Angelic Credit Card from USAA

10/01/12

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Soldiers' Angels is thrilled to announce a formal relationship with USAA that will allow their members to support Soldiers' Angels through the credit card they choose...

USAA Bank Launches Alliance with Soldiers’ Angels 
USAA named exclusive credit card provider 

SAN ANTONIO – USAA Bank and Soldiers’ Angels are introducing a customized credit card for approximately 86,000 veterans, wounded and deployed service members, and their families.

USAA Bank now offers the Soldiers’ Angels USAA Rewards™ World MasterCard® credit card to help support the group’s programs and activities. USAA Bank will make a contribution to Soldiers’ Angels with every account opened or renewed, and each time cardholders make an eligible purchase.

“Year after year, USAA has shown its commitment to going above and beyond for military members and veterans, and so has Soldiers’ Angels,” said Patti Patton-Bader, founder of Soldiers’ Angels. “We are pleased to announce our relationship with USAA, and I am thrilled to welcome them to the Soldiers’ Angels family.”

“We are honored to be working with Soldiers’ Angels,” said Nathan McKinley, USAA vice president of military affinity. “Soldiers' Angels has done a lot over the years for deployed soldiers and their families, including tens of thousands of care packages. I’m optimistic that this new program will assist in generating additional support, and USAA certainly appreciates the many contributions Soldiers' Angels makes for our country.”

In 2009, USAA opened its membership to all veterans who have honorably served and their eligible family members. To learn more about the USAA and Soldiers’ Angels credit card program, call 1-800-531-7148 or visit usaa.com/soldiersangels.

About Soldiers’ Angels 
Since 2003, Soldiers’ Angels has been an ensign of advocacy and support for our nation’s men and women in uniform, veterans and their families. Their motto, “May No Soldier Go Unloved,” captures the energy that motivates hundreds of thousands of volunteers – the Soldiers’ Angels. Join them as they give wings to their work, and help them show our heroes a level of gratitude that is befitting of our great country. To learn more, visit soldiersangels.org.

About USAA 
USAA provides insurance, banking, investment and retirement products and services to 9.1 million members of the U.S. military and their families. Known for its legendary commitment to its members, USAA is consistently recognized for outstanding service, employee well-being and financial strength.

Angelic Credit Card from USAA

Support Reflection

CJ, an active duty NCO recently returned from a deployment to Afghanistan, reflects on the support he has received from Soldiers' Angels over the years:

Because we were the clearing house for all mail going to our Brigade, I saw all the boxes marked to outlying FOBs from Soldiers’ Angels. The sheer volume of mail coming through KAF from SA was remarkable. To be honest, I knew that they were a great and vast organization, but I never really grasped it until I saw it for myself on the receiving end. In fact, sometimes we got so many care packages, I would take them to nearby units with which I worked closely. I explained that the goodies were from SA and their faces would light up being well aware of the group. Everyone I spoke with was either supported by a Soldiers Angel or knew someone that was.

Read the whole thing.

North Carolina Women During World War II

The North Carolina Veterans Park (NCVP) is proud to celebrate Woman’s History Month by highlighting women in World War II. Dr. Kelli Cardenas Walsh, assistant professor of history at Fayetteville State University, will present “North Carolina Women During World War II” on Saturday, March 17, at 2 p.m. in the Visitors Center at NCVP. An Army veteran herself, she has extensively studied and written about the role of women in the military, specifically during World War II. She earned her Ph.D at the University of South Carolina and wrote her dissertation on Oveta Culp Hobby, the first commanding officer of the Women’s Army Corps.

The North Carolina Veterans Park is located at 300 Bragg Blvd. The Visitor Center at the park is open Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, call (910) 433-1224 or (910) 433-1457.

There is also an North Carolina Women During World War II exhibit running from March 1st to March 31st. Check out more details on this by browsing FACVB.

