KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) – Standing as the largest and most impactful veterans service organization in the country, the American Legion is currently facing a pressing challenge — the urgent need for new members to sustain the meaningful work they do.
As the commander of American Legion Hammond Post 3 in Kingsport, Angelo Pellitteri has observed firsthand the aging demographic of the members. “Like many organizations, we’re aging. We need younger veterans to come forward, get involved, and take an active role,” Pellitteri emphasized.
In Kingsport, there is a heartfelt call for veterans to join the Honor Guard. This group, dedicated to honoring their fellow servicemen and women at funerals, is an integral part of a collaborative effort with the Gate City post.
“The Honor Guard is composed of both men and women committed to providing military honors at funeral services,” Pellitteri explained. “Based on the event, we also perform firing parties at civic activities, paying tribute to those who have served.”
The post also supports youth activities and participates in events.
“This past year, we’ve sent four cadets to Air Force summer leadership school up in Concord, West Virginia,” Pellitteri said. “We try to send kids to boys’ state and girls’ state. Of course, we participate in the parades.”
To be a member, you must have been honorably discharged. The post is hoping to gain enough members to form subsidiaries.
“There’s ways to donate,” Todd McKinley, the immediate past state commander, said. “We don’t have a Sons of the American Legion here at Post 3, but we would love to form a Sons of the American Legion. Which means if you have a relative, an immediate, like a father or mother, who has been a veteran, you can join. A grandmother, grandfather, you can also join.”
The organization also advocates for veterans’ benefits at the state and local levels.
“You sign on the dotted line, and you lived up to your end of the bargain,” McKinley said. “Why shouldn’t the VA or the federal government live up to their end of the bargain? And with fewer numbers involved in veteran service organizations, it’s easier for them to take those things away from you.”
The post would also like to bring back youth sports eventually.
“A lot of the programs that we have are actually youth-oriented programs,” McKinley said. “And the more people we have, the more programs we can actually do in our communities. People complain about, you know, there’s not enough youth sports leagues. Well, that’s something that we can bring to the table as the American Legion. We just need volunteers. We already have the template. We already know how to run these programs. We just need volunteers to be able to help stand them up.”
Post 3 meets on the third Monday of the month at the V.O. Dobbins Senior Complex. Find more information about them here, or email McKinley directly to get involved.