Colorado ALR Meetings

Colorado State ALR Meeting Saturday 22 June 2024 1330-1430

The meeting was held in person and via Zoom

Meeting Agenda:

• Opening
• Roll call of ALRs
• Annual report for 2023-2024
• Pony Express 6 July and ROMP 6,7 September
• Business:
  • This will be an important discussion for ALRs regarding how ALR delegates to the meeting would like to see ALRs handled at department under the new C&B
    • The way it was under the old C&B: A Department Committee with Department Commander appointed State & Area directors. Under this system, we solicited nominations from ALR directors from that area, but we identified put a name forward for appointment if no nominations are received.
    • More like SAL Detachment with annual nominations and elections at the convention meeting. This is similar to how District representatives to Department were elected when ALR .
  • The new Department C&B will be very high level, only describing the program relationship to department in general terms…the detailed process for how we move forward would then be incorporated into the next Colorado ALR C&B revision.
  • Important note: Though we have a voice through ALR member Constitutional Convention delegates, until changes are codified in the new department C&B, there is no guarantee that what we decide at the meeting will be incorporated and ratified. The current guideline for the convention is that the finalized C&B put forward for ratification must be by unanimous vote of the entire delegation. If we don’t provide input, however, we live with what we get…
• For the good of the ALR
• Closing

Mid-Year Colorado ALR Meeting 27 January 2024

Slide deck and Zoom recording for the Colorado ALR meeting held 27 January 2024 are available for download. The slide deck has been updated for discussion points from the meeting. The meeting was attended in person or via Zoom by representatives from 21 Colorado Post ALR programs and one representative from National American Legion (Posts 1, 2, 4, 5, 13, 21, 22, 24, 26, 32, 38, 73, 161, 162, 172, 180, 183, 209, 1187, 1985, 2017).

6 June 2023 CO ALR Zoom

This meeting was VERY important for the reasons outlined in the resolution linked HERE.

There will be a lot of changes we are not aware of at this time and some of our assumptions at this point may not bear out. What is most importantly, however, is that we as leaders all need to focus on our American Legion mission and work together as a Legion Family to help rebuild our Department and to support the National Department Advisory Teams efforts and guidance with 100% commitment once they are in place after June 10^th. American Legion Riders tend to be heavily engaged in not just ALR, but in other roles within their Post, Unit or Squadron as well. Continue to be a positive influence throughout the upcoming transition period. Stay active and support each other’s events. Ride safe. Here are the main discussion points from the June 6th meeting

• The actions that are taken at National on Saturday 10 June regarding  the attached resolution for suspension of the Department charter will affect all American Legion entities (Legion, SAL, Riders) at the department level for at least a year (the remainder of 2023 and 2024 until elections are complete at that convention). Auxiliary is NOT affected by the resolution. After 10 June, a National Advisory Team will assume essential department functions. The way ahead after 10 June is somewhat unclear, but based on what I have gleaned from the documents, this summarizes the near term impacts for Colorado ALR:
  • Post and District ALR functions are unaffected
  • Department ALR committee positions and functions are suspended…The Colorado ALR committee effectively ceases to exist until the department charter is reinstated or it is reinstated in the interim by the National Advisory Team arrives and starts organizing the framework that puts Department back on a path to reinstatement.
    • In the interim, current State ALR Area Coordinators will likely be able to continue their current roles, but as District ALR Coordinators.
  • Department ALR functions outlined in the Colorado ALR C&B as well as Department committee functions in the Department of Colorado C&B are suspended under the same conditions
  • Department/State ALR events cannot be conducted…only district or post organized events can be conducted.
    • This should not affect Pony Express and ROMP…These events should be able to continue for 2023, but they will be organized by the ALR members at the post level who are currently working the events….they will not be a department level event.
      • Pony Express Legacy Run 8 July: Money has already been coming in under this year’s campaign and must go to the legacy fund as designated by the donors. Run Leg organizers are the current Area Coordinators who are all active ALR members at the post level. ALR 209 is hosting/running the final stop at Post 209.  The current published donor instructions instruct donors to make checks out to ALR209 with a memo for Legacy Fund Scholarship, then mail to ALR 209 address in Colorado Springs. No change to this structure is required to conduct the run as planned, but collaboratively at the Post ALR level across all districts.
      • ROMP 8,9 September: Planning for the event is 80-90% complete to include T-shirt design/ordering, registration and coordination for ride routes and scheduling of event venues. Several ALR members have already registered and paid for the event. Event planners are Post ALR members and will continue as such. The event can easily continue as a collaboratively organized event for the benefit and enjoyment of all Post ALRs in Colorado.
  • Department Convention
    • Only training can be conducted at convention; no meetings, reports, elections, or business of any kind at department level for Legion, ALR, SAL.  Auxiliary is not affected by the resolution and will conduct business at convention as usual.
    • The 1 July ride is a post ALR organized event and should continue as planned (Thank you ALR28 Durango and the Western Slope ALRs!!). It is open for participation by all ALR members in Colorado.
      • Ride summary: You will start at 6,450 feet, climb to 10,640 ft when we top Coal Bank Pass, then up to 10,910 ft when we top Molas Pass. It’s a curvy drop from Molas to Silverton’s 9,318 ft. Montrose, Delta, Olathe ALR chapters will meet those coming up from the South in Silverton for lunch and then start the BUG RUN back to the convention in Ignacio. $5.00 per bike to participate in the Bug Run. Motorcycle with a splatted bug closest to bullseye wins. Winner announced after the run is complete at the Convention site in Ignacio
    • I highly encourage every ALR member who can make it to Ignacio attend the convention. The AWESOME ride experience on 1 July alone will be worth the effort and expense to attend. This will also be the start of the rebuild process for Department and ALR members can constitute a very powerful and positive contribution towards that end.
  • Annual Reports: The annual 2023 report was submitted on 9 June 2023. If you did not submit a report for your ALR, you can still do so and we will update the record. We may or may not, however, get the opportunity to submit a revised report. The submitted 2023 annual report can be downloaded at this link