Any local Soldiers' Angels planning on visiting either the presentation or the exhibit, please contact Dawn at cncnc2@gmail.com

Fort Bragg Career Day - Feb. 14th, 2012

The ACAP Career Days are at the Fort Bragg ACAP office. NC companies are in dire need of experienced people like you. Before the event, visit ACAP to get your resumé ready and check out the ACAP Career Days regularly to learn about the latest jobs. Be sure to join and apply for the jobs so you can turn the Career Day into an interview opportunity! Show up on the 14th of February between 0900 and 1200 at Soldier Support Center, 1st Floor, Room 1-C-105. For more information contact the ACAP Office at 910-396-2227.

Partcipating Companies 

Wyo-Tech

www.wyotech.edu/military

Durham Police Department

www.durhampolicedept.com

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Dept

www.cmpd.org

Alliance Training School

www.alliancetractortrailor.com

Venatore

www.venatore.com/careers.aspx

Logistics Managers, Inc

www.jlmiva.com

Raleigh Police Dept.

www.joinraleighpd.org

JWHQ

http://ejwhq.com

Greensboro Police Department

www.greensboro-nc.gov/police    

International Development Solutions

http://www.careers.intldevsol.com

Road Master Driving School

www.roadmaster.com/ 

Regency Job Training Institute

www.rjti.org/

Booz Allen Hamilton

www.boozallen.com/careers

Angels & Raiders

Soldiers’ Angels is lending its name to the San Antonio Public Safety Raiders football team, making the Raiders the organization's first Veterans Outreach Program Sports Team. 

Part of the semi-pro, charity-focused National Public Safety Football League, the local Raiders team currently consists of San Antonio Police and Fire Department personnel, as well as military police, medics and firefighters.  The Outreach Program is sponsoring the Raiders to bring more awareness to veterans’ issues and develop future Veteran Public Safety Officers programs while supporting Soldiers’ Angels through funds raised at Raiders football games. 

The Raiders were founded last year by retired Staff Sergeant Stacey Corbin Stacey, a US Army veteran and public safety officer from Cleveland, Ohio who was recovering from spinal cord injuries in 2009-2011 at Brooke Army Medical Center (SAMMC). Now known as the San Antonio Raiders Public Safety Football Team, the Raiders have affiliated teams in New York City and Detroit, and plan to have one in every major city in the North America in the near future. To signify their association with Soldiers’ Angels, the San Antonio team’s new name will be Soldiers’ Angels San Antonio Raiders.

To support the Raiders’ expansion, the Raiders are seeking sponsors, volunteers to coach, cheerleaders, and helpers for home games. Players must be active or retired certified police officers, firefighters, paramedics/EMT's, corrections officers or FBI/DEA/ICE (etc.) to be eligible to play.  Active-duty military must have their commanding officer’s permission. The 2012 season starts in March in Charlotte, NC and ends in Detroit, MI on June 2, 2012 with a total of six games.  For more information, see www.saraiders.org or call 210-618-9565.

Message from Soldiers' Angels Board of Trustee

From Nick Palmisciano, member, Soldiers' Angels Board of Trustees:

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To most people, the benefit of our troops’ contact with Soldiers’ Angels is obvious – our Angels provide comfort to those deployed, to those injured, and to those who have returned and need someone to hear their voice.  If these three functions alone showcased the full extent of what Soldiers’ Angels brought to the table, the organization would be absolutely invaluable to our servicemen and women.

In the last few years, however, I have noticed another incredible service that our Angels bring to the table – they bridge the military/civilian divide.

To the average citizen, this divide is most likely not apparent, and that makes sense, as most people have absolutely no interaction with our Armed Forces.   This is a marked change from the experience of previous generations.  During World War II, a full 11.5% of all Americans served in the war, which essentially equated to almost every able-bodied man available.  Everyone had multiple family members involved in the conflict and the war was very personal.  People were willing to sacrifice because they had skin in the game.  Limit fuel consumption?  Absolutely.  It might help dad.  Buy war bonds?  Of course.  My brother needs the money for ammunition.  Regardless of service status, nearly every man, woman or child had to sacrifice something, whether it was the loss of a loved one, years of separation, financial loss, or a lack of comfort items.  Every American’s life was changed markedly, and when the war ended, it was truly a victory for all.

