America Supports You

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Our Message to the Military.... "America Supports You"

May 3, 2007

E-Newsletter Volume CIX

Washington, D.C.

A mom and son make America Supports You papercrafts at a booth during National Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day at the Pentagon last week

Washington, D.C.

Rock legend John Mellencamp performs a free concert for wounded warriors, family and staff at Walter Reed Army Medical Center last Friday.

Talladega, Ala.

Troops from the ‘Why We Serve’ program, NASCAR’s special guests at this weekend’s race at Talladega Superspeedway, clap as Dale Earnhardt Jr. is introduced.
ASY from Coast to Coast and Across the Ocean

National Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day

Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Cucolo III opens America Supports You’s festivities at the Pentagon.

Connect and Join volunteers help children at the Pentagon make patriotic crafts.

Two children paint suncatchers while wearing their America Supports You stickers. Last Thursday, April 26, marked the 15th annual National Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, and America Supports You organized a special day for the hundreds of children who accompanied their parents to work at the Pentagon. More than 500 children gathered in the Pentagon’s central courtyard for an afternoon of arts and crafts organized by one of ASY’s corporate supporters, Connect and Join, a family support and education services publishing company. The day’s activities included sand art, paper crafts, T-shirt painting, flower pot decorating and podcasting lessons, among others. “This is our way of giving back to the employees of the Pentagon and their children for the service that they do for our country and also for the military children,” said Connect and Join founder Linda Dennis. “The yard’s filled today with kids of all ages, and there’s nothing better than a good arts and crafts project to make a child smile.” Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Allison Barber, architect of the America Supports You program, agreed, “Today’s event is just one example of the many America Supports You activities that take place around the country that help us honor and recognize members of our military community, especially their children.” While the kids in attendance generally agreed the day was fun, for most the best part was spending time with their parents. “I just think it’s so fun being here and doing all this, and I’m proud of my mom for working for all of this,” said eight-year-old Gregory Malish whose mom is a telecommunications specialist for the Secretary of Defense. Four-year-old twins Ashley and Kaylee Waters agreed that, as far as they were concerned, the best part of the day was “to go to work with Daddy!” Read more

Approximately 200 wounded troops and their families along with staff from Walter Reed Army Medical Center gathered at the historical Old Red Cross Building last Friday night for a free concert from rocker John Mellencamp. Though Mellencamp opposes the war in Iraq, his performance emphasized his support for the troops and their families, especially those recovering from injury. During the hour-long concert, Mellencamp performed his greatest hits including “Jack and Diane” and “Hurts So Good” as well as “Our Country,” which he also played earlier this year at the opening of the Center for the Intrepid at Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas. For those in attendance, the concert was a welcome respite and morale booster. “It takes a lot of stress off the soldiers, a lot of stress off the families. It’s a nice little break,” said Army 1st Lt. Josh Mantz, a recent arrival at Walter Reed. Mellencamp also made time to visit with the troops during his visit and even jammed a little with a recovering soldier who brought along his guitar. Read more.

Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Virginia Mayo, Marine Sgt. Noah Tretter and Army Staff Sgt. Matthew Olson take a picture with comedian Jeff Foxworthy at the Talladega Superspeedway. South of Washington, DC, the America Supports You team was in overdrive at the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama as corporate supporter NASCAR invited speakers from the Department of Defense’s “Why We Serve” program to be the special guests at the Aaron’s 499 last weekend. The Why We Serve program brings recently-returned troops to venues around the country to share their personal stories of service in Iraq and Afghanistan. The group of service members was honored and thanked again and again by the fans at Talladega as they participated in the race, including taking a few 120+ miles per hour laps in the official Pace Car, meeting the drivers and being introduced to the race’s official Grand Marshall, comedian Jeff Foxworthy. “This was my first NASCAR event,” said Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Virginia Mayo. “The people have been so great. NASCAR fans seem to be the heartbeat of America, and I think I am quickly going to become a part of the NASCAR nation.” NASCAR was one of the first organizations to join America Supports You in 2004. Read more

