In 1939, Congress created the "United States Coast Guard Reserve." That reserve was composed of unpaid, volunteer U.S. citizens who owned motorboats or yachts.

In 1941, Congress created a military reserve and renamed the original volunteer reserve the "Coast Guard Auxiliary."

The modern Auxiliary is specifically declared by statute to be nonmilitary. The Auxiliary role does not extend to any Coast Guard military or direct law enforcement missions.

The Auxiliary's missions include: · Recreational Boating Safety · Support to the Coast Guard and the States, and · Member Services

Today, the 33,000 volunteer members of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary are active on the water and in classrooms in over 2,000 communities across the nation. Each year Auxiliarists save almost 500 lives, assist about 15,000 vessels in distress, conduct over 150,000 vessel safety checks, and teach over 500,000 students in boating courses.