KANSAS CITY, MO — The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S., America’s largest and oldest major combat veterans organization, is pleased to announce it has deployed a new look. 

The new VFW logo and visual language embraces the organization’s storied 119 years of service to America’s veterans, service members and their families, while underscoring its forward-thinking approach to service and distinguished membership base. The VFW believes the new logo will improve market position and provide visual clarity to its mission.

 
“We’re excited about the bold, new look,” said B.J. Lawrence, national commander of the VFW. “There’s a lot of complex meaning built into our new logo, yet it clearly communicates who we are and what we’re about – service to nation while in the military and continuing service to our nation as veterans.”

The new logo is a drastic change from its predecessor, and is the first-ever official logo that was designed without the organization’s traditional Cross of Malta shield, which remains the official seal of the VFW. It includes an artistic representation of service stripes which represent length of service on most U.S. military uniforms. As such, the first and leaner of the two service stripes represents the organization’s steadfast entry into its second century of service to America’s veterans, service members and their families. The second, broader stripe, represents its first storied century of service, spanning back to 1899. In addition to the direct metaphor of the stripes, the visual progression leading to the build of the letter “V” represents our sustained and forward movement into achieving the VFW’s mission of service to others. The distinctive gold coloring gives nod to the VFW’s stringent membership eligibility requirements and the gold standard of service the VFW provides. The red represents the danger each of its members has faced and the energy with which the VFW operates.

In support of the project, the VFW has created individual custom logos for use by each of its 52 VFW Department headquarters in all 50 states and overseas, and nearly 6,300 individual VFW Posts. 

“The VFW is such an amazing organization and just as relevant, if not more so, than any other time in our history. It’s time all of America notices us and I feel confident this is another step in accomplishing just that,” said Lawrence.

WASHINGTON — The national commander of America’s largest and oldest major combat veterans’ organization will be visiting the nation’s largest Army training facility in California next week.

B.J. Lawrence, national commander of the 1.6 million-member Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States and its Auxiliary, will be visiting the National Training Center at Fort Irwin on Tuesday and Wednesday to learn more about the live-fire training required of armored brigades before they deploy overseas. He is especially interested in troop training, readiness and morale.

The National Training Center, more commonly known as NTC, is the only U.S. military training facility that supports brigade-level, live-fire exercises. The more than 460-square-mile facility supports joint and combined team operations expending live munitions ranging from small arms to 2,000-pound aircraft-launched bombs.

The NTC visit is part of a larger initiative that will have the VFW national commander meeting up with an armored brigade combat team in their deployed overseas location after the New Year.

​“Meeting the troops where they train, and especially where they deploy, is essential to maintaining the close relationships the VFW has nurtured with our armed forces for more than 119 years,” said Lawrence. “I look forward to meeting them, learning of their mission, and hearing of any concerns they might have, which will enable us to better advocate for them and their families on Capitol Hill.”

​WASHINGTON (Oct. 23, 2018) – The Department of Veterans Affairs has reported that more than a half-million veterans represented by the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. this past fiscal year received in excess of $8.3 billion in VA disability compensation and pension benefits, which far exceeds last year’s record recovery of $7.7 billion.
 
“The VFW advocates for veterans in many ways, from lobbying Congress to create good quality of life legislation for America’s veterans, service members and their families and survivors, to helping veterans and transitioning service members receive the VA benefits they earned after they return home wounded, ill or injured,” said VFW National Commander B.J. Lawrence. “For nearly a century — and a full decade before the VA’s predecessor organization was created — the VFW has helped veterans understand and file for their government benefits, a service that is needed now just as much as it was then.”
 
The VFW accredits an international network of more than 2,000 highly-trained and professional veterans’ advocates whose mission is to help service members, veterans, and their eligible family members receive their earned VA benefits, explained Lawrence. VFW’s accredited advocates can be found in every VA Regional Offices and dozens of VA health care facilities. Many state and county service officers also carry a VFW accreditation to ensure that VFW claimants can receive timely assistance closer to home. In fiscal year 2018, VFW’s accredited service officers filed more than 109,000 new claims for VFW claimants, resulting in $1.4 billion in new benefits paid to veterans.
 
