The week of Nov. 4-11 leads us into Veterans Day and has been designated as Department of California “Buddy Check” Week. This is an ideal time for post commanders to reach out and contact unrenewed Legionnaires in their posts to show them we care about their health & welfare and appreciate their service.
Please understand this is NOT a time to try and collect membership dues, but rather a chance for us to show Legionnaires we care about their health & welfare and appreciate their service to this great nation.Remember, the most important part of the call is to see if the veteran and family are OK, if the Legion can help and to invite them to participate in activities.
Watch the video below by Legionnaire Kigallon of Maryland that explains the “Buddy Check” process.
As Legionnaires, our most sacred responsibility is to look out for each other and our fellow veterans. A “Buddy Check” is one way to check-up on the health & welfare of our fellow veterans who may need help and let them know we care. No matter their situations, we can do as our founders did by making personal contact with veterans in our communities.
How do I organize a Buddy Check?
1. Gather up a team if possible to call or personally visit members and former members of The American Legion. If each member in a team of 10 calls just 10 Legionnaires or former Legionnaires, 100 veterans can be reached in one sitting.
2. If you don’t have a list of members and former members at your fingertips, visit myLegion.org and download the names of current members and those who have let their memberships expire.
3. Save the file of members and those whose memberships have expired onto a spreadsheet or copy and paste into a Word file to distribute among your team members. Print several copies of the lists.
4. Divide up the call list among your team members. Some may have personal connections with the member or the former member and should make that particular buddy check.
5. Start calling – either from a quiet place inside the post or from your home – to see how the members and former members are doing, ask if they need anything and invite them to any event or activity planned to help celebrate the Legion’s 100th anniversary.
6. Use the spreadsheet to record your calls and identify those who haven’t been members since 2014, 2015 or 2016. For each former member who rejoins from those years, your post may receive a $5 reward.
7. If you are making it a group effort, where many members of your team are calling on a particular night or time, invite the local media to show The American Legion celebrating its 100th birthday the personal way: by checking in on their buddies in the community.
8. Make sure you THANK the Legionnaire or former member in the beginning and at the end of your call.
9. If the member or former member wishes to renew, be sure to have your post’s payment procedure at your fingertips, the address to send a check or offer to stop by in person to pick it up (another opportunity to connect). However, this is not a membership drive. Do not ask them to renew.
10. Leave contact information in case the member or former member can’t take the call or needs anything in the future.
11. Report all help requested by contacted veterans to post leadership for further action. It is our duty to help when and where we can.
Sample Scripts
Using scripts makes it easy for your team to make buddy checks on members and former members. Use these scripts, modify them or draft your own before reaching out. Remember, the most important part of the call is to see if the veteran and family are OK, if the Legion can help and to invite them to celebrate any planned centennial events or activities.
When you speak to an unrenewed member or a veteran eligible for membership, they may ask the question: “What does the Legion do?” You can be prepared with quick answers that apply at the national, department and local level using the attached worksheet.
Reports
To assist you in your efforts, expired members lists can be easily retrieved from the Report Server on myLegion.org
Author: caLegion Contributor
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