Long before there was  a popular movie starring Will Smith our nation’s forefathers gathered together and penned the Declaration of Independence. It is quite a remarkable and well thought out document that served as a stimulus and call to action. I had the privilege to escort one of the original copies of the Declaration of Independence while serving as a North Carolina State Trooper. It is amazing at the precautions that are made to protect this well preserved artifact, from the actual bullet proof case in which it is enclosed, to the armed escorts that accompany it when it travels.

One of the driving principles of The American Legion is to promote 100% Americanism where ever we find ourselves. To that end I encourage you to become familiar with the Declaration of Independence and reflect on it this week. I encourage you to find an opportunity to share this magnificent writing with a friend, family member or co-worker. Take a few moments to speak to a child or young person about our nation’s history and educate them on our founding principles.

You may want to open the conversation with a trivia question such as, “Who were the three North Carolinians to sign the Declaration of Independence?” (Answer at the end of this article.) Or you may want to just speak about the first few lines and the importance of what it means.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

A multitude of American service members have made countless sacrifices fighting for these principles because something’s are worth fighting for and something’s are worth dying for; I submit to you the words of the Declaration of Independence are worth dying for. If that is true for you as well, share what you know with someone else this week. Together we will make a stronger future for America by remembering our past. Together we are Legion Strong!

(North Carolinians William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, and John Penn signed the Declaration of Independence. )

“Time to get back to basics.”  Have you ever heard that phrase? I have several times. The meaning is always the same; somehow over time we have drifted from the actual path that we started on and we need to go back to the fundamentals. The phrase can be applied to entities such as corporations, churches, or civic organizations; but it also applies to us individually.

In my fifty years on this earth I have seen churches lose their way and start following their denominations rather than their God, I have seen businesses lose their way and start chasing profit margin over customer service, I have seen civic organizations lose their way when they sought numerical growth over service to others, and I have seen people lose their way when they chose to satisfy their own desires rather than serve the one who created them in the first place.

At some point in time they all need to hit the reset button and “get back to basics.”  When these drifts occur, churches seeking to get back to basics find themselves in the book of Acts. There they find a biblical model of how church should be done. When businesses lose their way they go back to a fundamental rule of taking care of the customer first, and when civic organizations lose their way they must return to their original mission statement and remember why they came together in the first place.

The Preamble of the American Legion Constitution states, “FOR GOD AND COUNTRY WE ASSOCIATE OURSELVES TOGETHER FOR THE FOLLOWING PURPOSES”. Across this great nation of ours Legion Posts meet monthly and recite these words but for some, not all, but for some, they have lost their meaning and power. Some of our Posts have forgotten why they even assemble and that is sad.

National American Legion Headquarters explains it like this: “FOR GOD AND COUNTRY, WE ASSOCIATE OURSELVES TOGETHER…This is the introduction. It declares that The American Legion recognizes the influence of Almighty God in all worthwhile endeavors-and declares the allegiance of Legionnaires to both God and Nation. First things have been put first. All that follows is in conformity.”

In getting back to basics it is important to keep our priorities right. It is important we recognize the blessings and favor the Almighty has shown us; and as we gather together we do so first for His glory and then for the glory of this great country to which we swear our allegiance.

Getting back to basics and keeping our priorities straight will keep us Legion Strong!