Department Convention Committee meeting minutes

Convention Committee meeting minutes

                                          Convention Committee Notes

               March 29^th 2016 Sweeny Post 2 Manchester NH

Committee members Present :

Commander John Graham

Deb Davis

Bob Blais

Kevin Murnane

Bill Roy

Kenny Maynard

Dan Yoder

Vern Latten

Joyce Murnane

Several Legion Family members in attendance

Meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance led by Commander Graham.

Meeting call to order 7pm by Chairman Deb Davis

Open remarks by Norm Gravel Commander of Sweeny Post 2 Manchester NH

Convention Shirts are on schedule

Kevin Murnane reported on Advertisement. He has followed up with Lisa and Dan on Post ads and is working with the Advertising Company.

Contacted them about Military Contractors in NH to place ads. Some ads are coming in digitally. Information has been put on the Dept. web site many times. Dead line for advertisements is May 1^st. Kevin will follow up with Advertising company.

Vern reported on Banquet tickets Cut off time is May 1^st.  91 tickets have been sold. The meal choices are: Prime Rib, Baked Haddock, or Pasta Primavera. Will need to contact District Commanders for tickets. The banquet tickets for the District Commanders being installed into office will be put aside. For those not attending the Banquest please notify Vern Leighton, Commander of Post 43 Jutras. There are only 200 tickets available and if you are not planning on attending we could use the tickets.

All rooms must be paid for by April 15^th.  If the room has not been paid by April 15^th they will be turned back over to the hotel and you will have to make your own arrangements for housing.  Also need who will be occupying the rooms. Need to have this to Deb Davis as soon as your delegates have been elected that also includes the Auxiliary and the Sons.

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS CONCERNING ROOMS OR ANY OF THE OTHER INFORMATION IN THIS REPORT DO NOT CONTACT DEPARTMENT!!

THEY HAVE ENOUGH TO DO. CONTACT DEB DAVIS (603)686-6734 OR armygirl13@myfairpoint.net

Mike Lopez reported on Centennial Committee: they are fund raising and things are going well Have sold enough tickets to cover cost of raffle prize money for convention and have about $2000 left over. Question raised about duplicate things being done by the Centennial Committee and the Convention Committee. There these questions will be resolved following this year's convention.

Adjutant Dan Yoder reported that he needs the names of the deceased by May 1^st.  The entries for the Colored Guard competition need to be sent in to Dept. Attn: Mike Constentino. So far there has been only two posts that have shown interest. The details for the Sunday morning Memorial Service plans are being worked on. Also would like the Legion Riders ride in first for the ceremony. Sergeant at Arms, Mike Constentino is point of contact.

Bob Blais will set up a meeting with the hotels and committee members in Lincoln for Thursday April 7^th at 10 am.

Next meeting Weds May 11^th 7pm location TBD

Commander Graham had closing remarks.

Meeting adjured 7:49 pm  

Respectfully submitted

Joyce Murnane

ALR Representative

Convention Committee       

Concerned Veterans for America Event

Concerned Veterans for America Event

http://www.cv4a.org

Defend Freedom Tour - Manchester, NH

Concerned Veterans for America

Saturday, May 7, 2016 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM (EDT)

Manchester, NH

If you've attended a Defend Freedom Tour event, you know how inspiring they are. Concerned Veterans for America is excited to announce that in 2016, the Defend Freedom Tour will be our largest – and the lynchpin of our historic movement!

Our nationwide tour will bring together veterans, military family members, and patriotic Americans to make it loud and clear that our country is still worth fighting for! We all know that 2016 will be the year that we #DefendFreedom and take back the America we know and love — and the Defend Freedom Tour is the place to make it happen.  Join us…because we’ve only just begun to fight!

When: May 7, 5:00pm-8:00pm

Where: Expo Center at Radisson Hotel Manchester

Attendance: General Admission, FREE

*Doors open at 4:00 pm complimentary BBQ dinner will be served

The Defend Freedom Tour is family friendly and FREE to attend, featuring live patriotic music, a lineup of inspirational speakers, and a delicious taste of  local fare. The 2016 Tour will also provide immediate ways for attendees to volunteer to join our cause. Concerned Veterans for America fights for a free and strong America, to improve the lives of veterans, and to hold status-quo politicians – of all stripes – accountable. After seeing this Tour event, we believe you’ll want to take action and join our cause!

Patriots on tour include: Patriotic rock band Madison Rising, Navy SEAL Gold Star mother Karen Vaughn, and popular country music star Ayla Brown.

