New York, U.S.A. — Read an outstanding book and support an outstanding cause. For the month of September, download a copy of author Frank Nappi‘s award winning Echoes from the Infantry from Amazon.com and Nappi will donate $1 to Operation Homefront for every copy sold. Operation Homefront provides emergency financial and other assistance to the families of our service members and wounded warriors.

Echoes from the Infantry is a powerful, fictionalized story about one War II veteran and the impact of war both on him and his family. Although James McCleary returns home physically intact, he is still a casualty of war. Nappi dedicated ECHOES to “the WWII infantry soldiers who eluded the cold hand of death but remained mired in the psychological cloud of combat.” This book has touched a lot of families who struggle with PTSD.

Nappi is also the author of The Legend of Mickey Tussler and the sequel Sophomore Campaign. The Legend of Mickey Tussler served as the inspiration for the film, “A Mile in His Shoes” starring Dean Cainand Luke Schroder. Nappi’s first thriller, “Nobody Has to Know” is due out this fall.

Operation Homefront, a national non-profit, leads more than 5,000 volunteers across a network of chapters and field offices and has met more than 590,000 needs since 2002. A four-star rated charity by watchdog Charity Navigator, and with an A rating by the American Philanthropy Institute, 94 percent of all donations to Operation Homefront goes to its programs. To learn more about Operation Homefront go to www.operationhomefront.net.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.franknappi.com

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Illinois, U.S.A. – Everyone loves a happy ending. That sentiment is proving true with a popular online video that pays tribute to American military families and their emotional reunions. The two-minute tribute, created by Eckrich in support of Operation Homefront, has already surpassed half a million views on YouTube since its June 5 release. The video is set to the music of Iron and Wine’s rendition of “Love Vigilantes” by New Order.

Eckrich, part of the John Morrell Food Group, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, partnered this year with Operation Homefront, a nonprofit organization that provides emergency financial assistance to the families of United States service members and wounded warriors. Through the partnership, Eckrich donated a portion of every purchase of specially marked products from May 1 through July 4 to Operation Homefront, up to $200,000. Representatives from Eckrich presented Operation Homefront with a $200,000 check at a ceremony at the Operation Homefront Village in San Antonio, Texas, on April 28.

“We have been overwhelmed by the response and support of the online video that highlights military family homecomings,” said Charles Gitkin, vice president, marketing, innovation and R&D for the John Morrell Food Group. “This was an effort for us to show our appreciation to Operation Homefront and our military families. It’s been wonderful to see so many others who have joined us in this support. We can only hope this video can touch more people and continue to make a difference and bring recognition to an amazing organization.”

The partnership is supported with a broader Eckrich marketing campaign that features television, radio, online and outdoor advertising, as well as using Facebook to showcase military families with “meet-a-family” videos and stories.

The efforts of Eckrich to support Operation Homefront extended recently to the NASCAR world, where Eckrich has a partnership with the No. 43 Ford of Richard Petty Motorsports. The three organizations are coming off a weekend of successfully raising awareness in Indianapolis, Indiana, where they recognized a local military family with a surprise visit from No. 43 Eckrich Ford driver Aric Almirola.

The partnering organizations also unveiled a specially designed coin bank, made out of a real racing tire, on June 29 at Kentucky Speedway to encourage fans to donate spare change for the campaign. The bank is traveling to other Eckrich-sponsored races this summer – a schedule that included Indianapolis this past weekend and Michigan International Speedway on August 19.

“We can’t thank Eckrich enough for everything they have already done to support Operation Homefront,” said Amy Palmer, chief operating officer of Operation Homefront. “We continue to hear great feedback about the online video. It’s a tribute to our military families that over half a million people have already viewed this feature and we hope it only continues to spread.”

After watching the tribute video on YouTube, viewers are encouraged to visit and “like” the Eckrich Facebook page to see more videos and stories and to learn additional ways that they can support American military families.

