chaptersinaction
Supporting MOAA 1st Sgt. Robert Griffith, USA (Ret), has spent years working alongside his wife, Lt. Col. Lessie Griffith, USA (Ret), who is president and mem- bership chair of the Pelican (La.) Chapter (
www.moaa.org/chapter/ pelican) and secretary and scholar- ship chair for the Louisiana Council of Chapters (
www.lcoc-moaa.org). Robert Griffith currently is the sec- retary-treasurer and email contact for the Pelican Chapter and is the council’s assistant secretary. He also coordinates the council’s scholarship program, emailing information and processing applications from college- bound students across the state. In 2015, he visited Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital at Fort Polk, La., and invited medical corps offi- cers to the chapter’s picnic. Chapter leaders honored the officers during the picnic and ended up recruiting five new members. The Griffiths also are officers in the Louisiana Veterans Coalition, which advocates for veterans and their families in the state legisla- ture. Robert Griffith says he often shares legislative information from MOAA with leaders of other veterans’ organizations. “MOAA is the starting point for
many state and national legislative issues,” he says. Currently, Robert Griffith is using ideas gleaned at a member- ship chair workshop he attended as part of MOAA’s regional 2015 Chap- ter Leaders’ Symposium in Kansas City, Mo., to recruit more chapter members. “I don’t think people re- alize how first-class MOAA is until they attend one of the association’s signature events,” he says.
PHOTO: SEAN SHANAHAN
Reflecting on Our Veterans
“Never stop serving” is the new tagline MOAA adopted in 2015. It provides a powerful message that evokes the core characteristics of our members, such as duty, self-sacrifice, and working toward a higher calling, which I believe capture the spirit of our council and chapter system across the country. Each year our chapters look to pick a new service project or refine plans
to support an existing service project. One community service project that is gaining traction across the country among our chapters is veterans treatment courts. We have chapters from a number of states — Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Nevada, and Texas, to name a few — that are actively involved with this cause and making a positive difference. Chapter support for the programs can range from mentoring veterans to providing much- needed support in the way of bus tokens or housing. The common thread across all of MOAA’s chapters’ community service
projects is meeting unmet needs. Chapters of all sizes and locations are involved in a range of projects, from conducting an annual wounded war- rior golf tournament to staffing the local airport’s United Service Organi- zations lounge and funding scholarship programs for local students. All are worthwhile endeavors that raise needed funds and focus attention on issues that bring our communities together while supporting veterans and their families. March finds the national MOAA staff finalizing plans and preparing
for our annual Storming the Hill event, which occurs in the second week of April. Our council and chapter leaders’ participation is a key element to making this event a success. These leaders represent MOAA members from their home states, and when they meet with their elected officials, they are representing not only our membership but all servicemembers and veterans and their families everywhere. The never-ending news cycle makes it easy to become frustrated, es- pecially in an election year. It also should be obvious that to make a dif- ference, we need to participate and get involved in the legislative process — like our council and chapter leaders during Storming the Hill. So, do you want to be part of a solution, participating with your local
chapter to make a positive difference in your community? Do you want to participate and support your state council and MOAA national as we ad- dress issues facing our members and veterans? Your desire to “never stop serving” at all levels helps our association stay strong and powerful. I hope to see you at a future chapter meeting.
— Col. Barry Wright, USA (Ret), Director, Council and Chapter Affairs
MARCH 2016 MILITARY OFFICER 47
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