In April 1946, The American Legion Family joined forces with several other veterans service organizations, including the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), to form what is known as Veterans Affairs Voluntary Service (VAVS). Today, American Legion Auxiliary volunteers serve alongside members of the community as VAVS volunteers and as volunteers through the Auxiliary’s own Service to Veterans program.
VAVS supports VA and VHA (Veterans Health Administration) strategic goals by recruiting, supporting, and retaining a knowledgeable, diverse, and engaged supplemental workforce of volunteers to assist management in the delivery of VA healthcare by improving access to care, assisting with long-term care, improving patient satisfaction and much more. The Auxiliary is not the only group that provides VAVS volunteers, but we do have representatives who serve on the VA’s National Advisory Committee. Learn more about VAVS
"I remember going down to the Legion post with my grandfather [World War II U.S. Army veteran Howard Schlitter], and hearing him say things like, “You’ve got to take care of the veterans. You’ve got to be there for them and help them out.” None of that really resonated with me until after he was gone. Then, I realized I have to be his voice."
- Mike Monserud, ALA member of Auxiliary Unit 37 in Ames, Iowa
ALA templates, operations guides, manuals, program action plans, handbooks, bylaws, toolkits and more are available to ALA Members on our Member Portal. (log-in required)
