Save the Date Everyone!  This Year's Rally is in Chino at Post 299 from September 19 - 21.

The event will include:

Friday:

Dinner - Hosted by Auxiliary Unit 299 (Price not included in Registration)

Saturday:

7 Card Stud Poker Run through 6 local Posts

Burn Your Own Steak Dinner (Price Included in Registration)

Live Music

Raffles, 50/50, Vendors, And More!

Sunday:

Breakfast - Hosted by SAL Squadron 299 (Price not included in Registration)

Pre-registration is live, which saves you $10 off the door price and guarantees your shirt size and type.

Good afternoon comrades,

It’s been awhile. I am writing to call us to support each other in these challenging times.

Weather, politics, isolation; all these are fuel for an undercurrent of discord. I also follow all the good that the riders are doing with rallies and events in all the areas. I appreciate all the outreach that is done in our communities.

Brothers and sisters, we are members of an historic organization with a great record of service. I am proud to know so many of you and hope to meet many more in the coming months. I look forward to seeing the area posts of events and the messages from our many riders. It is uplifting to witness the implementation of Comrade Molina’s 2gether call.

Chapter Bylaws Workshop

Monday, September 27th, 2021 @ 7:00 PM 

(Doors will open at 6:45)

All members are welcome to attend...

 ALR DoC PPC

Mission: To assist in training and to advise current and incoming ALR Officers

For Assistance: Please contact

Ken S. ALRDOC PPC President

MSG: 530-321-4070

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Past Chapter 84 President, Retired Captain Ed Norton, rode in the NVAR from Auburn to DC back in May.  Upon arrival Ed was selected to lay the wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

MOTORCYCLE CLINIC HOSTED BY ALR CHAPTER 69 HOLLISTER

AUGUST 26, 2018 @ 0900 VETERANS HALL HOLLISTER

I am happy to announce and support the upcoming Motorcycle Clinic hosted by the ALR Chapter 69 (Hollister) at no charge to our members.  The Motorcycle Clinic is being instructed by Sergeant Eddie Chan of the San Jose Police Department.   This is a great opportunity for anyone who is able to attend this event and falls in line with our goals to become better Motorcycle Riders. 

 To attend this Clinic, you must RSVP, Mark A. Scherer, Sr. President, ALR Chapter 69 by email at send2marks@outlook.com.

RECORDING YOUR MILEAGE FOR YOUR CHAPTER

We have a lot of new Chapter Presidents and riders who might not know, but the American Legion Riders Department of California (ALR DOC) has a place to record all your mileage ridden during the year.  Whether you ride in a group or by yourself to support a Veteran’s Funeral, Honor Flight, Veterans Event, Fun Raisers aka Poker Runs, Memorial Day, Parades or even going to another Post for a Meeting, Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner.

Last year, the American Legion Riders recorded a whopping 1,099,050 miles.  My challenge to Area VPs, individual Chapter Presidents and Riders, is to get involved and get those numbers reported.  We are currently sitting at 95,304 miles for the year so far.  So get your miles logged, whether you ride 500 miles or 10,000 miles, we want to know.

Increasing your Visibility to Others is not so hard. We have heard or read articles, "Gee Officer, I didn't see him".

New bikes have there headlights hard wired, but if you have an earlier model, flip it on at all times, including during daylight hours.

Turn on the high beam highlights during the day....more noticeable. Signal your intentions, use your horn and wear clothes that can be seen.

Position your motorcycle where it can be seen. Don't put yourself behind a large truck or ride in the blind spot of a vehicle near you.

Remember to cancel your signals when you've completed your turn or lane change.

These are only a few things you can do, Ride Safe!

Do you wear the patch or do you wear the patch?  Is the American Legion Riders patch on your back simply a piece of cloth you wear so you can look cool or do you breathe life into the patch and give it meaning? 

We have come a long way over these past few years, but I know we are better than what we have accomplished.  While we are growing, our parent organizations are not.  We need to be the example to them.  We have added 17 Chapters in two years and will be voting in two more this month.  After that, we are working with 10 other American Legion Posts to add Chapters there. 

I found this article under AllState Insurance, short and to the point.

