Membership Processing Made Easy

Transcription

1 The American Legion, Department of Maine 5 Verti Drive, Winslow, Maine Phone: Fax: Website: legionme@mainelegion.org Facebook: Membership Processing Made Easy VALUABLE INFORMATION AND GUIDELINES The enclosed material provides step-by-step instructions on how to obtain access to MyLegion.org and what it s designed to do; Online Renewals, its process, and guided information; tips to follow when sending membership information to Department Headquarters, and other valuable information to pass on to your members. Please know that the Department staff is always here to help with any questions you may have as well as provide you with assistance if needed. If you would like a training lesson on how to use the MyLegion site, please call Department Headquarters at Ext. 2 to set up an appointment. Training lessons last between 45 min. to an hour. To obtain additional information regarding Programs, Donations, Benefits, SMILE (newsletter), The Maine Legionnaire, Membership information, Scholarships, and Forms and Applications just to name a few, please visit us on the Web at For current happenings and events, please like us on Facebook at By: Rachael Currie Office Manager S:\DEPT OFFICERS/DIST_AREA\PostDistrictltr_2017_18.docx 1

2 VALUABLE INFORMATION AND GUIDELINES MyLEGION.org If you would like a training lesson on how to use the MyLegion site, please call Department Headquarters at Ext. 2 to set up an appointment. Training lessons last between 45 min. to an hour. Access to MyLegion is open to all Legion Members and Post/Department Leaders: MyLegion.org is a website designed to connect members of The American Legion to their Post and Department leadership, other veterans with similar interests, and the vast array of services offered at every level of the organization. If you wish to join MyLegion.org, please see below information and instructions under the heading that applies to you. For members, see American Legion Members; for Post Adjutant or Commander, see MyLegion Post Officers Portal; for Districts, see District Access. MyLegion Post Officers Portal: Must be a Post Adjutant or Commander to utilize the Post Officers Portal and a signature is required by either the Post Adjutant or Commander. The American Legion National Headquarters has designed a secure internet site to assist Post Officers in their day-to-day membership processing duties. This site serves as a direct portal from the local post to National Headquarter s membership system. Features include: View and Edit post membership. View and generate a report of members who have renewed on-line (eliminating duplication of payment to Department HQ) Find Members in your Area Global Member Lookup Enroll members in the Paid Up For Life Program Communicate with members by posting Newsletters, Announcements, and Calendar. Print mailing labels Generate list of expired and eligible DMS members and connect with them. Generate reports and submit Consolidated Post Reports. Download Membership Materials. Communicate with other officers through MyLegion Officer s Forum. View electronic version of The American Legion Dispatch. Reports available in CSV file format allowing users to work with the data in other applications such as Microsoft Excel and Access. All on-line features listed above are available at no cost. Payment process for individual membership dues does not change. Your Post must continue to transmit membership cards and dues payments to your Department Headquarters. How To Sign Up to MyLegion.org: To sign up for mylegion Officers Portal, please visit and click on Authorization Form located under Posts/Districts/Counties. Select MAINE and your 4-digit Post No. and verify that all information is correct. Fill out the Post Authorization Form and you will be ed the registration instructions. 2

3 American Legion Members: Sign up to become a member of MyLegion.org and stay connected with your local post and department through: 1) Announcements 2) Newsletters 3) Calendars Renew online. View post information and department information. Network with other members that have created mylegion profiles. Support Legion programs with donations. Find out how to get VA assistance with direct access to Department Service Officer Information. Locate other posts by City, State, or Zip Code. Easy access to National Commander s page. To become a member of MyLegion.org, please visit and click on Members Click Here. Click on Register and fill in the information to get your MyLegion account started. MyLegion for Districts: MyLegion for Districts is a secure website that is designed to assist membership organizing efforts at the District level. Features Include: Find Members by Post, ID# or Name (View only) Post Inquiry Post information (view only) Address, Dues Remittance Address, Dues amount, Adjutant Commander, Post Home etc. CPR Reports Keep track of posts that have submitted their CPR and print reports. Energize Post Development and Revitalization Increase membership using list of expired and DMS members in a selected areas. Listing of Post and Members that are using MyLegion. Download Membership Materials and Brochures. Communicate with other officers through MyLegion Officer s Forum. District Access to MyLegion: Please see Information and Account Request Form attached. Online Renewals: The American Legion, Department of Maine issues credits to Posts whose members have renewed online. Once a month, if your Post has a member(s) renew online, the Department mails you a list which consists of the member s name, member s number, date paid online, address, as well as a report which shows the Credit Balance of your Post. If the member(s) have not yet been in contact with you about sending them their permanent membership card when you receive the Online Renewal Report showing they paid online, please contact them at this time so they can either pick up their card at the Post or receive it via mail. Please note that National issues a monthly check to the Department 2 3 weeks after each online renewal month. For example, the check which includes payment for all members who paid their dues online in August will be received here at the Department HQ the 2 nd or 3 rd week of September. Therefore, the Monthly Online Renewal Reports will be distributed to the Posts after the Department receives the check from National. Tip: By signing up to MyLegion.org, you will have the availability to check if the member has paid online and send them their permanent membership card without delay. You will no longer have to wait for Department HQ to send you the monthly Online Renewal Report. This information is 3