https://alrco.org has been updated to reflect the above information regarding coordinators, Pony Express and ROMP. We will continue to update the site as things change/develop.

Your continued leadership will be more critical than ever to ensure continued support to post programs and the four pillars of the American Legion, as well as the continued mutual support for each other and the health, safety and morale of our Colorado ALR members going forward.

This is the Zoom recording of the meeting:

28 January 2023

The Colorado ALR met at 4pm Saturday 28 January 2023 at American Legion Post 32, 315 S. Bowen Street, Longmont Colorado during the Department of Colorado Mid-Year Conference.

The talking/discussion points and agenda are contained in the slides below

Meeting Minutes

The minutes of the Colorado ALR Mid-Year meeting on 28 January 2023 are as follows:

The meeting was declared regularly convened at 4:06 PM 28 January 2023. Roll call was taken with the following ALR Committee members present in person or online via Zoom conference: Steve Hayes Chairman, Steve Butner Immediate Past State Chairman, Bill Hallman, Carrol Logue, Cornell Penn, Richard Noakes, Jon Boughton Area Coordinators (ALR Committee). The following Post ALR programs polled with a voting representative present in person of via Zoom Conference: ALRs 1, 2, 4, 5, 9, 13, 21, 22, 24, 26, 28, 32, 38, 73, 161,172, 178, 180, 209, 1187, and 1985. The following ALRs were absent from the meeting: ALRs 15, 18, 20, 75, 77, 101, 102, 113, 119, 168, 183, 203, 2000, 2008.

Administrative Notes

Post ALR contact updates: Since most ALRs have just completed elections, please submit roster/contact updates to your area coordinator.

Post ALR Events: Please sent the details for any events you want shared across the state to your area coordinator and Steve Hayes. We will get them on the Colorado ALR calendar available on the website at https://alrco.org

Annual ALR Reports: Annual reports are due by CoB Friday 2 June 2023. The report covers the Colorado ALR ride year 1 June 2022 to 31 May 2023. This coincides with your Consolidated Post Report inputs to your Adjutant. NOTE: Your Post may want it as early as the beginning to mid-May. The report consists of four basice data elements: 1) Number of ALR members 2) Total monies donated 3) Total miles ridden and 4) Total hours ALR service. There are two ways to submit: 1) PDF form to your area coordinator (email, mail or text…Download form and instructions from ALR resources link at https://alrco.org) or 2) Online via the report link at https://alrco.org.

