Category: Scholarship

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

The Love Boat . . .

Art – exciting and new,

Come aboard, we’re expecting you!

Love is in the air and so are the Patriotic Art Contests!

Yes, I got a little cheesy with the title this month, and I would LOVE to see those entries coming in for the Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and the 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest. There are so many talented youngsters in our neighborhoods, churches, schools, and youth organizations, just waiting to shine their talents on us.

Get out and share the information with our youth in grades 9-12 about these two contests. Be sure to remind them to read ALL of the information regarding the entries so they are aware of what they are required to do for their submissions. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there have been so many wonderful entries that were disqualified because of failure to read and follow the rules of the contests. If you are a Facebook user, I encourage you to join the National VFW Auxiliary page and look for the individual department entries that have been entered into the National spotlight. The winners will be announced and displayed at the National Convention in Columbus, OH, August 9-14, 2025.

The Continuing Education Scholarship, available for VFW Auxiliary members and their immediate family members, is fast approaching its deadline of February 15. The auxiliary member must have been a member for at least 1 year. Only their immediate family members (self, spouse, and children) are eligible to apply. Four (4) recipients are chosen each year by the National VFW Auxiliary. Each of these recipients represents the four conferences in the VFW and its Auxiliary: Big 10, Southern, Western, and Eastern. The award amount is $1250 and is paid directly to the university, college, or trade school of the recipient’s choice.

Just a friendly reminder of future deadlines:

· February 15, 2025 – Continuing Education Scholarship for VFW Auxiliary members and immediate family (spouse and children)

· March 31, 2025 – Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

· March 31, 2025 – 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-1

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

Happy New Year!

It’s the start of a new year and new beginnings.

Happy New Year to all of you! I am so excited to start the New Year off with Mid-Winter Conference in Tupelo, January 24-26, 2025. At our Mid-Winter meeting, I will recognize three Auxiliary members who have really shone in promoting our scholarships. I won’t reveal who they are on here – you must come to Mid-Winter to find out! I plan to give each one a small token of my appreciation for their scholarship promotion.

On Saturday, January 25, we will recognize our Department Voice of Democracy winner at our Mid-Winter Banquet. As an auxiliary, we assisted VFW with promoting their scholarships, as well as collecting the essays and judging them. We have also assisted the VFW in recognizing and rewarding the winners with certificates and trophies/plaques.

Our next scholarship deadline is February 15, 2025. The Continuing Education Scholarship is available for VFW Auxiliary members and their immediate family members. The auxiliary member must have been a member for at least 1 year. Only their immediate family members (self, spouse, and children) are eligible to apply. Four (4) recipients are chosen each year by the National VFW Auxiliary. Each of these recipients represents the four conferences in the VFW and its Auxiliary: Big 10, Southern, Western, and Eastern. The award amount is $1250 and is paid directly to the university, college, or trade school of the recipient’s choice.

Please encourage local youth, grades 9-12 to apply for the Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and the 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest. Go online to MALTA, under Resources, and request brochures that give more details of these two contests. These brochures are sent to you free of charge. Share the brochures with local art teachers, church youth leaders, youth organizations, and your family members in grades 9-12. This is another great opportunity for our youth to demonstrate their patriotic values through art.

Just a friendly reminder of future deadlines:

· February 15, 2025 – Continuing Education Scholarship for VFW Auxiliary members and immediate family (spouse and children)

· March 31, 2025 – Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

· March 31, 2025 – 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

TOOT! TOOT!

(Ship-speak for “Merry Christmas!”)

It’s Christmas time already!

I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from my family to yours. I pray that you all have a safe and happy holiday with family and friends.

By this time Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen winners have been selected by area VFW Posts and have gone on for judging at the district level. Most districts have already chosen their winners, which will now go on to the Department level. Best of luck to all the young people who submitted entries and shared their ideas and beliefs on democracy and patriotism with our veterans.

Our next scholarship deadline is coming up February 15, 2025. It’s the Continuing Education Scholarship for VFW Auxiliary members and their immediate family members. Remember that the auxiliary member must have been a member for at least 1 year. Only their immediate family members (self, spouse, and children) are eligible to apply. Four (4) recipients are chosen each year by the National VFW Auxiliary. Each of these recipients represents the four conferences in the VFW and its Auxiliary: Big 10, Southern, Western, and Eastern. The award amount is $1250 and is paid directly to the university, college, or trade school of the recipient’s choice.

I would like to ask that you encourage local youth, grades 9-12 to apply for the Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and the 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest. Go online to MALTA, under Resources, and request brochures that give more details of these two contests. These brochures are sent to you free of charge. Share the brochures with local art teachers, church youth leaders, youth organizations, and your family members in grades 9-12. This is another great opportunity for our youth to demonstrate their patriotic values.

Just a friendly reminder of future deadlines:

· February 15, 2025 – Continuing Education Scholarship for VFW Auxiliary members and immediate family (spouse and children)

· March 31, 2025 – Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

· March 31, 2025 – 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

We’re All Aboard the VFWA “Scholar” Ship!

Our ship has begun its maiden voyage for the 2024-2025 Academic Year and has plans to stop at numerous posts and districts!

Join the fun and help our future!

The deadline has passed for the October 31, 2024, deadline for students to participate in the Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest and Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest. By this time, VFW posts are judging the entries submitted and should be selecting their winners to send to their districts for judging. From there it goes to the Department for judging.

A BIG “thank you” to all the auxiliaries that have participated in spreading the word about these two magnificent scholarships, and remember . . .

celebrate the winners!

Keep in mind the deadlines for other scholarships:

· February 15, 2025 – Continuing Education Scholarship for VFW Auxiliary members and immediate family (spouse and children)

· March 31, 2025 – Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

· March 31, 2025 – 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest (grades 9-12)

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

Our VFWA “Scholar” Ship has set sail for the 2024-2025 year!