Boy's State - 2016

Boy's State - June 26th - July 1st 

Program Information
Program Dates: Program Location:
Meals:
Housing: Cost:

2016 Boys State Application Section 1
June 26 – July 1, 2016*
Rivier University
420 South Main Street
Nashua, NH 03060
Provided through the university
(Dietary requirements may be accommodated) On the campus, Brassard Hall
Application Fee ‐ $25.00
Program Fee ‐ $300.00 (Paid by Legion) 

Boys State is entering its 69th consecutive year in New Hampshire, and we are proud of our history. Each year 60‐80 high school juniors participate in the New Hampshire program. Two of these students are among the 100 students who are fortunate enough to be selected from the 20,000 Boy State delegates nationwide to travel to Washington, D.C. and to participate in the national Boys Nation Program. 

Boys State, which is a “learn‐by‐doing” experience in the American way of government, creates a forum for discussion by tomorrow's leaders about the issues of today and the challenges of the future. We have an excellent Boys State Program here in NH and we would like to extend ourselves to maximize the availability of this fine program to as many high school juniors as possible. Although we are always interested in quality over quantity of students, we feel there are many quality students out there who could learn and benefit from this program, and all are welcome to participate. Let's do it for America's youth and for the future of the American way of government: we encourage you to send multiple students to Boys State – we’re confident you have several qualified students. No qualified student has ever been turned away from the program, and depending on the size of the school, we have welcomed as many as 10 students from a single school in the past.
We have a wonderful program planned for 2016, and we expect that in addition to forming their own government, the participants will be exposed to some outstanding guest speakers. In past years, these speakers have included the Governor, members of the New Hampshire General Court (both House and Senate), sitting Judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys, members of Congress, campaign managers and candidates, state party Chairs, and a host of others. 

If you are interested, please contact your Guidance Councilor or any officer of Post-95

APPLICATIONS ARE DUE TO AMERICAN LEGION HEADQUARTERS BY JUNE 3, 2016 

Northeast POW/MIA Network - Breakfast

Officers Elected for 2016-2017

Post Nominations of Officers for 2016-2017

Thunderclap for Veterans

Dear Post Officer, Exciting news: American Legion National Commander Dale Barnett testifies before a joint session of the Senate and House Committees on Veterans’ Affairs on February 24, 2016 to demand action and accountability to solve problems that continue to adversely affect the lives of America’s veterans. As a Post Officer of The American Legion, we ask you and everyone in your post to raise your voice with him.  On February 24th, while the National Commander is giving his testimony, The American Legion will execute a social media “Thunderclap.” What’s Thunderclap? Thunderclap is a tool that allows thousands of people to share the same social media message at exactly the same time. All you have to do is visit our Thunderclap page and give permission for Thunderclap to share a single message on Facebook and Twitter at a specified time. We would also like you to ask the person who manages your post social media accounts to do this as well. We must reach our total audience goal of supporters in order for the Thunderclap to have the greatest effect. The more people who participate, the more impact we have. This next part is extremely important. When you sign up, you also have the option of creating a post to invite your friends to join as well. Please take a moment to send this invitation, as it will help us meet our goal, spread a unified message and maximize social media reach by encouraging others to join the campaign. What else can I do? We would like you to send a personal e-mail to your post members. Here is a sample: Dear Members of Post (#), We are all very passionate about ensuring our nation’s veterans are recognized and receive the care and benefits that they deserve. That’s why I am writing and asking for you to support our National Commander, Dale Barnett, by participating in a social media Thunderclap on February 24, 2016, while he is testifying before the Senate and House Committees on Veterans’ Affairs.  What’s a Thunderclap?It’s a tool that allows thousands of people to share the same message at exactly the same time. All you have to do is visit our Thunderclap page and give permission to share a single message on Facebook and Twitter at a specified time. We must reach our supporter goal in order for the Thunderclap to take place. The more people who participate, the more impact we have. Our National Commander will demand that lawmakers take action and demonstrate accountability to solve problems that continue to plague America’s veterans. He will acknowledge that “all the words are there” but that execution has been the problem in Washington.  JOIN ME TODAY by signing up on our Thunderclap page and asking your friends to join us. That’s all you need to do and we’ll take care of making sure your message reaches Capitol Hill. Let’s amplify the message and ask lawmakers to work as allies, not adversaries, to fulfill our sacred obligation to care for those who have served our nation in uniform.  Sincerely, (Name)  If you haven’t already, please like our official Facebook page (The American Legion Online Update) and follow us on Twitter (@AmericanLegion) to stay up to date on our progress. America’s veterans have earned respect. They deserve the services they have earned. This is non-negotiable. All of our leaders need to honor these obligations without regard to partisan bickering or bureaucratic roadblocks. Please stand with us, amplify the message and demand accountability. Sincerely, Daniel S. Wheeler National Adjutant The American Legion