Legacy Campaign and Colorado Legacy Pony Express Run

The 2023 legacy scholarship campaign runs for the entire legion year. The campaign culminates with the Legacy Pony Express Run on 8 July 2023. Donations are all for the Legacy Scholarship Fund. Pony Express is our annual legacy run capstone event to gather the donations and bring them to a single collection point. Programs should not be conducting separate fundraising efforts for Legacy Fund and Pony Express…one donation covers both.

We are working to lock in the Pony Express final Stop in Colorado Springs for this year. Area Coordinators will provide the routes to that final stop later in the Spring.

Campaign goals: At least $100 from each legion family in each post (American Legion, Auxiliary, Sons and Riders). This amounts to just a portion of the proceeds from any fundraiser event…bigger donations are encouraged; any donation is welcomed. We are looking to increase business, community org and foundation donations. For the 2023 campaign, we already have our first $5000 donation!

Please take legacy campaign pamphlets and share them with veteran oriented, owned or friendly business and organizations. These pamphlets can be used for post family or business/community and can be downloaded from: https://alrco.org/legacy-scholarship-fund-pony-express (Print short side, double sided). Use the information in the pamphlet to reinforce your pitch, emphasizing 1) Who the scholarships are for (children of Post 9-11 KIA, died on active duty and 50% or greater disabled), 2) The scholarships provided, as well as 3) Our long-term goal to eliminate the inability to award some eligible applicants because the funding cap is reached.

Legion donations can be written to ALR209 with the memo line of 2023 Legacy Fund Campaign and taken to the Pony Express stop nearest them when the routes are published OR they can be mailed to Post 209 Attn: ALR209, 3613 Jeannine Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80917. ALR 209 will track donors and consolidate Legion donations into one check to department.

Corporate/non-Legion organizational donations should be submitted per the pamphlet instructions directly to Department. This ensures that the corporate receives the appropriate tax information. In 2020 Colorado set a record roughly $16,000. In 2021 we set a new record with just under $24,000. In 2022, Colorado American Legion family broke the record again with $28,000. With continued effort and growth in community/business support, we can keep the campaign growing from year to year!

2023 Colorado Ride on Military Pride (ROMP)

The 2023 ROMP is scheduled for 8 and 9 September in Buena Vista Colorado. Make your reservations now! For 2023, we have set the registration at $40. This is $10 less than 2022 and the same as 2020 and 2021. The ROMP events planned include:
▪ Friday Lunch @ Fairplay Post 172
▪ We are going to try to revive the Friday night pub crawl/walking dice run in Buena Vista
▪ Saturday Breakfast at Post 55
▪ Mountain ride
▪ Bike Rodeo
▪ Saturday Dinner at VFW Post

We are lowering the cost to participants this year but would like to continue to support Combat Hero Bike Build (CHBB) like we have done in the past. We are looking at fundraising options ahead of the event in order to minimize the amount of fundraising at the ROMP itself. If your ALR would like to run a fundraiser sometime this year (meal, pass the hat or something creative), then bring the funds to present to CHBB at the ROMP, that would be really awesome. Let your Area Coordinator know if you plan to support CHBB at the ROMP.

2023 3rd Annual Lennie Reidell Memorial Run

Annual Joint Colorado-Kansas run established in 2021. The ride is dedicated to the memory of Lennie Riedell, who is a Kansas ALR Rider who died during the Donald Stratton escort from Colorado Springs to Don’s hometown in Nebraska. The Run alternates each year between Colorado and Kansas. The 2022 run was hosted by ALR 22 here in Colorado and they put on an AWESOME mountain ride! The 2023 run is set for 13 May 2023 Hosted by American Legion Post Colby 363 Colby, Kansas (1850 W 4th St, Colby, KS 67701, USA). This would be a weekend event…about 200-220 miles from most parts of the front range plus the Saturday ride. Colby is right on I-70. This is on the Colorado ALR calendar and more details will post there as they become available.

Rider Emblem and Rider Brand

National released American Legion, American Legion Auxiliary, Sons of the American Legion and American Legion Rider brands somewhere in the neighborhood of 18 months ago. While the other brands were marketed and available on the Emblem Sales site at that time, the Rider brand has only recently been marketed and made available for purchase. The emblem and brand use guidelines were also posted on the National American Legion site at: https://www.legion.org/brand/riders. ALR members have voice consternation and concern that a Rider brand and usage guidelines were developed and finalized without Rider awareness or input into the design or use. Particular concern has been voiced over guidelines which provide the option of emblem or brand for back patch and that specify brand for apparel. The emblem, brand and associated guidelines from the web link are in the table below.

