Aug 01, 2012
For the second consecutive year, VFW National Military Services (NMS) offered up a friendly competition between VFW and Ladies Auxiliary convention attendees at the 113th VFW National Convention in Reno, Nev.
NMS developed a great way for attendees to support the troops through a contest called the “NMS Services Challenge.” VFW members from each branch of service and Ladies Auxiliary members competed against each other to see who could donate the most money to NMS.
Ballot boxes for each service branch, as well as one for the Ladies Auxiliary, were placed at the NMS booth. Attendees could donate to NMS by filling out a donor supporter card and placing it in the proper ballot box.
Each donation of $5 or more earned the donor a NMS lapel pin with VFW’s new tagline, NO ONE DOES MORE FOR VETERANS. Those who gave $5 received a bronze pin, $10 received a black pin, those who donated $15 got a silver pin, and those who gave $20 or more received a gold lapel pin.
Every donor supporter card was later displayed on a wall in the lobby of the convention center for all to see. The total each group donated was tracked daily on the wall with colored-in thermometers.
By the end of the challenge, VFW and Ladies Auxiliary members demonstrated their strong commitment to our troops through their extreme generosity, proving that No One Does More For Veterans!
Army donors came away as the winning group this year after finishing second the previous year, contributing an impressive $1,937. The Navy finished second with $1,191. The Air Force was third, followed by the Ladies Auxiliary. The Marines and the Coast Guard rounded out the competition with solid donation amounts, for a grand total of $4,911 raised for NMS programs!
Not only was the competition a huge success, participants had a blast competing against their fellow VFW and Ladies Auxiliary members.
To learn more about NMS programs, click here.