Texas ranked fourth in nation for supporting our troops

by PegNews wire

DALLAS — When it comes to showing support for America's troops, Missouri is living up to its nickname as the "Show Me State" by sending nearly 4,000 Base and Post Exchange gift certificates to Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors and Marines. Since the beginning of the year, supporters from 45 states and the District of Columbia have contributed to the Army & Air Force Exchange Service's (AAFES') "Gifts From the Homefront" program with Missouri far and away the most generous, sending an average of 778 military exchange gift certificates a month.

From January through May, Missouri, home of Whiteman AFB and Fort Leonard Wood, garnered the most support as its residents ordered 3,889 gift certificates worth $78,150. Connecticut came in second with 879 orders totaling $19,110. New York placed third, with Texas and California rounding out the top five.

Photo not provided by Texas, Missouri

For the first time in history, Texas is getting its butt kicked by Missouri

"Gifts From the Homefront" can be sent to deployed troops by logging on here or calling 877-770-4438. From there, the gift certificates are sent to individual service members (designated by the purchaser) or distributed to "any service member" through the Air Force Aid Society, American Red Cross, Coalition to Salute America's Heroes, Fisher House, Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, Operation Homefront, Operation Interdependence(R) or USO. "Gifts From the Homefront" gift certificates can be redeemed at exchange facilities worldwide. Recent reports indicate troops shopping their contingency exchanges are reaching for beauty items, soft drinks, snacks, Military Exchange Global prepaid calling cards, magazines, movies and more.

The nation's top troop support states based on "Gifts From the Homefront" orders received from January through May 2007 are:

State "Gifts From the Homefront" certificates Amount sent to troops

1. Missouri 3,889 $78,150

2. Connecticut 879 $19,110

3. New York 119 $10,735

4. Texas 314 $9,610

5. California 267 $8,855

6. Virginia 209 $8,535

7. Arizona 107 $5,205

8. Washington 119 $4,345

9. Ohio 123 $3,520

10. Florida 85 $3,220

As of May 31, 86,857 "Gifts from the Homefront" gift certificates have been sent since the Department of Defense approved the exchange support campaign in March 2003. More than 22,000 of these have been delivered to service members and their families via AAFES' 10 charitable partners.

Source: Army & Air Force Exchange Service