About American Legion Post 144
Belmont American Legion Post 144 is located at 202 Park Drive in Belmont, NC, where we support local veterans and give back to our community.
Post 144 has served veterans, active-duty service members, and the Belmont community since 1922. Beyond our own membership, the Post is also home to an active Sons of The American Legion Squadron and American Legion Auxiliary Unit, extending our mission of service to veterans' family members across generations.
Our meetings
We meet the First Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM. Members and prospective members are welcome — see our membership page for eligibility.
How we give back
Post 144 raises funds by renting our hall to the public, and puts that support toward American Legion Baseball (sponsored since 1957) and Boys State and Girls State scholarships for local youth. See our programs & charities page.
Our history
Auten-Stowe Post 144 was organized in March 1922 and named in honor of William A. Auten and Charles G. Stowe, two men from Belmont who were killed in action in World War I. Our American Legion Auxiliary Unit has been part of Post 144 since October of that same year, with only a single twelve-month break in its history, and our Sons of The American Legion Squadron was chartered in November 1996 and continues today. Together, this Legion family works hard to support our youth programs and community activities.
Over the years, Post 144 has relied on the Naval JROTC program from South Point High School for Color Guard and Honor Guard duties and as volunteers on Post activities — the same partnership behind our Operation Respect project today. Each year, Post 144 presents American Legion ROTC medals to two graduating cadets: one for Scholastic Excellence and one for Military Excellence. American Legion Riders were also an active part of Post 144 from the late 1990s through the middle 2010s.
An annual fundraiser that began in 2012 continues today: the Legion family's "Fore the Kids" golf tournament was held at Green Meadows Golf Course until the course closed in 2023, and fundraising efforts have carried on since. Proceeds give a Christmas to children in local elementary schools who would not otherwise have one.
Each year on the Sunday before Memorial Day, Legionnaires and volunteers gather early in the morning to place flags, purchased by Post 144, on the graves of deceased veterans in cemeteries in and around Belmont, followed by a Memorial Day Service at Greenwood Cemetery. On Veterans Day, November 11 at 11:00 AM, Post 144 conducts a ceremony honoring all who served in the Armed Forces of the United States.
Source: Barry B. Smith, Historian, Auten-Stowe Post 144 (Post archive).
Post Commander: Larry Mathis
Larry Mathis serves as Post Commander of American Legion Post 144, leading the Post's veteran support programs and community initiatives in Belmont. His family's connection to military service runs deep: his father served in World War II, and his brother was killed in the Vietnam War. Across all branches, the Mathis family's combined military service totals 57 years.
In 2026, Commander Mathis launched Operation Respect, a project to locate and restore more than 680 veterans' grave markers at Greenwood Cemetery that had become worn and unreadable over time. Partnering with South Point High School's Naval JROTC program, he and student volunteers have cleaned decades of grime from the stones so the names of those who served can be read again. "It's very personal," Mathis said of the effort.
Source: WSOC-TV, July 28, 2026