Fort Belvoir, Va. (May 22, 2014) - The deadline for donations to the 2014 Army Emergency Relief Fund campaign has been extended to May 30. The campaign has only reached 85 percent of its goal so far.
"We are hoping that every active-duty Soldier, National Guard, Reserve, and retiree in the area gives one dollar the remainder of the campaign," said Toni Cuttino, Fort Belvoir Army Community Service AER Officer. If everyone connected to Fort Belvoir would donate one dollar, we would make our goal, Cuttino added.
The campaign started March 1 and was supposed to end May 15.
The AER fund is available for Soldiers, their dependents, National Guard and Reserve on active-duty orders for more than 30 days and retirees. Financial assistance comes through no-interest loans and grants to help with situations like rent and mortgage payments, vehicle repairs, grocery bills, medical expenses and essential furniture purchases.
Soldiers and retirees can donate to the campaign through their unit key workers by going to www.aerhq.org, or by going to the AER office in the Army Community Service building. Soldiers and retirees can make donations through cash or check, or by having an allotment taken out of their paycheck.
The minimum donation people can make through an allotment is one dollar for three months, but they can donate for as long as 12 months. Civilians can only make cash or check donations.
It is important that Soldiers make donations because of how often AER funds are provided. According to Cuttino, $174,000 was raised during the campaign last year, but $350,000 was given out.
"Does it make sense to give out so much money, but not have people donate back to the program?" Cuttino asked.
Since January, AER has provided $225, 512 for 121 different cases of Soldiers, retirees and other eligible parties needing financial assistance. The purpose of the AER fund and the service it provides to Soldiers can't be overlooked, according to Cuttino.
"This program has been giving no-interest loans and grants to Soldiers for 72 years," said Cuttino. "So, instead of the Soldiers going to payday loan businesses and getting in debt, they can come to us. The fund was developed for Soldiers to take care of Soldiers."
U.S. Army Garrison Fort Belvoir Command Sgt. Maj. Scott Guillory wants servicemembers to consider the amount of money the AER fund gives out on post as they decide whether or not to contribute to the fund.
"Here at Fort Belvoir, AER always gives out more money than it receives," said Guillory. "So, it's important we continue to support AER because they continue to support us."
There is also a slogan Cuttino wants Soldiers, retirees and civilians to remember as they consider making a donation.
"We are one team at Fort Belvoir and the mission is taking care of Soldiers," said Cuttino. "One team, one mission -- it's too easy."
Social Sharing