Debbie McCollum
2017-2018 National Membership & Leadership Ambassador
We are off and running in our Membership & Leadership year! Hopefully everyone that was able to attend National Convention in New Orleans had a wonderful time. There was a lot of great information given and new resources discussed by my fellow 2017-2018 National Ambassadors at the Programs Seminar.
Dues Notices
As we settle back into our routines, we need to start sending out dues notices to our continuous members. If you have already sent out your first notice- thatās FANTASTIC! Remember to send notices to ALL your continuous members!
You may want to consider an incentive to encourage members to pay their annual dues early. Ideas include:
- A special event or dinner.
You could call it a āMembership Celebrationā and include those members who paid their annual dues early as well as all Life Members.
- A āfreeā dinner.
If your Auxiliary hosts a weekly or monthly dinner at the Post, you could offer a āfreeā dinner in exchange for a member paying their dues early. (Get this approved at your Auxiliary meeting first.)
- A drawing for a Life Membership or a gift card.
All continuous members who paid their annual dues early could be entered into a drawing for a Lifetime Membership or a gift card. The drawing would also work on the Department level as an incentive.
Awards
Current members recruit new members ā thatās how we grow the Auxiliary! There are two Membership awards you may receive from National for your recruiting efforts.
- The āCatch Fiveā Pin
- You must recruit Five (5) New or Rejoined Auxiliary members before April 30, 2018.
- Auxiliary and VFW members can earn this pin.
- The pins will be sent out quarterly to Department Secretaries for distribution.
- You can only earn this pin once. (For example, if you recruit ten (10) new or rejoined Auxiliary members, you will only receive one pin.)
- The National Membership Achievement Award (NMA)
- You must recruit 20 New Auxiliary members before April 30, 2018.
It would be awesome if all members received one of these awards. The Catch Five and NMA award forms are available on the National websiteās Program & Publicity Resources page under Membership & Leadership. Mail or email the award forms to National Headquarters to receive one or both of these National awards. Make sure you are recognized for the recruiting you do!
If you have the opportunity to attend a training session hosted by a Recruiter Trainer, please do so! You are sure to pick up a couple of new tips or ideas to help you qualify for the awards listed above.
We are striving to reach 100% Plus in Membership for the third consecutive year. Thank you for your efforts in helping us as we work toward this goal!

