DISASTER RELIEF

About the Fund

The Preamble to The American Legion Constitution sums up the theme of the National Endowment Fund, "... devotion to mutual helpfulness." This phrase is more than just mere words on paper; it's our pledge of support to Legionnaires and their family members. Since the early 1920s, The American Legion has been actively involved in meeting the needs of both the community and individual Legion Family members in the wake of disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes and wildfires.

The National Emergency Fund, created in response to Hurricane Hugo in 1989, has provided more than $8 million in direct financial assistance to American Legion Family members and posts. By providing this emergency funding, NEF has prevented damaged posts from closing and enabled American Legion Family members to recover from tragedy.

NEF helps those affected by well-known disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy and lesser-publicized tragedies such as flooding in South Dakota or Illinois, or wildfires in the southwest.

The fund provides up to $3,000 for qualified Legion Family members and up to $10,000 for posts. The eligibility requirements are:

  1. Applicant must have been displaced from his or her primary residence due to a declared natural disaster.
  2. Applicant must provide copies of receipts of items required to meet immediate needs such as temporary housing, food, water, clothing, diapers, etc.
  3. Membership must be active at time of disaster and the time of application.
IDRF LOGO

Below are the two links to the Illinois Disaster Relief Fund program.

DISASTER RELIEF COMMITTEE

will consist of two (2) members from each Division within the Department of Illinois. Those members will be trained to respond to Natural Disasters within the state of Illinois. Background in EMS, Firefighting and other emergency training would be helpful, main responsibility would be in the application process for the American Legion National Emergency Fund. When a natural disaster occurs Disaster Relief Committee members would be sent to assist the veteran(s) within the first 24 hours. Identifying the needs and coordinating efforts of The American Legion Department of Illinois.

MEMBERS

Chairman: Thomas Marciciak
Vice Chairman: Denver Phelps

Members:

1st Division - Leon Reeds & Tom Chambers

2nd Division - David Johnson & Tom Marciciak

3rd Division - John Gosney & Steve Schlieper

4th Division - Mark Young & Denver Phelps

5th Division - Wayne Madson & Steven Hermanson

MINUTES

dylan-gillis-KdeqA3aTnBY-unsplash

READY TO SERVE?