Chartered in 1928 as the Norval Stafford Post 125 American Legion, we were originally an all African-American post. We remained as such until recently when we began our revitalization program. We realized that in order to maintain our post, we needed to become something more. We needed to embrace the Legion’s pillar of Americanism. Since World War 1 members of Post 125 have served our nation bringing freedom and liberty to people around the world. We realized that this great country is comprised of people from all walks of life, all colors, creeds, and beliefs. We understand that if we truly want to represent this Nation and the American Legion, we need to welcome all members and their families. We have elected new officers with a new vision of where our post is heading and what our goals will be as we move forward into the future.
Since the start of the 21st century this country has been in a state of war. This has created an unprecedented number veterans eligible for membership in the American Legion. It has also created problems that were undreamed of when the American Legion was founded in 1919. The sheer number of veterans eligible for VA benefits, the types of injuries being suffered by our veterans, the difficulty finding employment upon a veteran’s return, and the struggles faced by veterans and their families when they return to civilian life coupled with the millions of veterans from past conflicts, has served to strain already limited resources beyond their capacities. The American Legion, with almost 3 million members, is leading the fight to secure the necessary resources to face these challenges. Post 125 has rededicated itself to helping with all veterans from all wars, and their families, in any way we can to face these difficult times.
As of 2014 we do not have the long standing Legion hall of the past. We now have our new Legion Meeting Hall at 3555 West Sunshine, Springfield, MO. We share our building with OVC, Veteran Resell Store and Veteran Event Center. This allows us to share a very large multi-use building with all using any amounts over our costs to help local veterans and first responders. Post 125 uses our funds to help disabled veterans, building access ramps, homeless veterans, we have Veteran Service Officers (VSOs) and other projects for local veterans.
The American Legion is dedicated to activity to protect our veterans, but we also feel that our 4 Pillars are the heart and soul of what the organizations, especially at the local level attempt to achieve. The fact that we have minimal monthly expenses allows us to use virtually all our resources toward accomplishing our missions within the parameters of the 4 Pillars of the Legion. Here is a link to a summary of the 4 Pillars (click here).
At Post 125 we understand that veterans are more than just the former service member. Today’s veterans are also their wives, husbands, and children. As we restructure Post 125, we will be looking at ways to help these members of our families as well. The American Legion Auxiliary and the Sons of the American Legion are just a couple of the organizations within the Legion family designed to do just that. The American Legion Riders are another branch of the Legion who use their common love of all things motorcycle to help veterans and their families. If there is a veteran in your family, let Post 125 help you by becoming a member of our family. Helping veterans can mean more to our country than money could ever be.