When seven players from the NFL first teamed up with test-preparation company eKnowledge in 2006, the result was more than $6.9 million worth of multimedia SAT/ACT preparation material donated to the college-bound members of military families around the world. “I learned that (some) kids who served on active duty and combat zones were taking the SAT and ACT exams and they weren’t scoring very well…because they were trying to take these college entrance exams without thorough preparation,” said eKnowledge CEO and former Marine infantry officer Charlie Beall. eKnowledge offers an interactive, DVD & CD-based test preparation course that retails for around $300 with similar products in the $600 range, but “virtually none of these military kids were using premium test preparation products because they couldn’t afford them,” added Beall. Seizing the opportunity to show support for service members, eKnowledge committed to donating study materials. Their efforts soon multiplied exponentially with the help of Chicago Bear Mark Anderson, Tampa Bay Buccaneer Jon Bradley, Philadelphia Eagle Scott Young, Atlanta Falcon Garrick Jones, Green Bay Packer Corey Williams, Miami Dolphin Jason Radar and San Diego Charger Ahmaad Galloway, who added their support to the effort. Last year, the partnership resulted in 48,000 donated kits and approximately 20,000 thank-you notes from satisfied test-takers. For 2007, the partnership has increased its commitment to $10 million in donated materials, which can be sent to service members and their dependants no matter where they are on the globe. Read more

Featured on the ASY Web Site Last Week

Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR)
“ESGR was formed (because) the Secretary of Defense and the President of the United States recognized that we were going to an all-volunteer force … and that we were going to depend more on the Guard and Reserve…If someone contacts me and we’re unable to use their help, I know that I can turn to America Supports You (to) plug them in.”
-Air Force Reserve Maj. Robert Palmer, Chief of Strategic Communications, National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve

OSU (Operation Straight Up) Tour
“OSU Tour is an organization dedicated to helping our armed forces with the common issues brave men and women face [child rearing, troubled marriages, anger, depression, addiction, and post-traumatic stress disorder]. We’re addressing those things through entertainment.”
-Jonathan Spinks, CEO, OSU Tour

Sew Much Comfort
“Packages From Home gives to our (servicemembers) in harm’s way…the necessary things that they would like to have to make their stay more comfortable and to give them a bit of home…Networking within (America Supports You) is terrific. If my group doesn’t fit someone’s needs, I certainly know a group that will fit their needs.”
-Kathleen Lewis, Founder, Packages From Home

ASY In the News
SmallGovTimes.com (Va.), Kansas City InfoZine (Mo.) and Air Force Link (D.C.) posted an article previewing some of this May’s Military Appreciation Month activities. It mentioned the Department of Defense’s participation in the month-long celebration with ASY.

The Kansas City InfoZine(Mo.) mentioned that ASY homefront organization Tribute to the Troops is slated to participate in “Echo Taps” on Armed Forces Day, May 19, and pay tribute to the nation's fallen heroes.

Salem-News.com (Ore.) reported that Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski signed a proclamation designating May 1st as “Silver Star Day” in Oregon. The Silver Star Day initiative was started by Silver Star Families of America, part of the ASY team, to educate Americans so they may never forget the service and sacrifice of the military.

The Christian Examiner Online posted an article about Project Prayer Flag, an ASY homefront group, supporting troops in Iraq and elsewhere by sending notes of encouragement and pocket-size American flags. It has distributed more than 220,999 flags by far.

The State Journal (W.Va.) included a piece on ASY organization Boatsie’s Boxes and its founder, Gail VanVranken, who met with President Bush and other homefront representatives in February 2007.
ASY Homefront Organization of the Week

Golfers 4 Freedom was founded in 2005 to help preserve the legacy of the brave men and women of our Armed Services by raising money to support the families and children of military heroes who died or suffered a permanent disability while serving in the military. The group’s First Annual golf tournament in 2006 raised over $9,000 for the Freedom Alliance Scholarship Fund, an organization that grants college scholarships to kids of these heroes. Golfers 4 Freedom also provides support in other ways such as organizing a donation of golf equipment by golf enthusiasts to service members stationed at Camp Taji in Iraq. The America Supports You homefront organization also honored the sacrifice of fallen heroes by presenting their children with Christmas gifts through the American Christmas Foundation. To learn more, please visit www.golfers4freedom.org.

Thank You's from Soldiers

“I just want to thank everyone for their overwhelming generosity. Words cannot explain how thankful we are for all of your support. From G-4 2D MLG FWD HQ Co, we THANK YOU AMERICA.”

Sgt Glynn Danielle USMC, Bellingham, Mass.

“Just wanted to say thanks for all the support. It really means a lot over here in Iraq.”

Sgt John Snyder, US ARMY, Swanton

Our troops deserve to be applauded, and so do you!

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