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Comrades,                                                                                                   

Its time to focus on a new year.  With a new year we have new goals and new direction for the organization.  As I am sure everyone has heard by now our main focus is MEMBERSHIP.

Just to go over a few of the objectives of the year.  First and last is MEMBERSHIP.  A little history into this decision, in 1995 our membership stood at 24,831, we ended this last year 15,800, a decline of 32%.  As you can see this is a trend that we need to change to survive.  So while all programs are important, I really believe that this HAS to be our primary focus.  Second is YOUTH ACTIVITIES.  I encourage each and every post to support youth activities in their area, (i.e. team sponsorship, school sponsorship, boy scouts, etc).  This is a great way to change our image in the community.  It is also a great way to reach out to the youth of our community and to promote our youth programs without having to depend solely on the educational systems.  Third is COMMUNITY SERVICE.  this is also another way to improve our standing in our local communities, and by improving our standing in our local communities it gives us the opportunity to recruit new members.

I know that this sounds like a lot of work, but as the old saying goes anying that is worth having is worth working for.  By the end of this year I firmly believe we can all take pride in the improvements that we will have made to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Arkansas.  Always remember that we are a TEAM, and I am here to help in any way that I can.

In closing I want to thank all the Auxiliaries, both Ladies and Men's at all levels for the support that you provide, and I encourage all Posts not having Auxiliaries to look into forming one or both.


                                                   Veterans' Pride Runs Deep
                                                   Scott Bramlett
                                                   State Commander