The Plan  

BY JACK McMANUS

At the 2023 VVA National Convention in Orlando in August, the elected delegates formally directed me, as President, to present a plan addressing the future of VVA, its chapters, and its state councils. This plan is scheduled to be presented to the delegates at the next biennial National Convention in New Orleans in August 2025.

The recommendations of the VVA Legacy Task Force, chaired by Jack Devine, along with input from VVA’s National Officers, will be introduced to the Board of Directors for consideration, possible modification, and, ultimately, ratification at the April 2025 quarterly Board meeting in Silver Spring. Once approved, the plan will be presented for consideration at the 2025 Convention.

In preparation for this final plan, a series of financial and operational actions are being incrementally implemented, paving the way for the 2027 VVA National Convention, when the final phase of VVA’s transition is expected to be addressed.

The VVA National Finance Committee, chaired by Dottie Barickman and National Treasurer Wayne Reynolds, has been diligently carrying out preparatory financial tasks and allocations, with the approval of the BOD. Their timely work has ensured that we are on track to meet the Convention’s directives.

Our committees and departments have been given the task of evaluating where and how VVA’s critical functions and programs could continue once the organization is dissolved. Recommendations from committee members and staff are due to the VVA Legacy Task Force by January 2025 for inclusion in the draft plan.

As I speak with members, I often hear concerns about the finality of our approved Plan of Dissolution. Is our legacy to simply be that we did a good job turning out the lights? Many of us—including myself—believe we are meant to leave behind something far greater than that.

What will happen to the spirit, hard work, and dedication to veterans and their families that have defined VVA for nearly half a century? Do we think that America no longer needs a lasting reminder of our experiences as Vietnam War veterans? How do we ensure that future generations don’t repeat the mistakes of the past in how they treat those who serve?

We’ve learned much, and we’ve accomplished much. Now it’s our responsibility to consider how best to honor and preserve that legacy—not just in words, but in actions that will live on after us.

Does the fact that the current membership will be passing on mean that future generations of Americans can’t continue to deliver the critical services and support that veterans in the future deserve and will continue to need?

We have started the process of answering that question with the development, approval, and creation of the independent Veterans’ Voice of America to be our future, long-lasting veterans’ benefits organization. We are proud to partner with this new, independent VA-accredited veteran service organization that aligns with our legacy of advocacy and service for all veterans, their descendants, and survivors.

With some VVA state VSO programs already closed and more anticipated to do so in the future, it is imperative that VetsVOA adopt VVA’s Veterans Benefits mission via deliberate, carefully considered, and appropriately paced steps. Through VetsVOA, VVA will be able to continue to represent the health benefit compensation claims of its clients and their descendants and survivors before the Department of Veterans Affairs at no cost to those individuals, even beyond the dissolution of VVA National as an organization at a point in the future yet to be determined.

That same forthcoming plan will lay out the options available to VVA chapters and state councils and, more importantly, to our individual VVA members who could continue to serve their communities and future generations of veterans, reflecting VVA’s legacy.

Many members believe, as I do, that if we apply our collective talents and willpower to creating a VVA legacy organization, it can be around for many years. Your Board of Directors, National Officers, VVA staff, and the VVA Legacy Task Force are working diligently to develop a plan to create that successor organization—as well on our Plan of Dissolution.

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