Navy League Blog

By ALAN KAPLAN, Navy League National President
As our year comes to a close and we reflect upon all that we have accomplished as a team in 2018, we should all feel an immense sense of pride. 

Our Navy League is re-energized, focused on elevating our mission to new heights. While we do phenomenal work to support our mission, we must remember that we can always do better. Working together is vital to our success and, above all else, we must nurture our relationships with each other to ensure our organization continues to thrive. Our focus on inclusion and embracing the diversity of our teammates, and their ideas, will power our success. Our biggest asset is our people.

Our councils and the work we are doing in the field are the backbone of what makes our Navy League such an enriching organization. Without the strength of your volunteerism, there would be fewer smiles on the faces of sea service men and women and their families, and you wouldn’t have witnessed the strong legislation that came through this year, including our win to get 355 ships codified into law for our U.S. Navy. In fact, it is our Navy’s core attributes that all of us continue to display every day — accountability, integrity, toughness and initiative — as an expression of our commitment that guides us to keep our team strong. 

Our headquarters staff is also helping usher in a new era, one where our team here in Washington is working closely with our field, so there is support for our councils at the highest levels of our organization. We’ve seen huge successes this year, and we can overcome any challenge by working together. We are operating in a high-velocity change environment, where innovation is critical. The status quo will not work. To ensure our Navy League endures, we must continue to take calculated risks, explore new programs, and find new ways to support our sea services and their families, which is at the forefront of everything we do as an organization.

The game has changed, the goalposts have moved, and competition is high. But we must continue to innovate and be solutions-driven. We will continue to be the world’s finest organization in support of our sea services and their families, but only if we fight every minute together to get better. 

Last month, we held our annual Fall Board of Directors meeting. Our successes during the meeting were only made possible by us operating together as one team. We are making big moves to better our Navy League as we raise the bar in support of our mission. 

I am proud to announce the election of our new National President-Elect, William “Bill” Stevenson III, who will take office as national president in June 2019. Bill exemplifies through his actions our Navy’s core values of honor, courage and commitment, and we look forward to his leadership. 

Our future is bright, and we should be proud of our accomplishments. There is a lot of work to be done, but always remember — this is not about us. This is about our greater mission. Together we will win, and I am counting on your integrity, accountability, initiative and toughness as we fight to win in this competitive environment. Thank you for your unwavering dedication to the mission of our great organization. I am honored and proud to serve as your leader. 

One Team – Mission Focused