Brand loyalty.  What does it mean to you?

Brand loyalty is when you consistently choose one brand over competing brands.  I eat, breathe, and bleed the American Legion and the American Legion Riders.  I do not expect, nor should I expect, everyone to have the same enthusiasm.  You should support a person’s desire to be a member of more than one organization.  It is good to have variety in your life.  What I do expect though, is if you are going to be an officer in our organization that you give it your full and undivided loyalty.  If you choose to be a member of different organizations, you dress the part of the organizations event you are attending.  Not as a member of the other organization.

I wanted to share some suggestions and ideas on how to organize and effectively carry out a membership campaign at the Chapter level.  But keep in mind; perspective Riders must first become members of their parent organization. So your recruiting strategy should ensure you’re not only bringing in quality Riders, but quality Veterans, Auxiliary and Sons too.

To be successful, every Chapter needs a strong and effective membership campaign.

Sounds easy enough … but how do you actually go about developing one?

As Riders, we have done a great job in remembering and honoring the veterans from past conflicts, but are we doing all that we can for the current generation of Veterans?

In the Constitution of the American Legion, the last of the two purposes of the Legion say “to cement the ties and comradeship born of service; and to consecrate the efforts of its members to mutual helpfulness and service to their country.”

We all are aware that when the Vietnam War ended 43 years ago, veterans were not welcomed home or given the support they needed. Since then we have vowed “Never Again” would we allow veterans to return home from our nations conflicts without welcoming them home, and doing everything we can to help them adjust back into civilian life.

Homeless Veterans Outreach Program (HVOP)

I cannot over emphasis that our individual members and Chapters are the ground roots for this program, and the most important element in making this program successful. Our Riders are who will be making the vast majority of initial contact with the homeless veteran’s, and have the greatest chance of making a difference in their lives.

We are not here to recreate the wheel and start yet another program, but the ALR DoC HVOP is envisioned to assist local agencies such as the VA, non-profit groups, local governments, and so on. Our role would best serve our homeless veteran target groups by lending assistance to already up and running groups. Boots on the ground so to speak. But we need to be able to reach out to these veterans and work on getting them into one of these already established programs.

This is a ride in Area 5 to promote the brother & sisterhood among Chapters & Posts. A Rider purchases a Passport book and then attends the other chapter events, meeting or Post and gets their book stamped, then before convention turn in your book to the Area 5 VP team and a drawing is held. 50% of the money made will be donated to a Veterans Cause. Contact Area 5 VP Rey Ruiz, or Asst Area 5 VP's Gene Hobdy, Ray Ficek or Ron Huff for more information. 

The ALR Area 5 Passport Run will run from 7/27/2017 to 4/1/2018

Riders!

On September 4^th your brothers-in-leather of Chapter 31 will be departing on an epic ride across the country to raise money for the California Central Coast Veterans Cemetery (CCCVC).  Funds are desperately needed to complete Phase Two of the cemetery, allowing for in-ground burials. 

The American Legion Riders of Post 83 Merced, held a Motorcycle Safety Training Day to allow riders to enjoy the day riding several motorcycle training courses at no cost to the riders.

The next training is Sat May 27, 2017....no flyer, we post on our FB Page.  American Legion Riders Post 83 Merced. It is pin to the top. We invited Area 3 Vice President Ralph M. To attend if he wanted. This training is for Post 83 only at this time. I think it is something other ALRs could do.  We have lots of small videos posted on FB if you scroll down to last Saturday showing the courses.  Eventually I would like to help others set this up if interested. 

Riders - take a look at the attached crossword puzzle. The ALR has finally been recognized by non-riders.

John Moffitt
American Legion Riders National Advisory Committee

RESOLUTION

WHEREAS the American Legion Department of California, in convention assembled in Palm Springs, California, June 22-24, 2007 authorized the establishment of The American Legion Riders Department of California as an official program of The American Legion Department of California, and

WHEREAS the Department of California American Legion Riders has quickly reached a membership of nearly 2000, and

WHEREAS the growth and scope of the Department of California American Legion Riders directly impacts the reputation, good order and name of the Department of California American Legion, and