Emblem •large back patch (option emblem or brand) •financial documents •history books •flags •legal affairs •reports & resolutions •internal manuals & guides •awards (option emblem or brand) •building signage (option emblem or brand) •formal government communications (option emblem or brand)	Brand Mark Options •advertising •apparel (use word mark for embroidery) •business cards, letterhead, email signatures, nametags •credentials, event badges •press releases •digital (apps, web, social, PowerPoint presentations) •promotional communications (flyers, handouts, etc.) •events (signs, backdrops, tents, tablecloths, swag/giveaways)

Furthermore, concern was voiced regarding the fact that the manner in which the design and guidelines have been dictated from the national level is reminiscent of the defunct Resolution 19 process and product as well as it’s succeeding Resolution 5. The consensus from discussion is that this is treatment that the American Legion, American Legion Auxiliary and Sons of the American Legion do not have to endure and that the American Legion Riders should not have to endure.

Post Program/Colorado ALR Committee motions and decisions from the 28JAN23 Colorado State ALR meeting:

During the course of discussion on the ALR emblem and brand guidelines, the following motions were made and processed in accordance with procedure and Colorado ALR Constitution and By-Laws (C&B).  

Motion 1: The motion was made and seconded that the Colorado ALR position on the Brand design and guidelines shall be provided to membership, Colorado DEC and Headquarters staff in writing. This motion passed by unanimous vote of the Colorado State ALR Committee and post ALR program voting representatives under the Colorado ALR C&B.  The Colorado ALR State Chairman has action to generate the memorandum.

Motion 2: The motion was made and seconded that the Colorado ALR committee shall begin collecting guidelines and develop a draft resolution for making the ALR a department and national level entity under the American Legion under the same type of organizational structure and guidelines as the Sons of the American Legion. Both SAL Squadrons and ALRs are established as Post programs. SAL exists and an American Legion entity at the Department (Detachment) and national levels. The ALR is, however, only a committee of the department and administered under the auspices of the National Internal Affairs Committee at the national level. This motion passed by unanimous vote of the Colorado State ALR Committee and post ALR designated voting representatives under the state ALR C&B. The reasoning for this action lies in the foundation of change in the American Legion wherein resolutions are generated at the Post level, passed and submitted to Department, then passed and submitted to National. For the implementation of the decision, once the resolution is drafted, the committee shall provide the draft and guidelines to the Post ALR Programs for review and feedback. Once feedback is incorporated and consensus gained, the draft will be provided back to Post ALR programs for introduction to their Post Executive Committee and membership as a Post resolution e.g. ALRs initiate the same basic resolution at each Post so that the same or similar resolution can be passed and submitted to Department from multiple Posts for consolidation, adoption and submission to National American Legion.

Motion 3: The motion was made and seconded that Colorado ALR programs utilize only the ALR Emblem for the backpatch. This is in reference to the emblem brand information at this link: https://www.legion.org/brand/riders. At issue is that national developed the brand and its usage guidelines for the brand and emblem without consultation or input from ALRs at the department or post level. This motion passed with only one dissenting vote among the voting body of the Colorado State ALR Committee and post ALR program voting representatives under the Colorado ALR Constitution and By-Laws (C&B).  Based on the decision and discussion, from 28 January 2023, the Colorado ALR usage of the Emblem and Brand shall be as follows:

a) As decided by vote on the motion, the back patch in Colorado shall be the ALR emblem backpatch without additional embroidery as currently delineated in the Colorado ALR C&B. The ALR brand shall not be used in lieu of the ALR emblem on a back patch in Colorado.

b) Use of the ALR brand in Colorado programs is discouraged. It was recognized in discussion on the motion that Rider events and programs in other states or national level are likely to utilize the brand in some form and Colorado ALR participants should not be restricted from utilizing or displaying those items. Latitude for usage therefore remains at the Post ALR leadership discretion. The consensus of the Colorado ALR committee and Post ALR officers/members present was that this position should be documented and implemented as a policy guideline without motion, vote or formal decision.

For the Good of the Legion

Post ALR representatives present discussed their event opportunities and initiatives.

The meeting was adjourned at 5:49PM 28 January 2023.

The full recording of the meeting is viewable below