Catching up 2023

Good morning and Happy New Year! This is a good time to summarize a lot of what we did last year because it was busy!

• We hosted our winners from the Americanism Essay Contest in April

• In May we went with our poppies to a variety of places, including NC which was the 2nd year for the NC trip. We had a Poppy Poster contest in which two of our elementary schools participated by turning in over 100 posters for judging. We displayed them at our local library for the entire month of September.

• We donated piles of blankets and quilts to Operation Homefront to be used for military wives' baby showers.

• Vet Link continued working with homeless veterans near McGuire and we assisted by collecting and providing food, cleaning supplies, and the Post pitched in with sleeping bags, socks, t-shirts and underwear as well as additional food and cleaning supplies.

• We interviewed and sent 2 girls to Girls State

• Presented Quilts of Valor to Legion Members.

• The Legion Family spent the week of Veterans' Day at Byrd Elementary, Goochland Elementary and Friday at Randolph Elementary reading books about the military and taking the students through the White Table Ceremony. We had 11 veterans accompany us and answered many questions of the students as well as pitching in with the reading.

• Donated to Holiday Helpers Christmas House at Ft. Lee. A wonderful place where military families can shop at no cost to them. We, also, had the opportunity to help them organize their donations and wrapped gifts.

• We collected and donated canned goods and food items to the Food Pantry at Goochland Cares. Fran has asked that we continue to bring items in monthly and she will take them to the Pantry.

• We've worked with the Legion to help repair and fix up the rental house; besides donating funds we've spent many hours cleaning and painting. It's been a long process as everything in the house needed work and now it is complete and rented.

• The Legion started Bingo in February of 2023 and the Auxiliary has pitched in and helped in numerous ways.

• We had two Bazaars and one Yard Sale that funded a variety of Veteran and community related needs.