Youth Activities: Finish Strong!

Finish Strong

All your reports are complete, and you are preparing for your Department Convention. It’s nearing the end of our year, and at the same time, our youth are nearing the end of their school year. This is a great time to congratulate them and recognize their successes.

• Host a luncheon for seniors going into the military after graduation.
• Throw a pizza party for middle school students heading to high school.
• Hold an ice cream sundae party for elementary school students who drew cards for veterans and/or deployed service members.

When Auxiliaries promote Our Mission to Serve Veterans and involve youth in our activities, it brings more awareness to what we do and how we help veterans and their families in our communities. Just because we know what we do doesn’t mean everyone the community does. Grab every opportunity you can to talk about what your Auxiliary does for veterans, service members and their families, and our youth.

There are no words to express how inspired I am by local Auxiliaries across the country. The Department Chairmen shared with me how Auxiliaries promoted our Youth Activities Program and I am impressed! The pandemic did not stop local VFW Auxiliaries; it allowed us to be creative and innovative in how we reached out to our youth.

Looking ahead, remember things you can do this summer:

• June 14^th – Flag Day – On this day in 1777 the United States adopted the Stars and Stripes as the official Flag. Hold a Flag ceremony on your town square or teach the Folds of the Flag to a group of students.
• June 20^th – Father’s Day – Invite youth to bring their father or father figure to your Post for a luncheon or plan a day of games and activities with them.
• July 4^th – Independence Day – Many cities and towns have parades and celebrations for this holiday. This is a day to have fun and celebrate! What a perfect holiday to include something with our youth.

Book Donations

There is still time for you to donate a book to your local school or library in honor of National President Sandi Onstwedder. You are welcome to download a label from the website, print it out and place it on the inside of a book. If possible, I would love to have you send me a photo of your Auxiliary donating the book. Thank you to the many Department Chairmen and Auxiliaries that have already sent me a photo! I am asking to receive all photos by June 1, 2021.

I want to thank every member in this organization for your efforts to continue to support, encourage and motivate our youth.

I wish you all continued success as you finish the current Program Year and begin your next adventure.