Commanders' Message

Fellow Legionnaires, I thank you for your support over the last three years as your commander. With the election and installation of new officers at our meeting at the end of the month, I will be assuming a new roll as your Post Historian and will continue serving Post 52.

As most of you know, either by your attendance at our last meeting or from the email I sent after the meeting, we did not hold our election at our last meeting. This came about due to the late scheduling of this years state convention. Normally this happens at the beginning of June but this year it was scheduled for the end of June. Anyway to make a long story short, we needed to move our election to comply with the State Constitution and By-Laws.

Since we have a full slate of officers who are running unopposed I can inform you of who your officers will be for next year. They are as follows: Commander – Harvey Satterwhite; 1^st Vice Commander – Michael Donnelly; 2^nd Vice Commander – Robert Junk; Adjutant – Ed Wilson; Finance Officer – Anthony Kerensky; Judge Advocate – Robert Hobgood; Chaplain – Thomas Reid; Historian – George G. Tracy; Post Service Officer – Steve Ijames; Sergeant At Arms – Ricky Newell; 1^st Sergeant At Arms – Ernie Dimeler; 2^nd Sergeant At Arms – Joe Dillehay; and our 3 Executive Committeemen – Ansel Greenwood, Renchor Wright, and Adrienne O'Neill

Our guest of honor will be Mr. Jeff Joyner – National Executive Committeeman. Jeff will be swearing in our Officers for the coming year. This is also our Ladies night, so grab your significant other and come on out for a great meal (See Upcoming Events On Back Side) and fellowship with other members.

We started selling our Reverse Raffle tickets at our last meeting. You will all receive an opportunity to purchase or sale one between now and June 23^rd when the drawing will be held. But act fast because we only sell 200 tickets and we have 230 members. Tickets are sold on a first come first served basis so if I don't win, I hope one of you do. Tickets are available for a $50 donation. With all 200 tickets sold we will be giving away 21 prizes consisting of the following: one $50 winner for the first ticket drawn; every tenth ticket drawn wins $125; and finally $2500 will be given to the last ticket drawn.

It is May and we will be making plans for vacations, reunions, and trips to the beach and/or the mountains, but keep in mind that the legion will need your support during this same time. Remember Memorial Day Flag placement will be Saturday May 26 and our Memorial Day Service will be at Fairview Cemetery on Sunday May 27^th, at 2 pm. We will be laying a wreath at our veterans memorial. See you there.

The Photographer will be at the Post to take pictures for our new Directory on June 4^th and 5^th. Please make reservations online from our website or on our Facebook Event page. We are also looking for old photos of you back in the days when you were still in the service. No online available then call Harvey at 919-358-5591.

Our next big fund raiser will be a Chicken and Pork BBQ on June 9^th from 11 to 7, at the Post. All plates $8 with your choice of either ½ BBQ Chicken or Large portion of BBQ Pork. If having both is more your style we have a combination of ¼ BBQ Chicken and portion of BBQ Pork. Eat-In or Carry-Out. We will be doing preparation work the day before from 2 to 4. Hope to see you there.

Duty, Honor, and Country – George G. Tracy

Auxiliary Notes

Our Poppy distribution day will be Saturday, May 26, 2018 from 9am to 3pm at three locations in Franklinton: Mitchell's Hardware, Food Lion and Hometown Cafe. Please do your best to come to assist in the distribution. The more the merrier!

The next Executive Meeting will be at 9 am on May 14, 2018 at Post 52. Quilting bee to follow meeting. No sewing experience required. Bring a lunch!

Last month’s newsletter contained an error: our Executive and Sew Day, until further notice, will be on the second MONDAY of the month. I apologize if this caused any confusion!

Thanks to all of you that graciously volunteer with us. We appreciate you and look forward to a busy month ahead! Adrienne O’Neill

Vice-Commander's Report

Wow what an exciting year! As we transition with New Officers, I want that thank those who have served before me and hope that all Legionnaires will consider helping our Post in some way. I ask that you get involved, meet and know your fellow Legionnaires, and let’s have some fun along the way.

The summer is here and that means Vacations, R&R, and Cookouts with Family and Friends. 1) Don’t forget the sun screen, 2) Protect against Insects for You, Your Family and Don’t forget the PETS, 3) Prevent Dehydration, 4) Practice Food Safety since bacteria grows faster in warm temperatures, 5) Water Safety.

Notice: If you are a Paid Member and have not called to activate your FREE $5,000.00 Accidental Death Insurance please do so by calling 1-800-235-6943. You will need to have your Membership number. Even the call is free so please call to activate or check to make sure you have your coverage and that you’re Beneficiaries are correct. Just one more benefit of being a member of the American Legion.

I would like to take a moment and explain how membership in the American Legion works. The renewal process begins in July for the upcoming membership year. Renewal notices are sent out in July, October, January, March and May. When a member renews, they are removed from future renewal notices for that year. There are times when a member pays their dues, but they still receive a renewal notice. If dues are paid to the local post, it takes a little longer for national to be notified about the renewal and the member may receive another renewal notice. If this occurs, please check with your local post to ensure they have received your dues.

So what does this all mean? When you get your Renewal Notice we ask that you go ahead and renew your membership and save the American Legion the cost of mailing 2nd, 3rd, 4th renewal notices. This is one expense that we as members can help reduce in the cost of operation. So if you do not renew on the first notice and the American Legion has to continue to mail you reminders, Don’t complain when Nation comes down with a Dues Increase. Simple mathematics Ladies and Gentlemen.

Lastly, Don’t forget Pictures for our Post Directory coming up Monday and Tuesday, June 4^th & 5^th. 100 Years as an Organization and as a Chartered Post of the American Legion. Wonder if our forefathers would have thought we would still be around this long?

For God and Country - Harvey Satterwhite