Technology Today!

 A few days ago I posted in the blog about my participation in a roundtable discussion with Teddy Robb and the VFW Unmet Needs Program.  When I release a new blog item, I also post it on my Facebook page to get maximum coverage.

When I last visited Florida for a VFW event, I was introduced to a man who does a lot for his local post.  We had a nice conversation and later I wrote him a note, thanking him for all he does.  He reached out and friended me on Facebook and has been reading the blog through it.  When he read the Teddy Robb post, he made the following comment:  “This is the first time, both because of the internet and paying attention, that I have followed the National VFW. Every day I am more pleased to belong to the VFW.”  Let that sink in!

By using the simplest of technologies available to us, social media, I’m able to reach a huge audience to let them know what I get to do as a National officer.  I’m just one person but I have an impact on so many.  That’s why I’m pushing the use of technology and social media for what I hope to be my year as the Commander in Chief.  [I’m not elected yet!].  Leveraging tech is a force multiplier for the Veterans of Foreign Wars.  Still, there are some who believe they aren’t tech savvy or don’t have easy access to the internet and social media.  We need to reach out and help those folks so they can spread the word.

Just a few days ago on Mars, almost 184 million miles away, the United States remotely controlled a small helicopter and made the first flight on a distant planet.  The craft, named Ingenuity, didn’t fly high or for a long time, but it flew.  That’s a Can Do spirit.  If we can remotely fly machines on a distant planet, just over a hundred years from when we first conquered heavier than air flight on our own planet, we can find a way to reach out to our neighbors in our communities with a social media message about the wonderful things we continue to do.  How will anyone know that “Nobody Does More For Veterans” if we don’t tell them!