Image Courtesy of  Greg Randles / Shutterstock.com

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Cleveland, U.S.A. – At his July 29 concert at Cleveland Browns Stadium, Tim McGraw will congratulate U.S. Army Specialist Frank DeLorenzo on being awarded a mortgage-free home in North Royalton, Ohio. Country music superstar Tim McGraw recently launched a nationwide program called HomeFront, in partnership with Operation Homefront and Chase, to award mortgage-free homes to wounded warriors and service members at each concert of his summer tour.

DeLorenzo grew up in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio and served in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Since being honorably discharged, his commitment to serve remains stronger than ever as DeLorenzo now works as an Army Wounded Warrior Advocate helping soldiers like himself.

In addition, DeLorenzo and his wife recently founded Wags 4 Warriors, a nonprofit organization that matches veterans with rescue dogs that are trained to assist veterans in need. DeLorenzo and his wife have five children and are looking forward to moving into their new home and building a solid foundation for the future.

McGraw has a long history of supporting veterans and military families and wanted to find another way to honor our vets and give back to them for their commitment and service to our country. “My sister’s a veteran of the first Gulf War. My uncle was a Vietnam veteran and my grandfather was a World War II veteran.

I’ve always felt a deep sense of respect and obligation to our troops,” says McGraw. “Being able to reward them for their dedicated work with a new home is even more rewarding for us. It feels so good to give back to them, and to have the opportunity to entertain them is something I’m honored to do.”

In addition to the homes, provided by Chase, both ACM Lifting Lives, the charitable arm of the Academy of Country Music, and The Premier Group on behalf of the North Carolina Furniture Manufacturers, have made substantial contributions to support the HomeFront program throughout the summer.

About Operation Homefront:

A national nonprofit, Operation Homefront leads more than 4,500 volunteers across 22 Chapters and has met more than 590,000 needs of military families since its inception in 2002. A four-star rated charity by watchdog Charity Navigator, nationally, 94 percent of total revenue donated to Operation Homefront goes directly to assist service members in need. For more information, go to www.operationhomefront.net.

Image Courtesy of  Joe Seer / Shutterstock.com

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Operation Homefront has announced that it will be able to fill unmet needs in specific local communities and nationwide as a result of $175,000 in special funding from Walmart. Four community grants will help meet basic needs like food assistance and rent in Seattle, WA; Fenton, MO; Charlotte, NC; and San Diego, CA, for all eligible service members.

On the national level, Operation Homefront is using the contribution to serve the families of National Guardsmen and Reservists for longer periods before and after active-duty deployments.

With deployments being altered as a result of the withdrawal from Iraq, Guardsmen and Reservists find themselves with lapses in income.  When they return home to an economy where the unemployment rate among recent veterans in the country is significantly higher than civilians, many find themselves without an income for extended periods of time.

“The holidays are over, but the needs of our military families continue,” said Jim Knotts, President and CEO of Operation Home front.  “The end of deployments to Iraq and quickening redeployments from Afghanistan means fewer service members are in harm’s way.

However, there are still many who are answering the call to duty.  Each one of them has a family back home.  Operation Home front is committed to continuing to help the families back home, even beyond the deployments to Afghanistan.”

Operation Home front, a national nonprofit with 24 local Chapters, provides emergency assistance – including food aid, rent and mortgage assistance, and help with car repairs – to active-duty service members of all branches.  The organization’s policy had been that National Guard and Reservist families were eligible for aid 30 days pre-deployment, during deployment, and 90 days post-deployment.

As a result of the Walmart grant, these families are now eligible for 60 days pre-deployment, during deployment, and 120 days post-deployment.  Based upon demand, Operation Homefront hopes to be able to expand the eligibility even longer.

“These citizen-soldiers and their families make the same sacrifices as our active-duty military, and also face the difficulty of transitioning in and out of service,” continued Knotts. “Walmart has been our steadfast partner in helping military families for years.  Walmart’s contribution will give these families a bit more breathing room, whether they are facing a financial shortfall while a loved-one is overseas, or trying to find work in today’s difficult job market.”

Image Courtesy of   lev radin / Shutterstock.com

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