I am honored and humbled to have been elected to be the District 8 Commander of the Department of Pennsylvania, Veterans of Foreign Wars. I am truly excited to be part of the absolute best combat veterans organization on the face of the planet! It has already been an incredible journey being part of the District Senior Leadership team over the past 5 years and I am looking forward to the next year as the district commander, working together with all of you to do great things in District 8.
To help design and organize our approach and activities for a successful VFW program year, I have prepared a “Commanders Philosophy” document that can be read by following this LINK. I’ve created this document to give you an idea of my leadership style and imperatives, as well as the district priorities for the ensuing year. I would ask that each of you read this document at least twice to gain a good understanding on my thought processes and the vision I have for District 8 as we enter the new VFW Program year. I ask that you keep a few things in mind as you read this document:
We are a veteran’s organization first and not a bar, club or canteen – Understanding that many of our posts in District 8 enjoy a safe place for veterans and their families to gather socially, those are not the purposes of which our organization was formed. We are here to simply carry out our 123-year mission of serving veterans, their families, widows, and orphans. This is our primary mission!
Serve veterans first before the community and non-veterans – Although VFW programs include a significant amount of community service and engagement, it should never be at the cost of sacrificing our primary mission for those to which we were formed. Organizations such as ROTC, Shamrock Reins, Voice of Democracy, Patriot’s Pen, non-veterans and other community activities are key to post success, they must never be prioritized ahead of veterans or their families in need. NEVER!
Conduct rigorous oversight and management of Post operations – Exercising good financial and operations management in our posts is vital to establishing and maintaining discipline and good order. The VFW National Bylaws and Manual of Procedure explicitly defines the roles, responsibilities, and duties for each leadership position at the post level. In 2022, we enhanced the National Post Inspection process to help individual posts identify and correct deficiencies that were not aligned with the National Bylaws and Manual of Procedure. We will continue our relentless iterative improvement efforts in this area.
In closing, I want to thank all of you for stepping up to lead your post in the capacity to which you’ve been elected or appointed. Our organization can only exist and thrive with the help of leaders like you that are willing to take responsibility and serve. I truly appreciate all of you for your willingness to serve and thank you for your service and sacrifice you’ve made for our country.
If I can be of service or help in any way to you, please do not hesitate to contact me email at: Commander@vfwdistrict8.org or by phone at: (267) 644-7942.