4 available to view the following day a member pays their dues online. By signing up to MyLegion.org will also eliminate duplication of payment to Department Headquarters. The Post DOES NOT need to send the two-part membership card to Department HQ if the member paid his/her dues on-line, as we receive notification from National. However, if the Post still wants to mail the two-part membership card to Department, it is very important to remember to make a notation POL (paid on-line) on the card. This will inform the Membership Coordinator that the member paid his/her dues on-line and therefore eliminate duplication. Instructions on How to Renew Your Membership Online: PLEASE VISIT or - NEW MEMBERS: Visit and click on JOIN If you renewed your membership online and lost or forgot to print your Temporary Membership Card, please follow these instructions. 1. Go to 2. Click on I ve already renewed online and need to reprint my temporary membership card. 3. Enter your 9-digit Member ID# 4. Enter your Last Name and press Continue Please note: Only current paid members of The American Legion can print their membership card from this page. Paid Up For Life (PUFL): Application Processing All PUFL applications must be submitted by one of the three methods noted below. National will continue the policy of notifying the Post and Department when a member applies for a lifetime membership; this provides the opportunity for the Post to challenge the application, if necessary. 1. Online Application: The member accesses the PUFL page on National s website to obtain a rate quote and/or submit an electronic application (See instructions below). Once confirmed and the payment information is completed, the member selects the Submit button to complete the application process. NOTE: If the member doesn t have internet access, either themselves or through family/friends, this process should be performed by the Post or Department. 2. Printable Application: The member accesses the PUFL page on National s website to obtain a rate quote and/or print an application (See instructions below). Once the rate quote is received, the member can opt to print a paper application to complete and mail to National Headquarters. The application will be pre-filled with the member s ID Number, Name, Address, Birth Date and the total cost of the PUFL membership. (If any of the member s information needs to be updated, it can be noted on the application.) The member then simply mails the application and payment to National Headquarters at the address shown on the form. NOTE: If the member doesn t have internet access, either themselves or through family/friends, the application should be printed by the Post or the Department and forwarded to the member for completion. 3. Call A Customer Service Specialist: Any member can speak to one of National s Customer Service Specialists by calling They re happy to answer any questions print and mail a PUFL application or even take the application over the phone. However, this should not be considered the primary procedure since all members, Posts, and Departments have the same ability. 4

5 5 Paid Up For Life Instructions: 1. Go to 2. Scroll down and press Click here for Special Offer 3. Type Member ID 4. Type Last Name 5. Click on Get Offer 6. Press Click here to get PAID UP FOR LIFE Or Press Click here to download and mail a paper application to address shown on the form. **If Post or member does not have access to a computer and would like an application, please call the Department of Maine Headquarters at Most Common Bloopers Membership Card Update as of 2018 Membership Year: The following changes including new changes and/or additions can now be made on the membership card that were prohibited in the past. The changes/additions that can be made when submitting membership to Dept. HQ are as follows: Name changes, War Era, Branch of Service, Continuous Years, Address changes, Phone #, Gender, Date of Birth, Address and marking a member deceased. Please use pencil to mark the boxes, and if making additions and/or changes, please remember to check off the box Update record changes as noted. *Please note, that all of the above changes can be also be accomplished on the MyLegion.org site except for changes pertaining to Paid Up For Life (PUFL) members only. A Member Data Form still must be filled out for this purpose.* MEMBER PROCESSING: ID Numbers every member is assigned a permanent membership ID number by the national organization. If you are completing a blank card for a new member, they will not have an ID #, the sequence number is used. Usually, within two weeks, Department Headquarters has the ID # for new members, if you need them for any reason. If the member is a transfer or a renewal whose card has been lost, always put the member s permanent ID number in this blank. When completing blank cards always: PRINT legibly Due to National s postal computer software, addresses that do not match will automatically be sent back. War era (first war-time era only) Continuous years = 1 (unless it s a transfer)

