General Information about The American Legion

The American Legion has over Three Million Members nationally and is the largest Veterans Organization in the United States.  The Legion lobbies, at all levels of government on behalf of veterans, to insure there is adequate funding for Veterans programs, and to promote the ideals of those who have served, by lobbying for an amendment to the United States Constitution preventing the desecration of the American Flag.  

The Legion has a long service to the American Public and provides considerable amounts of revenue in support of the following programs:

• Legion Baseball - Over $1 Million dollars annually at all levels.
• Boys State and Boys Nation - A program which teaches boys the fundamentals of democratic government.
• Oratorical Contest - Open to high school students of either gender, the Legion provides over $100,000 a year in scholarship money.
• Boy Scout of the Year - Each year an outstanding scout is awarded an $18,000 scholarship.

Locally Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion Post 172 supports the community with charitable contributions  to various student groups in District 279 schools.  It also provides the City of Osseo with American Flags, and provides Blue Star Banners to mothers of service personnel serving their country in Iraq and Afganistan.  The Legion, which includes the Auxiliary, Sons of the American Legion (SAL), and American Legion Riders (ALR), collects toys for "Toys for Tots" and puts on an annual Breakfast with Santa, where anyone in the community can bring their children, at no charge.   The Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion Post 172 is proud of our history of service to the community. 

 History

The American Legion was founded in Paris, France in March of 1919, when a group of soldiers from the American Expeditionary Force, (The American Legion), came together to form the organization.  As a result of that meeting, a national executive committee was formed, and adopted the name "The American Legion" as the organization's name, and created a preamble that begins "For God and Country".  In that same year they adopted the organization emblem, and were chartered by the U.S. Congress.  On November 10-12, 1920 the organization held it's first convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

At this convention, they adopted their constitution, and passed a resolution supporting the Boy Scouts of America.  This has resulted in the Legion being the chartering agency for over 1700 Boy Scout troops, which serve over 64,000 youths today.  Throughout its long history the Legion has supported a number of community service programs.

• July 17, 1925 -   American Legion Baseball program is created.
• June 23,1935 -   First American Legion Boys State is convened in Springfield, Illinois.
• June 1,  1938 -   First round of the American Legion Oratorical Contest is held in Norman, Oklahoma.
• May 29, 1946 -   A $50,000 grant is presented to a small struggling organization, The American Heart  Association.
• Aug 28,  1946 -  The American Legion becomes a million strong in membership.
• May 4,   1950 -   The Legion votes to contribute funds to Mental Health Organizations.
• July 9,    1954 -  The American Legion Child Welfare Foundation is created, with over a million dollars being donated to children's programs.
• Sep 1,    1966    The American Legion voiced great concern over the fate of  POW's in Vietnam.  It worked with other veterans organizations to create the POW / MIA program.
• May 1,    1972 -  The American Legion implements the Halloween Safety program.
• Aug 26,   1982 -  The Legion presents a One Million dollar check to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial fund to help build "The Wall".
• July 21,   1983 -  The Legion announces its' sponsorship of an independent study to study the effects of Agent Orange on veterans.
• Aug 2,     1990 -   The Legion files suit against the federal government for failure to conduct a study on the effects of Agent Orange mandated by congress.
• Oct 11,    1990 -   The Family Support Network is formed by the American legion to assist the families of military personnel deployed during operation "Desert Storm". Today the program still continues to support the families of our troops in Iraq and Afganistan.
• Jun 15,    1991 -   American Legion sponsors the first annual Junior Sports National Air Rifle competition.
• Apr 5,      1993 -   The first class of discharged veterans begins training in a program jointly sponsored by the Legion and Laborers International Union to prepare them for good paying jobs in the construction industry.
• Sep 24,   1994 -  The American Legion announces a partnership with the Air and Space Museum to develop an exhibit for the "Enola Gay", the plane that dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima.  Check out the exhibit at Smithsonian Air and Space Museum at Dulles International Airport on your next visit to Washington DC.
• Sep 16,   1996 -  The American Legion awards a $20,000 scholarship to each of the inaugural Samsung American Legion High School Scholars.  
• Jun 11,    1997 -  American Legion Emergency Fund provided over $1 million dollars in funds to Legion families who were flood victims in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Minnesota, and North Dakota. 
• Sep  3,     1997 - The American Legion presents its' first "National Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award", at it's National Convention.

Membership Eligibility

To receive information about joining the American Legion or its' affiliated organizations, please contact the Osseo / Maple Grove Legion Post at 763-425-4858.  Leave your name, address and phone number, and our Membership Director will get back to you, or E-mail us by clicking on the post box icon.