National Military Services
Our Nation's defenders answer the call to duty selflessly,
without hesitation. But all too often, deployments can be incredible financial
and emotional hardships for them and the families they leave behind.
VFW
National Military Services unites three successful, longstanding programs:
VFW Operation Uplink™, VFW Unmet
Needs, and the VFW Military Assistance
Program(MAP). These initiatives make an
incredible difference for our troops and their families.
VFW National Military Services
(NMS) promotes positive awareness of the VFW through community involvement,
communication tools, and financial support to qualified military service
members. With the variety of support offered, three separate programs were
developed under the VFW National Military Services department. These programs
are the Operation Uplink™, Military
Assistance Program and Unmet Needs.
Though NMS, we offer support and assistance to the military
community in so many ways. Whether it's helping service members weather long
deployments or cope with rough financial times, we're the program that puts the
military first. NMS provides assistance and guidance to VFW Posts and Ladies
Auxiliaries in their efforts to support our military and their families.
From providing free phone time and emergency financial assistance to
farewell and welcome home ceremonies, the NMS department is there showing
support for our troops day in and day out. We've been there. We understand. And
"We're Here to Help."
The programs of the VFW National Military
Services are funded solely by the generosity of our donors.
As the largest organization of combat veterans, VFW knows the
importance of keeping military families in touch. That's why in 1996 VFW
launched the VFW Operation Uplink™ program - the
premiere calling program for deployed service members that provides free phone
time to active-duty military personnel and hospitalized veterans.
Operation Uplink initially provided calling cards to
deployed and hospitalized troops, but on Mother's Day 2006, due to the growing
popularity of the program and thanks to the generosity of corporate donors like
Sport Clips and Harleysville Insurance, the program began hosting "Free
Call Days."
The program is the only one of its kind, providing
two designated days each month when deployed service members making phone calls
from their Morale, Welfare & Recreation (MWR) center to the U.S., and other
home base location land lines, are greeted by a recording which states the call
will be free, courtesy of Operation
Uplink. VFW and Ladies Auxiliary members, as well as other caring
citizens, generously support the program. Since its start in 2006, Free
Call Days have provided more than 7 million free connections for
service members and their families. The VFW is proud of Operation
Uplink because it provides an easy way for individuals and
organizations to make an immediate difference in the lives of active-duty
military personnel.
Click
here if you or your corporation is interested in sponsoring a Free Call Day!
Contact Linda Ferguson of VFW National Military Services at 816-968-1102 or lferguson@vfw.org with any questions.
OPERATION UPLINK RESOURCES
VFW Unmet Needs was created in 2004
through a corporate partnership to assist military service members and their
families who run into unexpected financial difficulties as a result of
deployment or other hardships directly related to military service.
Unmet Needs assists with basic life needs such as:
mortgage and rent, home and auto repairs, insurance, utilities, food and
clothing. Unmet Needs helps meet unanticipated
financial demands on our service members' families that can't be remedied
through existing means and provides our service members with the security of
knowing that their families have additional support here at home.
The
financial assistance is in the form of up to $2,500 in grants that do not need
to be repaid. All grants are paid directly to the "creditor" (such as the
electric company), and not to the individual. Each case is reviewed individually
and acceptance determined by a committee.
Eligible service members can
download and complete a grant application.
UNMET NEEDS RESOURCES
The VFW Military Assistance
Program (MAP) is the outstretched hand between the VFW and the
local military, offering our support around the world. In the last five years,
MAP has sponsored events supporting over one million service members and their
families. If you are a service member or a Family Readiness Group leader, please
contact us and we will help you locate a VFW Post or Ladies Auxiliary in your
area to work with.
Does your Post or Ladies Auxiliary want to host a MAP
event but doesn't know where to start? The best place to start is with the MAP
Grant Application, which can only be completed and submitted by a VFW or Ladies
Auxiliary member. From this page, simply login (link is above) with a VFW member
login and go to the National Military Services link, then look for the Military
Assistance Program (MAP) files.
A huge part of MAP includes the
Adopt-a-Unit program. Through Adopt-a-Unit, VFW and its Ladies Auxiliary adopt
hundreds of military units around the world. Adopt-a-Unit's goal is to develop
supportive relationships with units before, during and after deployments to help
deliver the vast network of resources VFW has available for the military. Please
contact us if your unit is interested in learning more.
To contact the
Military Assistance Program (MAP), please email us at map@vfw.org
or call 816-756-3390 and ask for the MAP office.
MILITARY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM RESOURCES