Uniform and Insignia

This section shall describe the duty uniform, standards, and insignia for officers and enlisted in the Lawrence County Sheriff's Auxiliary. This is a work in progress.
The first rule for dress and uniform in the Auxiliary is: no uniform, combination of clothing, badge, or insignia of any kind shall be worn which suggests that a volunteer who is not an active, sworn, licensed Peace Officer is an active, sworn, licensed Peace Officer. This is not just an Auxiliary rule: accidental violation can be cause for disciplinary action; intentional or serious violation can be a felony. The Auxiliary has been issued a small number of "Sheriff's Office" jackets by the Sheriff for our use. These shall not be considered a violation of this rule if a volunteer does not represent themselves as a Deputy in any interaction with anyone, ever.
Deputized Volunteers: In the rare occassion where Auxiliary volunteers may be deputized for the duration of an active, civilization-threatening crisis, the Sheriff will authorize augmentations to the standard Auxiliary uniform to identify those with the temporary authority as Deputies. We never wear the uniform of a Deputy or anything which is confusingly similar to that of a Deputy, Police Officer, or other licensed Officer of the Peace. That means, specifically, we avoid blue, black, or grey uniform shirts, trousers, or jackets. Official county or Missouri patches should be augmented with "Auxiliary" or "Volunteer" as defined in more specific guidelines.
The second rule is that we dress to present a respectable image to the public and to the volunteers or professionals we work with. We may be called on to do anything from helping victims in muck to an honor guard at a funeral, and a level of flexibility is required. Levels of uniform and dress shall be specified which allow a range of formality, between "I just got a call and grabbed an Auxiliary hat and jacket to throw over my work clothes" to "casual uniform for work onsite or in public," usually involving printed knit shirts, to the more formal uniform shirts with unit patches. For officers, any situation where you are expected to administer an oath, enlist a volunteer, give, receive, or acknowledge formal awards, preside over formal discipline, or acknowledge a commission deserves as much formal dress as practicable, giving honor for honor. As volunteers, showing and being worthy of respect is our salary.
Obtaining Uniforms/Insignia: Volunteers may obtain whatever clothing for their uniforms they wish within the guidelines. We do not care specific brand of shirt you wear,  its specific cut or style, or whether it is cotton, linen, or mixed materials as long as it meets the specifications and presents a clean image. The Quartermaster shall attempt to arrange group purchases where economical or issue donated uniform components in unit stores to volunteers who need them. Volunteers shall also get together on occassion to help each other with the complexities of affixing patches and pins, tailoring and adjusting, and so forth. The Auxiliary website maintains a page with links to suggested vendors and uniform components.
As a general rule, the Auxiliary shall issue ONE set of insignia and patches to each officer and enlisted as a courtesy and formality, acknowledging their oath and service. The issued insignia becomes the responsibility of the volunteer to replace if lost or damaged or obtain additional sets. Appropriate insignia can be ordered from many places and purchased in most military surplus stores. When a volunteer is promoted, it is considered an honor to pass down your old insignia to another volunteer who will need them, especially if presented at their enlistment, commission, or promotion. If you leave the service via an honorable resignation or discharge, you may pass down your insignia in this manner or retain a set as your own keepsake but you may no longer wear it outside of designated ceremonial purposes for former volunteers at organizational meetings, award ceremonies, reunions, etc. If you leave the service via a dishonorable discharge or are removed for cause, you are required to return or destroy official patches and may not wear an Auxiliary uniform for any purpose, whatever.