The Polish Legion of American Veterans, USA (PLAV) is an organization made up of U.S. military veterans. Despite its name, membership in the PLAV is open to all veterans regardless of race, color, religion or national origin. The PLAV motto is "Unity with Heritage."

Mission

The PLAV was founded for the purpose of endorsing ideals of

patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...

allegiance An allegiance is a duty of fidelity said to be owed, or freely committed, by the people, subjects or citizens to their state or sovereign. Etymology From Middle English ''ligeaunce'' (see medieval Latin ''ligeantia'', "a liegance"). The ''al ...

honor Honour (British English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is the idea of a bond between an individual and a society as a quality of a person that is both of social teaching and of personal ethos, that manifests itself as a ...

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

and

volunteerism Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

in the service of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and its veterans, particularly those that are disabled. It does this through volunteer work, generating awareness, and supporting legislation.

History

The PLAV was a body formed by Polish-American U.S. military veterans after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Its lineage begins with the Alliance of Polish-American Veterans, created in the summer of 1920 after a gathering of veterans from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

, and

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

in Hawthorne, Illinois. In December 1920, this association held a provisional convention and in September 1921 it held its first regular convention, at which they changed their name to the "Alliance of American Veterans of Polish Extraction." In September 1931 the Alliance of American Veterans of Polish Extraction merged with the Polish Legion of the American Army and a veteran's organization from Michigan to form the PLAV. On February 23, 1984 the PLAV was granted a Federal Charter by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

. In 1992 they discontinued their requirement that members be of Polish ancestry to join the PLAV.

Membership eligibility requirements

Membership is open to all

honorably discharged A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and th ...

American veterans and certain Allied veterans as specified in the PLAV national constitution.PLAV Brochure "Who We Are," revised April 2014

Organizational structure

Posts

The Post is the basic unit of the PLAV and is typically located in an area in the United States that has, or has historically had, a high concentration of Polish-Americans. There are approximately 75 posts in the United States. The Post is used for formal business such as meetings and a coordination point for community service projects. A Post member is distinguished by a navy blue garrison cap with gold piping.

Departments

The Posts are grouped together into a state level organization known as a Department for the purposes of coordination and administration. There are currently 12 Departments: Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The State of Nevada has a representative, but is not a department. A Department Officer is distinguished by a white garrison cap with gold piping.

National Department

The National Department consists of the National Commander, and national leadership positions of Vice Commander, Treasurer, Judge Advocate, Adjutant, Veterans Affairs Voluntary Service Director, Legislative Director, Quartermaster, and National News Editor/Public Relations Officer. A National Department Officer is distinguished by a red garrison cap with gold piping.

References

{{reflist

External links

Polish Legion of American Veterans - U.S.A.

501(c)(3) organizations American veterans' organizations Polish-American organizations Nonpartisan organizations in the United States Patriotic and national organizations chartered by the United States Congress 1920 establishments in the United States