Remember that October 31, 2025, is the deadline for students participating in the Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest and Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest. Students should have submitted their entries to their local VFW Posts on or before this date.

Patriot’s Pen Topic: “My Voice in America’s Democracy”

Voice of Democracy Topic: “Is America Today, Our Forefather’s Vision?”

Deadlines for other scholarships:

· February 15, 2025 – Continuing Education Scholarship for VFW Auxiliary members and immediate family (spouse and children)

· March 31, 2025 – Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest

· March 31, 2025 – 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

Ahoy there, Maties!

Welcome aboard the VFWA “Scholar” Ship!

It’s time to spread the “Scholar” Ship news! Get out there and let your auxiliary members know about the scholarships that are available to our family members, as well as community members.

Remember the Continuing Education “Scholar” Ship is available to auxiliary members who have been in the auxiliary for at least one year and their immediate family members (spouse, children). [Check out MALTA for more information, as well as the application.]

Let’s not forget those Patriotic Art Contests! Check in with area schools, your children, their friends, local youth groups, and spread the word about these contests that give our young people an opportunity to artistically express their patriotic ideas. [These applications are also available on MALTA.]

And, as always, let’s remember the Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest and Patriot’s Pen essay contests. Talk to your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, neighborhood kids, church youth. Tell them of the amazing opportunities available to express their patriotic beliefs. [Any idea where you can find these? You guessed it! Check MALTA and www.vfw.org.]

Questions: Contact me

Lanell Thornton (662)549-2856 email

Our new year has begun! There are so many exciting changes this year regarding scholarships, especially the Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen Essay Scholarships. As your Scholarship Chairman for 2024-2025, it is an honor and a privilege to work closely with our auxiliaries and posts to help fund education, not only for our members and their families, but also deserving area students.

Each month I will recognize a scholarship and offer more information regarding the scholarship, as well as ways to bring the scholarship to the attention of the auxiliaries and area communities.

Here are the scholarships offered through the VFW Auxiliary.

1) Continuing Education Scholarship

2) Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest

3) 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest

In addition to the Auxiliary scholarships, we also work with the VFW to promote the Patriot’s Pen and Voice of Democracy Essay Contests. These contests are open to students from public, private, and parochial schools, as well as online and home study schools.

4) VFW Patriot’s Pen and Voice of Democracy

New changes for the Patriot’s Pen and Voice of Democracy Essay Contests include online submission and online judging. To learn more about these scholarships, visit the VFW page at www.vfw.org, Community, Youth and Education.

(VFW members will get Scholar App training at the August 24 SOI)

Beth Crow EMAIL

We’re at the year end for our Scholarship Program. I want to take the opportunity to thank all of you who have participated in the program. Thank you to all the people who helped and advised me in this first year as a program chairman. I hope that I have been of some service to you and your auxiliary.

I am looking forward to see how our entries for the Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest do at National. Join me in wishing Edi-Ann and Adriane the best of luck. Both are talented artists and are heavy contenders for prizes at National. We had some awesome entries this year and I hope that we have even more in the coming year. Remember it is never too early to start promoting our scholarships.

Those entries not sent to National will be displayed at State Convention. If your auxiliary sponsored an artist please pick up their artwork before you leave.

Thanks again to everyone and I hope to see you all at State Convention this month.

Respectfully,

Beth Crow, Scholarship Chairman 2023-2024

VFW Auxiliary, Dept of Mississippi

Beth Crow EMAIL

The Scholarship Program is winding down for the year. I’m proud to say we have an entry in both the Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and the 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest this year. It has been a very successful year for our Scholarship Program. I want to thank everyone for all the hard work and time you put into the program to make it a success.

Our entry for the Young American Creative Patriotic Art contest entitled, “Good Boy”, is drawn by Adriane Luke. Adriane is a sophomore at Newton County Academy and is sponsored by Auxiliary 12124.

Our entry for the 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest entitled,” Mamaw’s Memories”, is made by Edi-Ann Mitchell. Edi-Ann is a senior at Pillow Academy in Greenwood and is sponsored by Auxiliary 9832.

I wish both our contestants the best of luck at National. I think Mississippi might just be bringing home a winning entry. All of the art I received was exceptional and I’m proud of our Mississippi young people.

National will begin pushing out all the department winners on their Facebook page on June 3rd. Please take the time to look at the awesome artwork our youth has produced.

Those of you who sponsored artists that were not sent to National may pick up the art work at the convention this month.

Respectfully,

Beth Crow, Scholarship Chairman

VFW Auxiliary, Dept of Mississippi

Beth Crow 662-552-9481 EMAIL monthly report form

downloadable scholarship forms

Hello everyone. I hope this finds you all well. We are finishing up the Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and 3-D Patriotic Art Contest. I hope that everyone got plenty of great entries. Your winning entry is due to me by April 15.

Please make sure each entry has the entry form, the Art Release Form, and the <200 word description of the process behind the Art Work.

If you are shipping your entry, please allow ample time for it to arrive by April 15. Make sure that you package the Art Work well for shipping. I suggest you use acid free packaging to avoid damaging the piece. Make sure you use something sturdy to back the piece when shipping so that it cannot be rolled or bent. Clearly mark the package as Art Work, Do Not Bend, Fragile, or whatever you feel necessary to insure the postman does not roll up the package and shove it in my mailbox. If you feel uncomfortable shipping the art work, give me a call and I will try to arrange a pick up.

I am looking forward to seeing all of the entries. I hope to have them judged and the winning piece on its way to national by April 25th. They are due at national by May 5. Hopefully, we will have a winner from Mississippi this year. If you are attending the National Convention please go by the Vendor Hall and take a look at all the national entries.