DAV member and 2025 Recruiter Rally winner Luis Cortes stands in the war museum at DAV National Headquarters.

DAV is powered by its members. Every victory on Capitol Hill, every benefit secured and every life changed is possible because veterans choose to stand together through DAV. When you join, you strengthen a nationwide movement committed to ensuring no veteran fights alone.

Membership fuels our advocacy, our aid programs and the services we provide for ill and injured veterans. The more veterans who unite under the DAV banner, the stronger our voice becomes and the greater impact we can make for this generation and the next.

Grassroots recruiting plays a critical role in that growth.

Our 2025 Recruiter Rally winner, Luis Cortes, is the Commander of DAV Chapter 114 in Helotes, Texas and the Senior Vice Commander of DAV Department of Texas. As a member for over 16 years, he’s witnessed the value of strength through numbers.

“It’s important for us to help other veterans because we unite into one force when we bring our issues to Congress about different laws and objectives,” Cortes said. “We have a strong voice—that force—that we bring to Congress. Veterans have rights, and we are going to fight for them. We are not going to let them be taken away.”

For Cortes, and many other members, the difficulty of accessing hard-earned benefits is more than theoretical.

“For me, it’s very personal,” he said. “At one point in my life, it was very hard to get my benefits. I had to learn and educate myself with the law in order to help others not have to go through the same things that I went through.”

At Cortes’ chapter, member recruitment is not a rushed process.

“We want them to visit and see our values. It should be a place that you will feel comfortable, respected and not stigmatized,”

Engaging in the community is one way the chapter garners attention and support.

“We do activities,” Cortes said. “We have adopted some streets that we clean up. At Thanksgiving, we host a get-together. In December, we give Christmas toys.”

This type of engagement comes naturally to Cortes, adding that it helps build community.

“I was raised with values that you must care about others—your neighbors and your friends,” he said. “When people feel the love and see how DAV provides for different needs, they want to be part of it.”

His advice for recruiting new members is leading the conversation with ways DAV can help.

“Before you even talk about membership, let them know what DAV is all about,” he said. “Explain the programs and what we can do for them, based on your knowledge and skills. Once you provide that, veterans actually will more than likely join.”

DAV offers tools for individual members, leaders and chapters to successfully recruit and build the strength of our community, including resources in both digital and print versions that offer talking points.

DAV also offers recruiting incentives to existing members multiple times per year as an effort to boost grassroots efforts.

The annual DAV Recruiter Rally, the first of which Cortes won last year, challenges members to recruit one new veteran to the organization. When named on the membership form, the recruiter is entered into a raffle to win a trip for two to DAV’s national convention and $2,500 cash.

Recruit A Warrior is another member recruitment incentive. This program awards $1,000 to a single winner twice a year through a personalized link. The Spring 2026 challenge runs March 2–April 30. Learn more at dav.org/warrior.

Cortes reminds other members that service doesn’t end when the uniform comes off.

“Numbers matter,” he said. “Congress knows that this organization has a strong voice and shows when it’s time to make the decisions.”

By growing DAV membership, we honor that commitment and extend it to every veteran who still needs support.

Growth isn’t optional—it’s essential to our mission. Help us ensure that no veteran fights alone.