6 If making member changes and/or additions, please check off the box Update record changes as noted Please submit $31.00/member to Department Headquarters. Department will then forward $18.50/member to National Headquarters for processing. MEMBER DATA FORMS: Please PRINT legibly on MDF s. Post (top right corner) always put the Post you are processing the form for. i.e., you re the Post Adjutant for Post 444 and you re filling out a transfer form, the Post would be 444. Department the Department is Maine. (ME) Signatures the ONLY time signatures are required on Member Data Forms are: 1) Transfers Adjutant and member must sign 2) Honorary Life member Adjutant must sign 3) Paid up for Life (PUFL) changes/corrections Adjutant must sign Other complete ONLY the part of the Data Form that you are reporting. i.e., you re making an address change, there is no need to include war era, branch, cont. years, etc. TRANSFERS: a) The most common error made on Member Data Forms are signatures when a transfer is being processed. When a transfer is done, both the member and the Adjutant must sign the Data Form. If either one or both is missing, forms will be returned. MDF can be mailed to Dept. HQ or scanned and ed to legionme@mainelegion.org. b) The member always keeps the same ID number. c) If the member has already paid their dues for the current year, then all you have to do is complete a Member Data Form. Use a blank card from the end of your roster and give the member their section of the card, mark your roster what you used the card for and destroy the other two sections of the card. The prior Post will get credit for the member for this year. d) If the member has not paid dues for the current year, then you must complete a Member Data Form to transfer them. Collect their dues and submit a blank card, with all information completed, including their ID number and submit it with payment. Members can transfer on their 2017 cards until February 1 of next year. e) The easiest way to know which Post gets credit for the member: the Post that collects the money. (No money changes hands from post to post). f) If you are submitting the MDF and the card at the same time, please paperclip them together when sending them to us. We will send the third copy of the MDF to the previous Post. 6

7 MAKING CORRECTIONS, CHANGES AND/OR ADDITIONS TO MEMBER INFORMATION: There are 3 available options to use when making corrections, changes and/or additions to member information. They are MyLegion.org, Member Data Forms (MDF) and Membership Cards. 1) By signing up to MyLegion.org you will have access to make corrections, changes, and/or additions to the following: Name changes, Address changes, War Era, Branch of Service, Continuous Years, Phone #, Gender, Date of Birth, Address and Deceased members, eliminating the need to fill out a Member Data Form (MDF) and mailing it to Dept. HQ for processing. 2) & 3) All of the above changes can also be made on the membership cards when submitting membership to Dept. HQ and Member Data Forms. All Paid Up For Life (PUFL) member changes and corrections must be filled out on the Member Data Form and signed by the Adjutant for processing. UNDELIVERABLES: it is extremely important that if you have a member marked undeliverable that you make every effort to correct the address as soon as possible. If you find that the address is correct, report that as well. Some people will insist that their address is Water Road, when in fact, all addresses have a number, i.e. 373 Water Road. If the address is flagged in red when viewing the member s information in MyLegion.org, please contact the member to get it corrected. Currently, undeliverable PUFL members are not being credited by National. The assumption is being made that if the member can t be found, they are deceased. Marking deceased on the card or using a Member Data Form if you still have the card, mark an X in the Deceased box, in pencil. If you don t have the member s cards write the members name and ID number on a Member Data Form and X the Deceased box. ONLY SUBMIT ONE OR THE OTHER, NOT BOTH. Please note, that all deceased members can also be entered on MyLegion.org; therefore, no need to submit a MDF or a membership card to Department. HQ. National HQ, Department HQ, and Legion Posts all share the same information. For example, if a Post marks a member deceased on MyLegion.org, National is notified as well as Department HQ. Correcting misspelled names if you still have the card, neatly write the name correctly then mark an X in the box Update record changes as noted, in pencil, for name change. If you don t have the member s cards write the members name and ID number on a Member Data Form and put the name correction on the line indicated and check off the box. Misspelled names can also be corrected with access to MyLegion.org. Correcting continuous years - if you still have the card, neatly write the correct number of years on all sections of the card, then mark an X in the box Update record changes as noted, in pencil, for cont. years change. If you don t have the member s card write the members name and ID number on a Member Data Form and fill in the section for continuous years. Continuous Year corrections can also be made on MyLegion.org. TRANSMITTING MEMBERSHIP TO DEPARTMENT HEADQUARTERS: Please keep different membership year cards separated, do not mix them together and please send separate checks. The only items that you need to send to Department are the membership cards (National & Department) and payment. Do not send applications or renewal notices. 7