In addition to assisting veterans at VA Regional Offices and in the community, the VFW places a special focus on helping transitioning service members file for their benefits on 24 military installations through the VFW Pre-Discharge Claims Program. Last year, the VFW’s Pre-Discharge Claims Representatives filed nearly 15,000 claims for separating service members, resulting in more than $155 million in disability compensation.
 
“Once a veteran chooses to be represented by the VFW, we commit to provide you with a ‘Lifetime of Advocacy’ in navigating and understanding your earned VA benefits,” said VFW National Veterans Service Director Ryan Gallucci. “When life circumstances change, if new conditions emerge, or if VA asks to reevaluate a condition, your VFW-accredited representative will be there to help. If you disagree with your rating decision, we’ll help you appeal,” he said. “Even after you pass away, the VFW will be there to help your family understand their benefits and how the VA can honor your memory. This is our commitment to our clients, and just one of the ways we prove that ‘No One Does More for Veterans than the VFW.’”
 
In order to provide this “Lifetime of Advocacy,” the VFW provides up to 80 hours of classroom training every year to its VFW-accredited representatives stationed at the VA’s 56 Regional Offices and on 24 of the military’s largest installations. In 2019, the VFW will expand its reach to all VFW-accredited representatives through a new online learning platform, just in time for the 100th anniversary of the VFW’s benefits assistance program.
 
By law, VFW’s accredited claims assistance is provided free of charge and under no obligation to any honorably discharged veteran, regardless of VFW membership status.
 
To find a VA-accredited service officer at VFW, click here. If you are a service member within 180 days of discharge from the military, you can contact a VFW Pre-Discharge Representative in your area by clicking here.

VFW’s proven performance in aiding transitioning military is key to WWP’s continued support

October 18, 2018

WASHINGTON – The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. is proud to announce that Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) has renewed a service officer grant in the amount of $443,145 that will continue to help more transitioning military to receive their earned Department of Veterans Affairs benefits. The grant will be used to support the VFW’s Pre-Discharge Claims Program, which has a proven history of providing free and expert VA claims filing assistance on two dozen of America’s largest military installations.  

To date, WWP has provided grants totaling more than $1.8 million to support VFW’s Pre-Discharge Claims Program, an effort that last year enabled the VFW to file nearly 15,000 claims and recover more than $155 million in disability compensation for newly-transitioned veterans. Collectively, VFW’s nationwide cadre of 2,100 VA-accredited service officers helped well over 500,000 veterans to secure $8.3 billion in earned benefits in fiscal year 2018. Membership in the VFW is not required to receive its free, professional claims assistance.
 
“Helping servicemen and women to successfully transition out of the military and into the VA is a crucial part of the VFW’s mission, and we are grateful to Wounded Warrior Project for their continued support of this shared mission,” said VFW National Commander B.J. Lawrence. “With 24 Pre-Discharge Claims Offices across the country, this generous grant helps ensure that the VFW is able to continue helping our new veterans receive the benefits they’ve earned and deserve.”
 
“The long-term resilience and well-being of our military community require innovation and collaboration among like-minded organizations,” said René Bardorf, WWP Senior Vice President of Government and Community Affairs. “Wounded Warrior Project is proud to partner with The Veterans of Foreign Wars in their efforts to help our nation’s veterans successfully transition back to their communities. The VFW’s work in helping transitioning service members navigate the VA’s claims process is invaluable and ensures veterans access to the healthcare benefits they have earned through their service to our great nation.” 
 
If you are a service member within 180 days of discharge from the military, you can contact a VFW Pre-Discharge Representative in your area by visiting the VFW website’s link here.