Category Archives: Scholarship

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.

Beth Crow, Auxiliary 662-552-9481 EMAIL monthly report form

downloadable scholarship forms

Spring is in the air! I am so happy to see warmer weather. I’m looking forward to seeing you all at our March Council of Admin.

It’s time to make the push to the March 31 deadline for the Young American Patriotic Art Contest and 3D Patriotic Art Contest. Make sure you have contacted all of your area schools and provided information to them about the contests, if you haven’t already. Follow up with those organizations that you have contacted and remind them the deadline is approaching. Finally, make sure your submissions get to the Department on time. The deadline for submitting to the Department is April 15. I have to submit the Department winner to National by May 5. These are all tight deadlines please act in a timely manner. Remember this is not just a submission of a name. An actual piece of art will be mailed, so take into account the delivery time. Please take care in packing the submission if you are sending it by USPS, UPS, or any commercial delivery company. If you are mailing USPS, I live on a rural route. Please take care to mark the package DO NOT BEND, FRAGILE, and place it in a sturdy container so that it doesn’t end up stuffed willy nilly in my mailbox. If you feel uncomfortable mailing your entry, I’ll try to arrange a pickup but I would ask that you coordinate with neighboring auxiliaries and districts so that I could pick up several entries at a time.

Last but not least, remember to get your reports in. I still have auxiliaries that haven’t submitted a report. The time is fast approaching for the end of year report. I will have printed copies of the Scholarship report to hand out at March Council of Admin. I expect you all to get at least one report in by March 31.

Have a good Easter and enjoy the warmer weather.

Beth Crow 662-552-9481 EMAIL monthly report form

downloadable scholarship forms

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! I hope everyone survived the deep freeze of January without mishap. I’m looking forward to Spring. Just a few reminders for the coming months.

First, the applications for the Continuing Education Scholarship are due to National by Feb. 15. The application is available in Malta under the scholarships tab. There are questions to be answered on a separate sheet plus a no more than 300 word essay that describes your commitment that have to accompany the application. Members and their family members who are 21 and over may apply. The member must be 1 year in good standing.

Second, the deadline for the Young American Patriotic Art Contest and the 3-D Young American Patriotic Art Contest is fast approaching. All entries must be submitted to the auxiliaries by March 31. Please check in with your local schools and youth organizations to remind them of the contests.

Lastly, please submit your reports every month. There are Auxiliaries out there that have not submitted a report yet. Please do not wait until the last minute to get those reports submitted. You can submit them electronically at vfwauxms.org, by email, by text, or even snail mail. If you haven’t submitted a report by our next School of Instruction in March, I will be contacting you. There are many things that can be counted as promoting our scholarship programs, i.e. talking about them at meetings, sharing information with people outside the auxiliary, helping the VFW with Patriot’s Pen and Voice of Democracy, even sharing posts on social media. Those are just a few. I know that most of you have done at least one thing that promotes our Scholarship Program this year, so please submit a report.

Thank you to those Auxiliaries that have already submitted reports. I know that the rest of you are going to send me a report soon. Have a great Valentines Day and I will see you in March.

Beth Crow, Auxiliary 662-552-9481 EMAIL monthly report form

downloadable scholarship forms

HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Holiday Season and is ready to get back to work. The next few months are going to be very busy.

Please make sure you are submitting your scholarship reports monthly. You can submit them online at vfwauxms.com, send them by email or text, or even send them by snail mail. Please just get them in so that they can be counted.

Please remind your members at your January meeting that the applications for the Continuing Education Scholarship are due Feb 15. The application and short essay must be at National Headquarters by that date.

This is the time to really ramp up your promotion of the Young American Patriotic Art Contest and the 3-D Patriotic Art Contest. If you sent information to schools and youth organizations, please take time to call or email to remind them of the deadline, March 31. There are press releases in MALTA that can be placed in your local papers that give details about the contests. Make use of all the tools available to you through MALTA. March 31 will be here before you know it.

