A publication of Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc. ®
An organization chartered by the U.S. Congress
February 2001/March 2001
Membership Matters
On to Greensboro
By Allen Green, Director of Membership
Welcome to the new VVA membership year. It began on March 1, 2001, and you will notice the next roster is shorter than the February 28, 2001, list. The missing members are those folks who did not renew by the last day of February. Contact these "inactive" members and get them to renew. This should be your chapter’s Number One priority. When you reach the members, immediately verify the correct address on the roster to insure they received their renewal forms. Every VVA and AVVA member with a membership expiration date of February, March, or April 2001 received a renewal form in mid-February. Members with expiration dates between March and June 2001 will receive an additional renewal reminder in late March.
Convention planning time is now. The February 28 membership numbers set the totals VVA National will use to compute delegate counts. The VVA Constitution (Article I, Section 7) defines how we determine delegate strength. Each chapter receives one delegate for its first 25 members. A chapter with 50 members is entitled to a second delegate. A chapter receives an additional delegate for each full block of 50 members thereafter. A state council receives one delegate vote for its state council president and one delegate vote for each full block of 100 members residing within the state who are either not affiliated with a chapter or belong to a chapter with fewer than 25 members.
Here are the delegate rules for the Greensboro Convention:
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No transfers of VVA members between chapters within 90 days of convention (May 3). Transfers for the purpose of starting new VVA chapters or transfers into a different chapter when members change their residence may continue.•
New delegates attending their first VVA convention must attach a copy of their DD Form 214 to their application. Delegates who attended VVA conventions in 1995, 1997, or 1999 do not need to attach a copy of their DD Form 214. All delegates are encouraged to have a copy of their DD Form 214 with them at the convention to help resolve any potential credentialing questions.•
When a chapter elects not to send a delegate, it may transfer the delegate vote(s) to another eligible VVA member in the state or to the state council president. Transfer authority must be in writing and signed by two chapter officers.•
All challenges to a delegate’s eligibility are to be brought to the attention of the Credentials Committee chair. The chair will then seek the applicable regional director, state council president, and VVA membership staff for clarification of any delegate’s credentials. If a challenge cannot be resolved at that level, a meeting of the Credentials Committee will convene and arbitrate.A possible convention delegate show-stopper is your chapter’s status. We still have a few chapters listed as "Suspended" for not filing their Fiscal Year 2000 VVA finance reports. The Fiscal Year 2001 finance report is due to VVA by July 15. Chapters failing to complete this report will be suspended before the Convention. Don’t forfeit your delegates’ eligibility by not completing this report.
This will be my second VVA National Convention, and I am looking forward to its success. If there is any one lesson learned from the 1999 Anaheim Convention, it’s that pre-registration is a must if you want to avoid delays and waiting in the long, on-site registration line. The occasional credential problem or missing paperwork can turn a delegate’s trip into a frustrating experience. Help us minimize the potential for this happening at Greensboro. There’s still plenty of time to fix questions and eligibility issues; call me at 800-882-1316, ext. 115, if you have questions.
THE LARGEST VVA CHAPTERS (AS OF FEBRUARY 9)
Baltimore, Maryland, Chapter 451 776 members
Cumberland, Maryland, Chapter 172 439 members
Mount Clemens, Michigan, Chapter 154 427 members
Rochester, New York, Chapter 20 389 members
Farmingville, New York, Chapter 11 364 members
THE LARGEST AVVA CHAPTER AFFILIATIONS (AS OF FEBRUARY 9)
Irvine, California, Chapter 785 866 Associate members
Baltimore, Maryland, Chapter 451 427 Associate members
Manitowoc, Wisconsin, Chapter 731 76 Associate members
Virginia Beach, Virginia, Chapter 48 57 Associate members
Carleton, Michigan, Chapter 142 56 Associate members
Rock Island, Illinois, Chapter 299 56 Associate members
E-mail us at TheVeteran@vva.org