely,Michelle SirbaughDirector
Rhododendron Girls StateRepresentatives
1st Dist. — Susan Brown2172 Grandview Rd.Moundsville WV 26041845-5122
3rd Dist. — Mary Jo ThomasRR6 Box 232Fairmont WV 26554366-2912
2016 Department Ways and Means year has begun and we already have 7 winners asof January 16th. January listing will be in the next Spirit.
The Ways & Means Account is turned over and checks have been mailed to win-ners. If you have a check for the 2014-15 year still out, cash it now, so it can clearthe bank.
A reminder: make sure the addresses are complete, with zip code. Make sure theseller’s name is on the ticket. You want to get the credit.
Remember you can sell them all year long, you don’t have to send in your unsoldtickets now.
I will have a report at Midwinter on number of tickets sold, and number of ticketsout. If you have sold any, send them in to be counted. It would be sad if you had awinner, and they couldn’t be paid due to seller not sending in their stub.
Until Next MonthPaulette AndersonChairman
2014-2015 Ways & Means
Hello Ladies,I want to thank everyone that
participated in The Department’sFundraiser for the year 2014-2015.
God BlessRhonda Best
DECEMBER 2015 WAYS-N-MEANS WINNERS
NAME LOCATION WINNING # DATE AMT PAID
Clara Smith Bridgeport, WV 067 12/1/15 $25.00
512 12/2/15
591 12/3/15
Jean A. Pyle McMechen, WV 522 12/4/15 $25.00
121 12/5/15
680 12/7/15
245 12/8/15
124 12/9/15
Jessica Judy Shanks, WV 278 12/10/15 $25.00
822 12/11/15
291 12/12/15
180 12/14/15
Robin Weaver Springfield, WV 045 12/15/15 $25.00
131 12/16/15
Miles Epling Pt. Pleasant, WV 271 12/17/15 $25.00
604 12/18/15
004 12/19/15
Peggy Rund Stevensville, MD 829 12/21/15 $25.00
619 12/22/15
714 12/23/15
Diana Teter Capon Bridge, WV 887 12/24/15 $25.00
Rita Sedosky Moundsville, WV 330 12/25/15 $25.00
758 12/26/15
Sharon Childress Romney, WV 414 12/28/15 $25.00
Roger Reed Welch, WV 185 12/29/15 $25.00
995 12/30/15
Karen Sears Shinnston, WV 634 12/31/15 $25.00
I have received very little for Depart-ment President Susan’s Scrapbook. Iguess it’s a good thing that she has givenme pictures and articles.
I will not be able to attend Mid-Winter Conference so if anyone wouldlike to bring anything for the scrapbook,you can give them to Susan to give tome.
Jennifer YeaterScrapbook Chairman
State Newsletter “Auxiliary SPIRIT”
MAIL TO:
The American Legion AuxiliaryDepartment of West Virginia1251 Doolin Run RoadNew Martinsville WV 26155
E-MAIL ADDRESS For FREE ISSUE________________________________________________________________
WHO RECEIVES SPIRIT: Emailed to all Unit Contacts and any Unit Officers with an email address. It is emailed to All Depart-
ment Officers, Department Chairmen, District Presidents/Vice Presidents, Past Department Presidents with emails. Spirits
are posted monthly on the website: www.wvaux.org Unit Presidents with no email contact will receive a free copy.
Cookbook sales are an ongoing project that will continue to put much needed dollars into the Veteran’s Fund. Get your cook-books today! Buy some as gifts! The recipes are the best kind – Tried & True!Cookbooks are $15.00 plus $4.00 (S & H)
I want to purchase ___cookbooks and have the cookbooks mailed to:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Make checks payable to: Department Treasurer, ALAMail to: ALA Department of West Virginia
1251 Doolin Run Road����������������������EĞǁ �D ĂƌƟŶƐǀ ŝůůĞ�t s �Ϯϲϭϱϱ�–7808
Boy State/Girls State Auction (After Joint Session)………………………. Governors Ballroom
Saturday, February 6, 20168:00 am -12:00 pm Registration……………………………………………………… Ballroom Foyer8:00 am –2:30 pm Silent Auction …………………………………………………… Ballroom Foyer8:30 am Opening Session …………………………………………………………… Chestnut Room
Call to Order ……………………………………………………Susan Wade, Department PresidentAdvancement of Colors…………………………………………… ……. Sgt. at ArmsPrayer……………………………………………………………….. Rhonda Best, ChaplainMoment of SilencePledge of Allegiance……………………………………… Cathy Post, Americanism ChairmanNational Anthem……………………………………………… Kitty Kelly -Smoot, Music ChairmanPreamble of Constitution…………………………Susan Brown, Constitution & Bylaws Chairman
8:40 am Welcome …………………………………………………… Susan Wade, Department President8:45 am Chapel-4-Chaplains ………………………………………………………Rhonda Best, Chaplain9:00 am Leadership Program…………………………………… Sharon Glassford, Leadership Chairman
Junior Leadership Course………………………………………………………Sharon Glassford10:30 am Children & Youth……………………………………………… Debbie Fox, Department Chairman10:50 am Introduction of Girls State Governor…………………………………Michelle Sirbaugh, Director
10:55 am Rhododendron Girls State GovernorKatie Mossburg
Bridgeport Unit #6811:25 am Announcements11:30 am Recess11:45 am Membership Luncheon………………………………………………………. Lakeview Restaurant
