Spec Ops Angels Blog

Article from Military.com~ Help Our Troops Call Home

November 3, 2006 on 10:37 am | In Support Our Troops |

DALLAS - Since President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation to change “Armistice Day” to Veterans Day in 1954, Nov. 11 has been a day to honor those who served in all American wars.

As the nation plans to honor veterans with parades and speeches, the Army & Air Force Exchange Service is partnering with the American public to bolster the morale of tomorrow’s veterans this Veteran’s Day.

“While we salute the contributions of those who went before us, we should also acknowledge those serving on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan today,” said AAFES’ Senior Enlisted Advisor Chief Master Sgt. Bryan Eaton. “It’s important every American knows that phone cards once only available to those in uniform can be ordered by anyone and sent to Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines who find themselves far from home.”

With rates as low as 19 cents per minute, AAFES’ 550-Unit Military Exchange Global Prepaid phone card, available at www.aafes.org or toll free 800-527-2345, can provide more than three hours of talk time from Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom to the United States.

Started in April 2004, the “Help Our Troops Call Home” phone card campaign allows anyone to leverage military-exclusive calling cards on behalf of deployed troops. To date, this effort has provided more than $4 million in free calls.

“There’s never a shortage of eager troops waiting to sit down and connect with home through one of AAFES’ 70 phone centers in the contingency theater,” said Eaton. “In fact, just last month, troops on the frontlines of the war on terrorism spent more than 10 million minutes on the phone with loved ones minding the home-front.”

As of Oct. 1, the American public has sent 108,711 Military Exchange Global Prepaid phone cards since the inception of “Help Our Troops Call Home.” More than 21,000 of these have been distributed to “any servicemember” via the American Red Cross, Air Force Aid Society, Fisher House Foundation, Navy-Marine Corps Relief, Soldier & Family Assistance Center and USO.

“Even if you don’t know a particular servicemember, we can work with charitable partners to get the phone cards into the hands of someone who really needs them,” said Eaton. “It might be the Red Cross providing a phone card to a deployed Marine who has received an emergency notification from home, Air Force Aid Society helping a child talk to a deployed parent or an injured Soldier reassuring mom and dad that they’re okay while recovering at Fisher House. Regardless, this military command has negotiated the best rates and coordinated the facilities to make the calls. Now all we need is to show these warriors we are thinking of them and sending the means to connect with loved ones back home.”

Organizations, businesses and individuals can log on to www.aafes.org and click the “Help Our Troops Call Home” link, or call (800) 527-2345, for more information on Military Exchange Global Prepaid phone cards.