8 Incorrect check amounts on the last page there is a chart with the correct amount to send for dues. Please use the chart. No staples, please Send both halves of the card Please fold both halves of the card on the perforated line only to properly fit in a 4 1/8 x 9 1/2 envelope. All processed membership should be sent to Department Headquarters as soon as you have completed it, but not less than once a week. Online Renewals: The Post DOES NOT need to send the two-part membership card to Department HQ if the member paid his/her dues on-line, as we receive notification from National. However, if the Post still wants to mail the two-part membership card to Department, it is very important to remember to make a notation on the card as POL (Paid On-line). This will inform the Membership Coordinator that the member paid his/her dues online and therefore eliminate duplication. MEMERSHIP CREDITS Each month, if an error was made when transmitting membership or your Post had members renew online, we will send you a Post Balance Report that includes Traditional Membership Errors and Online Credits. If you overpaid (credit), we ask that you deduct the overpayment on your next membership transmission. If you underpaid (debit), we will hold those dues that are not covered until we receive payment from you. PUFL per capitas PUFL payments to posts are now sent directly from National Headquarters. MISCELLANEOUS: Taps vs. Deceased Deceased members must be reported on either MyLegion.org, a Member Data Form or on a Membership Card. Choosing one of these three options is sufficient. If a deceased member was reported on MyLegion.org, then there is no need to send in the MDF or Membership Card to Dept. The Taps Form is used to record the deceased member s name, Post, and War Era in our Maine Legionnaire newspaper that gets published 5 times/year. If you do not submit a Taps Form, then the above information will not get published. The Taps Form and the Member Data Form are both available on under Forms/Applications. Membership report: 2018 membership figure is the number of members your Post has paid the Department for, plus your PUFL s and on-line payments for the year membership is the number of members paid by the Post for the previous year, 30 days prior to Convention and is the number your Post needs to reach 100% for this year. Note: If your Post had 50 members last year, then you must have 50 members this year to attain 100%. We cannot subtract deceased or transferred members from your count. Discrepancies check on weekly membership report; check transfers and PUFL applicants first. Then call us, ASAP. (PUFL s take 6-8 weeks. Time pay no credit until the payments are complete.) 8

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11 11 Contact information for membership questions The American Legion, Department of Maine s headquarters is located on 5 Verti Drive in Winslow. Our mailing address is: 5 Verti Drive, Winslow, Me Office hours are Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m. 4 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m. 2 p.m. While we do many different and varied tasks at Headquarters, our most important job is to provide service to all members when needed. PLEASE feel free to contact us any time you have a question, even if it s the same question you may have asked last week. That s what we re here for. Ways to contact us: Telephone: (207) Fax: (207) legionme@mainelegion.org Website: Facebook: Employees to assist you: Office Manager - Rachael Currie, rachael@mainelegion.org Membership Coordinator Kierra Washington, kierra@mainelegion.org Office Assistance - Sherry Carey, sherry@mainelegion.org Office Assistance Sue Risinger, sue@mainelegion.org

12 DEPARTMENT & NATIONAL LEGION PER CAPITA No. of Cards Amt. of Check No. of Cards Amt. of Check 1 $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, Make checks payable to: The American Legion, Department of Maine. Mail cards and checks to: 12 The American Legion Department of Maine 5 Verti Drive Winslow, Maine,