Notes from the National Convention 

• "Mr. Wolf" is live blogging the National Convention - great coverage - follow him at Black Five - Click HERE: 
• If you cannot attend The American Legion National Convention you can watch it on LegionTV - Clck HERE

Alzheimer's Monitoring Bracelets

American Legion Post #124 in Walhalla is partnering with the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office in an effort to raise money for electronic monitoring bracelets to be worn by Alzheimer’s patients.  Read More at WSN Radio

 

Updates Pending...

 

Updates Pending...

Post Everlasting

 

Note - the "Notes from the Web Admin" would hopefully decrease as the site grows - if not, we would want to break this into a separate page to avoid cluttering the front page for the Post.

News from Local, State and National Sources

Members - be sure to check out the "News Feeds" under the "Useful Links" Menu for latest news feeds

Notes of Appreciation

A loud shout out and hat tip to Daily Journal/Messenger reporter Andrew Moore for his support of the American Legion, and his professional advice to our post regarding outreach, and his patience!!  He has provided excellent suggestions to help members prepare press releases and spread the word, and we are most appreciative.

An additional special thanks to Jessica Nelms for attending the Wall of Honor event and covering the story

And speaking of the Daily Journal - you can respond to their news stories ON LINE, by registering an account on Upstate Today. If you have comments you want to submit, it is free, and easy to register as a user.  Note - you can register accounts on most online newspapers!!!

WHY does the Post need a website?

Some members ask:  "WHY do we need a website?  WHAT is the point?  The point is communication and outreach, to better serve our members, the community and our returning vets, many who communicate regularly through the internet.  We must continue to grow membership and find ways to serve the wide range of ages.  Consider the following column on Newsday: VFW, Legion are graying, struggling for recruits

Members are encouraged to take advantage of the new Discussion Board to make suggestions, discuss issues, events - etc.  

Using the Web for PR

Per the Legion's PR Handbook:

Public Relations requires development of relationships with various officials, media representatives, and Department and national staff members. It’s critical to have some form of continuity in your efforts to maintain these relationships. In a volunteer organization, it’s difficult to saddle one individual with this much responsibility for an extended time. As an alternative, try to spread the responsibilities to several individuals, allowing them to specialize in various areas.

A well organized website can be very useful in efforts to spread these responsibilities. While the social networking, the ability to view videos and pictures, etc is a great perk for members, one of the greatest benefits, often overlooked, is the reduction of administrative overhead for post leaders and volunteers.  Some of these responsibilities include:

• Historical records
• Processes
• Communication
• Standardized templates
• Virtual "Sign up sheets"
• Member data can include interests and skills - when assistance is needed - leaders can search the member data base and find that mechanic, artist, computer expert, gardener, or owner of a large truck (helpful when a member needs moving assistance)
• Meeting Proposals (Ideas can grow throughout the months via discussion boards, allowing more comprehensive proposals during meetings)
• Calendars
• Rental Hall
• Member Dues
• Newsletters
  
  • News submissions are stored in one place
  • Electronic subscriptions can reduce postage costs

Many times, people are afraid of their first website, because it seems to introduce more work.  It does take a little more investment of time in the beginning, to determine the long term processes. It is best to keep things simple, especially in the beginning as you assess the benefits and tradeoffs. If you make the decision to move a particular feature to the computer/web - it is best to plan to stop the old method - as soon as possible.  The increased workload and confusion of manual as well as computerized efforts is a quick way to discourage the volunteer/user/employee from embracing the technology.

Website/Newsletter Updates

Notice the new "Submit News" link under "Member Zone" - a simple form you can use to contribute info to the website/newsletter

Send Messages to Members

If you are registered on this site, you can send "private messages" to other registered members (this does not require actual EMAIL, they are notes stored on the server, delivered to other members who can read the message when they log in).  See the "My Messages" section on the left side menu - if there is a flashing green icon, that means someone has sent a message to you.

American Legion on Facebook

To increase presence within Oconee County among internet users, we have a local group. Additionally - for those members who are "Internet Warriors", there is a National American Legion Facebook Group, where Legionnaires can network and discuss issues, share event info, news, etc at a national level.

 

Last Updated ( Thursday, 11 February 2010 05:10 )

Patriot’s Hall: Oconee Veterans’ Museum

Patriot’s Hall is located in the city of Walhalla in Oconee County, S.C., and offers an opportunity for visitors to see first hand some of the items connected with our Nation’s wars. Many of these items have been contributed by veterans who have devoted part of their lives and sacrificed much in the never ending struggle for freedom over tyranny.

Visit the museum and learn the legacy of the heroes who bravely fought with honor and tireless integrity for the country they loved, the freedoms of its people and the pride of being an American.

The museum relies only upon donations from veterans and visitors. 

Visit the Patriot's Hall website (http://oconeeveteransmuseum.org) to learn how you can support the museum through membership, donations and volunteer work.

 

Read more...