Community Resources and Services
American Legion Post 249 believes in providing strong support for our community. To this end we participate, both as a Post and as individuals, in programs and services that serve the people of Parsippany.
Every year at both Thanksgiving time and the religious holiday season in December, Post 249 sponsors and delivers food packages to a needy family selected by each of the town’s schools, including the All Saints Academy. The post purchases the food, puts the packages together and delivers them to each of the schools from which the school’s administration then arranges the delivery to the selected child’s home.
Post 249 also hosts a Halloween and Christmas party for the town’s children that includes providing food, games, clowns and Santa Claus for the children’s fun. In addition, the Post supports the Marine Corps League’s Toys For Tots program by funding the purchase every year of over $1,000 worth of toys and by being a designated community toy drop off center for the program. Our Auxiliary helps out further by hosting a pancake breakfast where every community member who comes in on a designated Saturday morning and drops off a toy will receive a free pancake breakfast!
Post 249 also helps other community groups and organizations by providing donations for their causes. These include making donations to the local first aid squad and fire departments, PBA programs, the town’s two high schools for their Operation Graduation programs, donations to Eagle Scouts and other scouting programs, providing the funding to cover the shipping costs for school groups sending care packages to our troops serving overseas, and donations to the Vietnam Memorial Fund and the Army Emergency Relief Fund.
The Post also sponsors many individuals, groups and activities related to the American Legion’s primary goals. We sponsor Boy Scout Troop 177, the local American Legion baseball team the Parsippany Tomahawks, two local high school students selected to attend American Legion Boys State and American Legion coloring contests for the elementary schools. The Post also sponsors programs for the veterans from Lyons VA Hospital including an occasional dinner away from the hospital whereby the Post arranges transportation with the VA to a local restaurant and funds the dinner attended by several of the Post members giving the veterans an opportunity to get away from the hospital for a few hours and have some fun.
Post 249 also participates in many community activities. We regularly attend, and present awards to, new Eagle Scouts at their Court of Honor, annually present a scholarship to a student from each of the two high schools in town during their honors presentations and the Post plays a major role in the town’s Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day ceremonies and parade.
