 
Assembly Resolution No. 172
 
BY: M. of A. Barrett
 
        COMMEMORATING   the   100th   Anniversary  of  The
        American Legion
 
  WHEREAS, It is the sense  of  this  Legislative  Body  to  recognize
veterans  organizations which have positively impacted and substantially
contributed to the vitality of their communities; and
 
  WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and  in  full  accord  with  its
long-standing  traditions,  this  Legislative  Body  is  justly proud to
commemorate the 100th Anniversary of The American Legion; and
 
  WHEREAS, The American Legion is a veterans organization  founded  in
Paris on March 15, 1919, by three officers of the American Expeditionary
Forces, who fought in World War I; and
 
  WHEREAS,  On  May 8, 1919, the St. Louis Caucus was held to organize
the soldiers and sailors in every state to become members  of  this  new
organization  known  as The American Legion; about 97 delegates from New
York State organized the Department of New York while at the  St.  Louis
Caucus; and
 
  WHEREAS,  On  May  24,  1919,  the  national organization issued the
Department of New York American  Legion  its  charter,  recognizing  New
York's founding roots to both Paris and St. Louis Caucus; and
 
  WHEREAS, The Department of New York issued its first Post charter on
June  2,  1919,  and  exactly two months later, issued a charter for its
200th post; and
 
  WHEREAS, On September 16, 1919, the United States  Congress  charted
The American Legion; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Nine  New  Yorkers  were  among  some 20 "founders" at the
organizational meeting in Paris on February 15-16 1919,  which  set  the
stage  for  the Paris Caucus (March 15-17) and the St. Louis Caucus (May
8-19); they included Theodore Roosevelt Jr, the son of the  26th  United
States President; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The  focus  of The American Legion is on securing services
and benefits for veterans, the families  of  service  members,  and  the
communities where the veterans live and work; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Among  the  programs  The  American Legion sponsor include
baseball teams, Boys State, Legion Riders, Operation  Comfort  Warriors,
National  Emergency  Fund, and Oratorical Contest for students under the
age of 20; and
 
  WHEREAS, The American Legion has departments in all  50  states,  as
well  as  the  District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, France, Mexico and the
Philippines; and
 
  WHEREAS, Starting  in  the  late  1930s,  The  American  Legion  was
instrumental  in  prodding  the  federal government to create the United
 
States Veterans' Bureau, which later became the Veterans Administration,
and in 1989,  the  Department  of  Veterans  Affairs,  a  cabinet  level
department  to  give  veterans  representation  at  the highest level of
government; and
 
  WHEREAS,  In  1944,  The American Legion was the moving force behind
the drafting and enacting of the Servicemen's Readjustment Act, which is
commonly known as the GI Bill; and
 
  WHEREAS, This landmark legislation provided for low-cost  mortgages,
low-interest  loans  to  start  a business, cash payments to attend high
school,  college  or  vocational/technical  school  and  one   year   of
unemployment compensation; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Since  World  War  II, The American Legion has been in the
forefront of supporting additional veterans benefits  including  in  the
1950s  mental  health treatment which led to the National Association of
Mental Health, and in the 1980s the Legion sponsored and funded  studies
assessing the effects of Agent Orange; and
 
  WHEREAS, The American Legion created the American Legion Scholarship
Fund  for children of military members killed in active duty on or after
September 11, 2001 and in 2016, the scholarship criteria was amended  to
include  the  children of veterans with 50 percent or greater disability
ratings granted from the Department of Veterans Affairs; and
 
  WHEREAS, In August 2018, The American Legion  began  its  centennial
recognition  at the 100th National Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
the site of the first American Legion National Convention; and
 
  WHEREAS, The American Legion Department of New York State celebrated
its 100th Annual Department Convention July 19-21, 2018,  in  Rochester,
New York; and
 
  WHEREAS,  March  29-30, 2019, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and
The America Legion will be honoring those Hall of Famers who  served  in
the  Armed  Forces  or  who played Legion Baseball before going into the
major leagues,  as  part  of  the  yearlong  celebration  of  the  100th
Anniversary of The American Legion; and
 
  WHEREAS,  It  is  with  great  pleasure  that  this Legislative Body
acknowledges this important anniversary in the history of  The  American
Legion; now, therefore, be it
 
  RESOLVED,  That  this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the 100th Anniversary of The  American  Legion,  and  be  it
further
 
  RESOLVED,  That  a  copy  of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to American Legion Department of New York Commander Gary  M.
Schacher, Department of New York Past Commander Rene Nessler, Department
of New York Adjutant James W. Casey and Department of New York Historian
Frank Carletta.
Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of The American Legion

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