Today, the nonprofit has its headquarters in Selma and local branches across the area, including a location at Fort Sam Houston.
Since its creation, the organization has grown to over 40,000 members, 25,000 advocates and 30 chapters, with two being international chapters in South Korea and Italy, Executive Director Joe Terry said.
“Our primary goal is to be an advocate for service members and their families,” Terry said. “We focus primarily on quality-of-life issues, whether that be pay, medical, education and things of that nature.”
A closer look
The association lobbies for enlisted members and their families by working with other large veterans and military organizations to have a larger group when voicing concerns on legislation and programs focused on military members.
The nonprofit organization works with businesses and organizations to provide services and other benefits to those who join as members.
These services include financial support resources, education support and travel programs that offer discounted services.
“We have a program for our members that helps support them with tuition to further their education,” Terry said. “We have a scholarship program for our members to take part of, and we have resources with our association that can provide our members with exclusive benefits and discounts that other organizations do not offer.”
Membership services are available to all branches of the military, with programs and discounts focused on enlisted service members.
Alongside these services, the organization also hosts multiple events throughout the year, including a conference where service members are recognized.
While the organization operates on a membership model, links to resources and other assistance are available on the organization's website.
Outside of membership services, the organization members also volunteer at various events and fundraisers.
For those looking to assist the organization who are not enlisted service members, an advocate program is available to join. This program creates a network of volunteer opportunities and other opportunities to help advocate for additional resources for service members and their families, Terry said.
Terry said through advocacy and connecting enlisted service members with resources, the organization will continue to find ways to assist its members.
“[Service members] have to know in their minds that there is someone, some organization that is protecting the benefits that affect their families and their quality of life,” Terry said. “We need the support of those that are eligible to join our association because there is strength in numbers, and we want to ensure that members are getting what they are putting out.”
