Courtesy Photo | First Lt. Avery Evans (left), a Richmond, Va., native, and Maj. Williams, a Cairo,...... read more read more
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By 2nd Lt. Blair Grimes
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq— The 13th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 3rd Sustainment Brigade, 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), hosted unit-wide barbecues Oct. 16 to kick off the Combined Federal Campaign.
The purpose of the event was to encourage soldiers to donate to any charity of their choosing as part of the CFC. Soldiers enjoyed music, a volleyball tournament, horseshoe games, barbeque, cake cutting, and several other festivities.
To begin the event, a representative from each company spoke about a charity that held a special meaning to them. Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Thomas a platoon sergeant with the 512th Quartermaster Company, and a Dayton, Ohio, native, promoted the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He said that the charity granted a wish every 40 minutes to any child with a life-threatening disease.
“Speaking about the charity gives you a sense of understanding, and also a full awareness of things that are greater than yourself,” he said.
Other charities that were highlighted included Habitat for Humanity, the United Services Organization, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Home for Children.
Lt. Col. Anthony Bohn, commander of the 13th CSSB, and a Lake Minnetonka, Minn., native, said he had never seen a CFC kickoff event on this scale.
“The barbeque will build morale for the entire battalion, and it’s something everyone will want to be involved in,” said 1st Lt. Thomas Raper, the battalion’s CFC representative, and a Meeteetse, Wyo., native.
He added that the overall purpose for the event was to contact as many people as possible.
“The campaign runs for eight weeks, and before our barbecue, the battalion had contacted 24 percent of the battalion and raised $2,700,” said Raper. “After this barbeque, we hope to have contacted over 90 percent of the battalion.”
Capt. Tawanna Jamison with the 13th CSSB, and a Chicago native, helped organize the kickoff.
“We had three IPRs for this event and prepared for over a month to coordinate all the details,” said Jamison. “It was a great success due to the great planning.”
She added that having soldiers talk about charities boosted donation levels and that she hopes the event will get the battalion near the 100 percent contact deadline by Oct. 31.
Raper said that after the kickoff event was complete, the battalion raised more than $12,500, which was a great success for the event. He said he hopes that this is just the beginning and that more people will donate throughout the duration of the campaign.
| Date Taken: | 10.31.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 10.31.2010 10:18 |
| Story ID: | 59176 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE BALAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 128 |
| Downloads: | 6 |
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