For media inquiries, please contact Mike Lahrman at communications@operationhomefront.org or call (210) 202-1243.
CSX & Operation Homefront provide hundreds of Jacksonville military children with backpacks
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Operation Homefront, in partnership with CSX, distributed approximately 250 backpacks and essential school supplies to military children in the Jacksonville area on Friday, August 9, as a part of Operation Homefront’s annual Back-to-School Brigade® (BTSB).
“Purchasing school supplies is often a significant expense for military families. These donated school supplies boost the morale and success of our military children in Jacksonville while easing the parent’s financial burden of the back-to-school season,” said Beth McGregor, program coordinator of Operation Homefront. “The generosity of CSX exhibited through its Pride in Service program, allow us to help these military families, often in the midst of deployments and other stresses of military life, get through the economic difficulties shared by American citizens.”
The BTSB event is Operation Homefront’s nationwide collection of school supplies and backpacks distributed to the children of E1 through E6 military families as well as to all ranks of wounded, ill or injured veterans and their families. With the help of CSX volunteers, backpacks were successfully prepared and distributed. As part of Operation Homefront’s mission to build strong, stable, and secure military families, the BSTB program is one of the ways they provide military families with much-needed support throughout the year.
“CSX is excited to support Operation Homefront, one of our Pride in Service partners, in our hometown of Jacksonville,” said Bryan Tucker, Vice President of Corporate Communications. “Operation Homefront works closely with Jacksonville’s military community to understand their unique needs. We are proud to be able to give back to the families in our community who have already given us so much.”
Since 2008, Operation Homefront’s Back-to-School Brigade® has provided more than 350,000 backpacks to military families nationwide. The annual program is sponsored by national partners Dollar Tree and SAIC. During this year’s campaign, Operation Homefront will distribute its 375,000th backpack, saving military families more than $40 million in back-to-school expenses.
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About Operation Homefront: Founded in 2002, Operation Homefront is a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to build strong, stable, and secure military families so that they can thrive – not simply struggle to get by – in the communities they have worked so hard to protect. Recognized for superior performance by leading independent charity oversight groups, 92 percent of Operation Homefront expenditures go directly to programs that support tens of thousands of military families each year. Operation Homefront provides critical financial assistance, transitional and permanent housing, and family support services to prevent short-term needs from turning into chronic, long-term struggles. Thanks to the generosity of our donors and the support from thousands of volunteers, Operation Homefront proudly serves America’s military families. For more information, visit OperationHomefront.org.
ABOUT CSX: CSX, based in Jacksonville, Florida, is a premier transportation company. It provides rail, intermodal, and rail-to-truck transload services and solutions to customers across a broad array of markets, including energy, industrial, construction, agricultural, and consumer products. For nearly 200 years, CSX has played a critical role in the nation’s economic expansion and industrial development. Its network connects every major metropolitan area in the eastern United States, where nearly two-thirds of the nation’s population resides. It also links more than 230 short-line railroads and more than 70 ocean, river, and lake ports with major population centers and farming towns alike. More information about CSX Corporation and its subsidiaries is available at www.csx.com. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
