The purpose of this document is to help educate all elected and appointed officers of the organization about programs in the organization, from youth programs and scholarships, community service, volunteer recognition, "Buddy"® Poppy, to all programs under the Veterans & Military Support umbrella. Additionally, it will have information concerning U.S. Flag issues and a variety of special projects. Our sole priority is helping your Post, District and Department serve your community and veterans in a meaningful way. For that reason, the VFW National Organization is committed to doing everything possible to serve you and make every opportunity count for you and for the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
The purpose of this section is twofold. First, we want to familiarize you as leaders of your Post, District or Department, with the fundamentals of our VFW programs and activities. As we do that, it is our goal then to encourage you and your existing leaders to participate to build that much needed relationship with your local community. We are convinced that good programs, properly executed, will do more for your Post than anything else you do.
Your programs are often the first impression that the public has of the VFW. Therefore it’s extremely important to be prepared and more importantly appoint the right persons as the program chairman. Your VFW programs are defined under two categories; Community Service, Youth Scholarships and Activities and Veterans & Military Support. Within the Community Service, Youth Scholarships and Activities category we often refer to several program elements as our core programs. These are programs that are executed by the largest number of Posts and have the greatest impact on our organization, our communities and our veterans. Typically, these core programs are mandated for every Post as part of your Department All State Program and are heavily encouraged and supported by the VFW National organization. These core programs within the Community Service, Youth Scholarships and Activities include our scholarship programs; Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen, the Smart/Maher VFW National Citizenship Education Teacher of the Year program, Scouting, and "Buddy"® Poppy.