I hope that you are planning some sort of recognition for your Post and Auxiliary Scholarship winners. I know many of you have your winners present their projects at a VFW event, but also consider presenting their award during the Awards Day ceremony at their school so that their peers can appreciate their accomplishment too. It’s a very good way to promote our scholarships and develop relationships with school personnel that would be willing to help with the programs next year.

With the new year, let’s reaffirm our commitment as VFW Auxiliary Members and really work to promote these scholarships. Our youth is our future and without them we cannot continue as an organization.

Beth Crow Email 662-552-9481

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope that you all are in full swing with your Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen submissions. Remember that Post Judging must be completed by Nov 15. 

Our next scholarship deadline is for the Continuing Education Scholarship. Submissions must be received at National Headquarters by Feb. 15. A 300 or less word essay must accompany the application. 

We should be actively promoting our Young American Creative Patriotic Art and 3-D Patriotic Art Contests in our schools. Please make sure you have contacted your local art teachers or the school counselors and supplied them with information and flyers. I keep a few of the flyers in my car or purse to give out to young people who I think display artistic talent. I carry brochures to any event and distribute them. You can order up to 50 brochures from National at no charge. 

Fall is the time of year for festivals, farmer’s markets, and celebrations, take advantage of that and distribute flyers at these events. 

• VFW Auxiliary Brochure Order Form
• Patriotic Art Brochure
• Young American Creative Patriotic Art Info. Sheet
• Young American Creative Patriotic Art Entry Form
• 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Info. Sheet
• 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Entry Form

Please remember to submit your reports monthly. I only have about a dozen auxiliaries who have submitted reports. I know there are more of you out there. Get those reports in!

Have a great Thanksgiving and I will see you all at Mid-Winter in January!

Beth Crow Phone 662-552-9481 Email

Happy Fall everyone! I know we’re all looking forward to the cooler weather. I hope that you all have your Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen programs in full swing. Remember that all entries have to be submitted to the Post by midnight Oct. 31. Post judging should be complete and entries submitted to the Department by Nov. 15. Consider planning an event to recognize those youths participating in the contest.

Our next scholarship event coming up is the Continuing Education Scholarship. A $1250.00 scholarship is awarded to one member in each of the four conferences. The scholarship is available to Auxiliary Members, their spouses and children. Qualifying members must have been members for one year by the application submission date. Applicants must be in financial need to continue/return to college or vocational/technical/trade schools. The applicant must be 21 years of age by the submission date of Feb. 15, 2024. Applications and information can be found in MALTA under the Scholarship tab.

Also be mindful of promoting the Young American Creative Art Contest, and the 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest. March is just around the corner. Please make contact with your local schools and get their art teachers involved with promoting the contests. There are some very good tools in MALTA to aid in promoting these, as well as, our other contests. Particularly, there is a fillable press release for all of our scholarships and contests that I recommend sending to your local newspapers.

Did you know that you can donate directly to our scholarship programs through MALTA. Under Duties, hit the GIVE button to make a direct donation to the scholarship program of your choice.

Have a great Fall and don’t forget to report, report, report!

Beth Crow 662-552-9481

It’s that time of year when the kids are headed back to school.  Please make sure you have distributed your applications and pamphlets for Voice of Democracy and Patriots Pen to the appropriate contact at your local schools.  These can be obtained at vfwauxiliary.org under the tab, “Scholarships and Contests” or behind MALTA in the Scholarships Section. Deadline for submitting to the Post is Oct. 31.  

Voice of Democracy Theme: “What are the greatest attributes of our Democracy?”

Patriot’s Pen Theme: “How are you inspired by America?”

Please Educate your members on the Continuing Education Scholarship.  VFW Auxiliary members, their spouse, or their children who are at least 21 years old are eligible for this scholarship.   The deadline for the scholarship is Feb 15.  Applications can be found at vfwauxiliary.org under the Scholarships and Contests tab or behind MALTA in the Scholarships Section.  This scholarship could help make a big difference in the lives of our members

Please start contacting your local Art Teachers about the Young America Creative Patriotic Art Contest and 3-Dimensional Patriotic Contest.  I know the deadline is March 31 but some of these projects can be very involved and take a lot of time.  You can obtain Entry Forms at VFWAuxiliary.org under the Scholarships and Contests tab or in Malta under Member Resources.  You may also order them from National Headquarters at vfwauxiliary.org/wp-content/uploads/VFW-Auxiliary-Brochure-Order-Form-updated.pdf.

