Ongoing Projects

Now that my larger project is being milled around by the post members, I have had a chance to work on some of the smaller projects that I agreed to do. I was able to research some legislation concerning veterans and was able to start drafting letters that I plan to send to WV representatives such as Capito, Mollohan, and Rahall. I was also able to write thank you notes to send to the local businesses that were kind enough to donate to the auxiliary's Cancer Benefit.

I was also recently voted in as chariman of the legislative committee for the auxiliary for which I will be sending monthly reports of services that we participate in. The most recent project taken on by the auxiliary I am working for is researching and gathering information that would help identify Vietnamese, Laotian, and Cambodian gravesites. This includes interviewing Vietnam War Veterans, finding photos, and information on locations of battles or burial sites. There are still over 300,000 MIAs from the Vietnam War alone.

I feel deeply about these types of projects, and as you can see it sometimes makes it hard to say no. I don't know how much information I can gather but I am going to try my best at every project they try to throw my way. I did sit down and go over a progress report that I drafted with the President of the Ladies Auxiliary. She was pleased to see how much I have accomplished so far and was able to see how much I have agreed to take on. To be honest, I feel that the communication in the organization could use a little work, because she didn't realize that I was getting projects from all sides of the field. Not only is the auxiliary expecting me to do projects for them, but the post asked me to take on some as well. Through drafting this progress report as Dr. Wible suggested, I was able to get my superiors to see just what they were asking of me on paper, which inturn gave them a perspective of how much they were expecting from me.

Second Newsletter Proposal

On Monday, March 2nd I presented my second proposal for the VFW Post newsletter. This time, it was in front of all of the members, rather than just the House Committee. I felt a great deal better about this proposal than I did my last one. My presentation included goals that I thought the newsletter would achieve with a handout that illustrated the main points. Some of the goals included gaining membership, outreach to uninvolved members, post recognition in the community, and more program participation. I also outlined the costs involved and provided both a color and black and white example of the newsletter itself. I think this time around I had more of a response to the content of the newsletter, than just questions pertaining to costs involved.

I gained experience adjusting my presentation in order to appeal to my audience. I had to do a lot of “knowing my audience” editing to my presentation, because of who they were and what their main objectives as an organization are. The audience I am presenting to at the VFW consists of both men and women ranging from the age of 50 to 84. Through understanding my audience, I was able to create a proposal with appropriate language and interests of the post.

I also got the chance to help put together a benefit for Cancer Aid and Research. The Auxiliary celebrated their 30th annual benefit last Saturday. It was a great opportunity to work and raise money for an illness that has directly affected my family. Some of the professional writing and editing projects that I helped with for the benefit included a letter addressed to local businesses encouraging them to donate to the evening, promotional flyers, and thank you notes. I also included a short article about the benefit in the newsletter mentioned above.