To Create a Post
We hope some of you will have the opportunity to form a new post in your district. The Department’s Constitution and By-Laws identifies the District Commander as the individual with this responsibility. We advise that you seek assistance and guidance from the Department Post Development Committee; their procedures for assisting the district follow this letter.
Fifteen eligible veterans, or members from Post 225, may come together to form a new American Legion post in the department. When you learn of such a group, your first responsibility is to verify their eligibility for membership in The American Legion by inspecting their individual military separation documents. The next step is to assist them in selecting their temporary leadership.
Then, call Deanna Clark at Department Headquarters (517) 371-4720 ext. 24 or email, member@michiganlegion.org and request an application for a temporary charter.
The temporary charter application is a three-part form. The original copy requires the signatures and addresses of the applicants. Copies two and three require their names and addresses to be neatly printed or typed. Use plain bond paper for the continuation of names and addresses for all three parts of the charter application.
The new Legionnaires select a name and number for their post. Please call Department Headquarters for the available numbers.
When the temporary charter application is complete, you, as the District Commander, forward it to the Department Commander at the Lansing Headquarters. When he approves the application, we will forward it to National Headquarters for preparation of a temporary charter.
National Headquarters will, in turn, register the new post and provide a temporary charter and a New Post Kit for the use of the temporary leaders. When the temporary charter is received, Department Headquarters will provide membership cards.
From the point of receiving the temporary charter, the new post has a six-month probationary period. During this time, they will draft, and submit for department approval, their Constitution and By-Laws, elect officers and begin participating in American Legion programs.
Before the end of the probationary period, the District Commander will make a recommendation to the DEC that the new post be accepted as a permanent post of the Department of Michigan.