105. Previously known as the VFW Ladies Auxiliary, in 2015 it officially changed its name to VFW Auxiliary which opened up eligibility to all military spouses.
106. In 1952, our national Disaster Relief Fund was established. This fund continues to support veterans, service members and their families affected by natural disasters like this year’s devastating fires in Maui.
107. The VFW has a long history of supporting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and was, in fact, the first major veterans’ organization to support building The Wall by contributing more than $300,000 to the project.
108. In 1991, the VFW’s Operation Hometown sent 100,000 care packages to troops in the Persian Gulf.
109. Checkpoint, the VFW’s award-winning e-newsletter, highlights many local VFW efforts.
110. In 1990, the VFW contributed $650,000 to the Korean War Memorial.
111. In front of our Washington, D.C., office stands a 36-foot-tall Torch of Freedom statue, honoring Americans who fought during a dozen wars since 1776. The piece was commissioned by Felix De Weldon, known for his massive Iwo Jima Memorial in Virginia.
112. One of the VFW’s most popular youth activities was its National Marble Tournament. The first marble tournament was hosted in 1947 in Boys Town, Nebraska.
113. In 1950, the National Marble Tournament was even featured in the pages of Life magazine.
114. By the mid-1950’s, approximately 150,000 boys were participating in the annual marble competition.
115. A staunch VFW priority and hard-fought legislative victory, the SFC Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022, known as the PACT Act, was signed into law on Aug. 10, 2022, expanding VA health care and benefits for veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange and other toxic substances.
116. In addition to publishing 10 magazines a year, VFW magazine has published 13 books. The most recent book being, Brutal Battles of Vietnam.
117. Every year, the VFW’s Commander-in-Chief goes on a fact-finding mission to learn and then report back on the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency.
118. In 2019, the VFW Auxiliary reached nearly 500,000 members!