Deadline for American Legion Spirit of Service Award Nominations Draws Near

This August will mark the 15^th consecutive year the American Legion will be presenting its Spirit of Service Award, created to recognize outstanding volunteer community work performed by enlisted personnel (E-5 and below) from each of the five branches of the United States Armed Forces.
 
Slated for presentation at the American Legion’s National Convention to be held August 27-31, 2016 in Cincinnati, the award is based on the amount and impact of volunteer community service enlisted personnel performed while off duty during the entire 2015 calendar year. Both active-duty and reservists are eligible for the award, but previous winners may not be nominated.
 
Nominations must be submitted by commanding officers and feature thorough descriptions of volunteer community service, including quantification of the amount of off-duty time spent engaged in volunteer work and what it involved. A biography (including hometown information) and a photo of nominees must also be enclosed with the submission because award recipients will be featured in both the American Legion’s magazine and convention program.

 

The 2015 American Legion Spirit of Service Award presentation ceremony held in Baltimore, Maryland.

Travel and lodging for each of the five winners will be provided by the American Legion, though winners will be responsible for the travel expenses of any family members who choose to accompany them to the convention.
 
While the deadline has passed for nominating enlisted personnel from the Air Force and submission information is not publicly available for Army and Coast Guard nominations, the nomination process is still open for Navy and Marine Corps personnel.
 
Marine Corps nominations should be sent via email to hqmc.comrel@usmc.mil. Documentation should be in portable document format (PDF), images should be in JPEG format, and the nomination must cite specific examples of volunteer community service and how the community benefitted. The deadline for submission is Friday, May 13, 2016.
 
Nominations for enlisted Navy personnel must be submitted no later than Friday, May 20, 2016 on command letterhead and with images in high-resolution JPEG format. The CO must be willing to assist their nominee in attending the convention if chosen for the award. All nomination materials should be emailed to Todd.Martin@navy.mil.