Shannon Werner, Executive Director, Secretary-Treasurer
When I accepted this position four years ago, I thought my focus would be assisting and supporting veterans in a myriad of ways. When asked during the interview if I was eligible to be a member, my response was, “I don’t know; what would make me eligible? That seems like it was so long ago. This career is a way of life, not a job as I originally perceived, and therefore extremely important to me.
Because I had not been an Auxiliary member in the past (although very active in helping veterans and my local American Legion Post and Unit), I had no idea the amount of arguing, quarreling, conflict, and in-fighting there was at the Unit and District levels throughout our Department of Michigan. This type of conflict has dramatically increased since my employment here. Don’t forget there are also National-level situations that I must manage and resolve. They all require input, coordination, research, discussion, etc. My focus has shifted in a substantial way, and I am forced to assist and direct this type of activity versus helping veterans and running the business, especially in the last year.
If you have problems within your Unit, you take care of them within the Unit. Notify all members of the difficulty, have a meeting, make a motion, discuss, vote, and resolve it.
Confront the issue in a positive and professional manner, and you may be able to resolve the conflict by collaborating on a new solution. Collaboration is the best way to handle conflict. It involves investigating the issue as a group. There are three steps to resolving a conflict: preparation, implementation and an action plan. You have District-level representatives, Department-level representatives, and Past Department Presidents who are more than willing to help guide you in these matters-use the tools available to you.
You can also visit the ALA National website at alaforveterans.org, which has many training modules to complete that will help you resolve conflict within your Unit or District. My involvement wastes time and money that should be devoted to our Veterans, programs, and the running of our Non-profit business.