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• Friday, January 02, 2015

  Nearly 2,000 New Members! Thank You! Keep It Up!

  In a New Year’s message, Department Commander Frank Peters thanked membership teams and Legionnaires for their efforts that successfully recruited 1,958 new members before the end of 2014.

  

  Frank Peters

  That’s in addition to membership renewals. As of Dec. 28, the Department was at 75 percent of its overall membership goal, well on the way to reaching 80 percent by a Jan. 21st target date.

  He called the Department’s goal to increase membership by 3,000 over 2014 “modest,” yet “ambitious” in the face of declining Legion membership across the country.

  He reminded everyone of his incentive to award a pin to each member who recruited just one new member or reinstated a delinquent member.

  “Membership recruitment is a vital part of the membership program because it not only helps us replace our dedicated members who pass on, but also allows us to reverse the trend of a declining membership and foster a culture of growth,” the commander said. “Being the second largest Department in the National organization is something we all can be proud of. It is estimated that there are 600,000 eligible war time veterans living in New York State. Our current membership represents less than 25% of that number. And, as I have said on many occasions, that as a nation that has been in conflict for 25 years, I believe every member knows at least one person that is eligible to join our organization. It is my hope that this incentive would motivate and inspire every member to reach out to just one personand become part of this year’s successful effort.”

  He added: “Equally important as recruiting new members is retaining our current members. National Commander Mike Helm has recently announced that he will award his membership incentive pin to members who reach out to current members who have not yet renewed for the 2015 membership year. ((Three new members or five renewals earn the national pin.) Personal contact is the key here and this should be an easy task. Membership renewal notices are mailed out in January 2015 to all members who have not yet renewed. Please make every effort to follow up these notices with a phone call. It is important that all renewals be transmitted to Department as soon as possible to help meet the 80% cutoff date of January 21.”