Last but not Least, I want to congratulate you all in making Mississippi Number 1 in National Division 2 for Outstanding performance in Scholarships.  Lanell did a fantastic job as Scholarship Chairman 2022/2023.  I have some very big shoes to fill.

Again, I look forward to working with you all this year.  I want us to really get out there and promote our Scholarship Programs.  Working together we can have a banner year and make Mississippi shine.

It is an honor to serve as your Department Scholarship Chairman for the year 2023-2024.  Each of our scholarships encourage patriotism, assist students in attaining an education, and help students reach their full potential.  This increases VFW Auxiliary recognition while supporting our communities, students and members.  I encourage each Auxiliary to host at least one event promoting our scholarships this year.

Continuing Education Scholarship:

Open to any Auxiliary member (who has been a member for at least one year), their spouse, or child with financial need.  Entrant must be at least 21 years old, complete the application, and submit an essay of 300 words or less.  The application must be received at National Headquarters by Feb. 15.  Scholarships of $1,250 will be awarded to an applicant in each of the four Conferences.  Applications are available from Department Scholarship Chairmen or in MALTA Member Resources.

Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest and 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest:

Open to any student in grades 9-12 by the March 31 deadline who is enrolled in public, private, or parochial high school or home study program in the United States, its territories, and possessions; or dependents of US Military or civilian personnel in overseas schools.  U.S. citizenship is not required but students must be a lawful US permanent resident or have applied for permanent residency and intend to become a US citizen. Entries are judged on patriotic theme and technique.  Auxiliary winners are due to the Department by April 15 (District Judging is OPTIONAL).   Contest rules and entry forms can be obtained through the Scholarships section of MALTA or at VFWAuxiliary.org.  Please note that the 3-Dimensional Art Contest is an additional scholarship and separate from the Young American Creative Art Contest.

Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay Contest:

2023-2024 Theme: “What are the greatest attributes of our Democracy?”

Open to students in grades 9-12 by the Oct. 31 deadline who is enrolled in public, private, or parochial high school or home study program in the United States, its territories, and possessions; or dependents of US Military or civilian personnel in overseas schools.  U.S. citizenship is not required but students must be a lawful US permanent resident or have applied for permanent residency and intend to become a US citizen.   Contest rules and entry forms can be obtained through the Scholarships section of MALTA or at VFWAuxiliary.org. Post judging should be complete by Nov 15.

Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest:

2023-2024 Theme: “How are you inspired by America?”

Open to students in Grades 6-8, by Oct 31 deadline who is enrolled in public, private, or parochial high school or home study program in the United States, its territories, and possessions; or dependents of US Military or civilian personnel in overseas schools.  U.S. citizenship is not required but students must be a lawful US permanent resident or have applied for permanent residency and intend to become a US citizen. Contest rules and entry forms can be obtained through the Scholarships section of MALTA or at VFWAuxiliary.org.  Post judging should be complete by Nov 15.

It is important that scholarship winners receive recognition at every level.  There are many ways to recognize our winners, i.e., present a certificate or gift, host an awards ceremony, present awards at the school awards assembly, or contact local media to feature winners in the news.

You or your Auxiliary can donate to the Patriotic Art Escrow Fund by clicking on “Make a Gift” in MALTA and selecting Patriotic Art or mail checks earmarked Patriotic Art to:

VFW Auxiliary National Headquarters

ATTN: Patriotic Art Scholarship Fund

406 W 34^th Street, 10^th Floor

Kansas, City, MO  64111

Again, it is an honor to serve as your Scholarship Chairman.  I look forward to working with each of you in the coming year.  If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.  Let’s have a great year and make Mississippi shine.

Beth Crow