Over time, however, service numbers have dropped, our economy has become more robust, and our politicians have created a system where the average American feels no change in lifestyle due to a wartime stance.

Only 0.45% of all Americans have been involved in the Global War on Terror, and the majority of those 0.45% are the children of veterans, thus we’re seeing the possible beginning of a small “warrior caste” emerge that is even further separated from the population at large.  Our taxes have not gone up to compensate for the increased spending necessary to fund the war.  We have not been asked to curb our use of fuel, rubber, or steel.  We have not been limited in the type of goods we can purchase.  In short, while war has raged on for ten years, most of us have had to contribute well…nothing.
 
At the same time, we’ve seen Congress whittle away troop benefits while discussing a large reduction in force, a possible reduction in retirement benefits, and a general disregard for troop quality of life and safety (multiple deployments without rest, lack of proper equipment, insufficient training time and ammunition, challenging ROE, etc.).  As there has been no outrage coming from the civilian world (because so few are directly affected), it’s easy for many troops to fall into an “us against them” thought process.  This gets exacerbated when the only time any troop issue does get attention and pressure is when there is a lapse in judgment (e.g. urination on the enemy dead), leaving troops feeling that no one cares if they are killed or wounded or live in rough conditions, but God forbid something unpalatable happens in the din of battle that might be distasteful for someone sitting on their couch watching the war on CNN.

The last piece of this disconnect comes when troops return home, finally, and rejoin the civilian world.  They enter a world that cannot fathom what they have gone through, that worries about insignificant challenges rather than life or death ones, and that views them as “broken” thanks to the media and Hollywood’s constant love affair with post-traumatic stress.  This anger and frustration often results in an inability to connect with potential employers and has resulted in the largest veteran unemployment rate in history.

And this is where you, as a Soldiers’ Angel, make all the difference.  Those letters and care packages sent to our deployed troops remind them that there are people who care for them – that appreciate their sacrifices.  Those Angels visiting the wounded in the hospitals and helping to solve their problems and provide them comfort proves to our heroes that there are some Americans willing to still give their time, effort, and money for our men and women in uniform.  And those Angels working to rehabilitate troops through our Heroes & Horses program, music programs, and homeless programs are helping provide that bridge back to normal life.

You see, what you may not realize is that receiving a care package isn’t a big deal because of what is in the care package, even though all the items are appreciated and needed.  These packages move the troops because they show that someone out there cares.  And when you’re sitting out there in a dusty post in the middle of a place you’d rather not be, having lost a friend or two and sacrificed a lot of time away from those you love, you need to know it matters every now and then.

Angels, for many people, you’re the only person letting them know it matters.

Please never forget that.

Thank you for all you do.

May no Soldier walk alone,

Nick Palmisciano

President

RangerUp.com

Nick is a former Army Ranger with post-9/11 service, and is the newest member of the Soldiers' Angels Board of Trustees.

Send Coupons for our Military Families

Please Help - Collect Coupons for our military families here in the USA. Email me at cncnc2@gmail.com and I will reply with my mailing address.

Coupons must be "Manufacturer's Coupons."  

No Expired Coupons.

List of requested coupons:

Air fresheners

Baby

Baking Needs

Beverages

Breads

Breakfast

Candy

Canned

Condiments

Dairy

Dish washing

Feminine Needs

Frozen Foods

Hair Care

Laundry

Meat

Medicine/ First Aid

Oral Hygiene

Pasta

Pets

Produce

Shaving/ Deodorants

Skin Care/Make up

Snacks/Cookies

Soap

Soups

Fast food and Restaurants or okay from nationwide popular places.

Note: no coupons for (tobacco, alcohol).