‘They will take care of this nation’: Military nonprofits hold friendly competition for ‘bragging rights’ on Giving Tuesday
They are calling it a friendly fight. Four military-focused nonprofits are competing for the most donations this Giving Tuesday.
The nonprofits say it’s a “Battle for Bragging Rights.”
“It is a friendly competition, though quite competitive,” CEO of the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society Ret. Lt. Gen. Bob Ruark told WTOP. “This is one of the very few times where you’ll see multiple nonprofits working together toward the common goal.”
The four organizations, which also include the Army Emergency Relief, Coast Guard Mutual Assistance and the Air Force Aid Society, raise critical funds to help out active-duty service members and veterans with emergency assistance, financial assistance and education resources.
The goal is to raise $2 million on Giving Tuesday through the competition. Giving Tuesday is the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, which started as hashtag in 2012 and has grown into one of the biggest fundraising dates on the calendar.
“The soldiers, the sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guard … and their families are the real winners,” Ruark said.
Every donation made on Tuesday will also be matched by security and aerospace company, Lockheed Martin.
The group guarantees that donations to all the four aid societies will double the impact for the military members, their families and veterans.
Some of the Navy Marine Corps Relief Societies’ major work for the year was done in Guam, when a major typhoon struck the island in May. The island is largely inhabited by U.S. sailors.
“The Navy Marine Corps Relief Society and the Army Emergency Relief and the Air Force Aid Society, we all had to jump really quick on that one,” Ruark said.
On why people should contribute their charitable dollars to one of the four organizations, Ruark said, “If we take care of our armed forces, they will take care of this nation.”