I have heard that the role of the Junior Vice President isn’t really that important, however I do not believe that to be true. The Junior Vice President sits 2 chairs away from the Department President. The role of the Junior Vice President is to assist the Department President as well as the Senior Vice President however necessary.

The Junior Vice President must know and be comfortable with the rituals of the VFW Auxiliary as well as be familiar with the National Bylaws. As part of that familiarity with the National Bylaws, it is imperative the Junior Vice President always have the most current edition of the National Bylaws and Ritual. The Junior Vice President should feel comfortable with giving guidance as to how to use the National Bylaws and Ritual book to answer questions that may arise or give guidance.

As a Junior Vice President, it is a good time to listen to the members of the VFW Auxiliary, attend Auxiliary meeting, District meetings, Council of Administration meeting, Conferences and Convention.

Always encourage members to participate and contribute to meetings. Explain the importance of attending the Council of Administration meetings and Convention.

When attending meetings, promote the Auxiliary Labels Program. Inform the members that by supporting the Labels Program, they are supporting the Department of California as the contributions made by the Labels Program is a major proponent of the Department of California budget and without it the operating budget would be drastically diminished.

Encourage members to purchase through the VFW Store. Let them know that by ordering through the store and letting the store know they are with the VFW Auxiliary, again they are helping the Department of California because the VFW Store gives the Department a small commission on all orders identified as coming from a California Auxiliary member.

The leading role of the Department of California Junior Vice President is the "Circle of Excellence.” The Junior Vice President has the privilege and responsibility of determining which Auxiliaries and Districts have fulfilled the requirements to earn the "Circle of Excellence.” All the requirements are listed in the Program Book and also are on the Department Website.

I so look forward to this year as a learning opportunity for myself. I look forward to meeting with all the Auxiliaries and Districts. We are bound to have a wonderfully fun and productive year as we support our new Department President, Sharonda Lewis.