Combine Federal Campaign underway at Fort Sill

By Jeff Crawley, Fort Sill TribuneDecember 20, 2018

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FORT SILL, Oklahoma (Dec. 20, 2018) -- When a young Fort Sill couple's infant daughter needed extensive medical care in Oklahoma City, the Soldier and his wife stayed at the Ronald McDonald House for free so they could be close to her during her treatments.

A Fort Sill Department of the Army civilian who had cancer reached out to a Lawton agency, and was able to get support as she underwent chemotherapy.

These are accounts of two local families who benefited from Combined Federal Campaign-approved agencies in Oklahoma.

The annual CFC offers an opportunity for federal employees to support health and welfare charities, and other worthy causes through workplace tax deductible donations to state, national, and international charities, said Cheryl Foster, Fort Sill CFC coordinator.

"This is the season of giving so people appreciate the opportunity to give to something that touches their heart," she said. There are so many charitable causes that people can find something they are passionate about.

The CFC season runs Nov. 29 through Jan. 11; this year's theme is "Show Some Love." Fort Sill is under the Central Oklahoma CFC region.

In the past, the CFC had a postwide kickoff ceremony and every unit had a designated CFC representative. That all changed a couple years ago to make CFC donating more streamlined, Foster said.

Now everything can be done online at the CFC website, she said.

Donors can peruse all the CFC charity listings, and there is contact information on each agency to learn more about it, Foster said. The site lists a help desk number for anyone who runs into challenges using the web site.

The site also features a search mechanism, so if one doesn't know a specific charity, they can type in a word, i.e., veterans, and get a list of the CFC agencies that assist veterans. Donors may earmark their pledges to local agencies ensuring their assistance is helping their community.

Donors can make payroll allotment pledges, and print a receipt of their pledge from the site. They can choose to pledge to more than one charity; The allotment is for one year, and it begins after the first pay period after Jan. 15, Foster said.

Donors may choose to not specify a charity, instead giving to a general account called Undesignated Funds.

At the end of the campaign, all money in the Undesignated Funds is divided among the charities in the same proportion that the charity received overall, Foster said.

"For instance, if American Red Cross received 2 percent of overall CFC donations, then they would receive 2 percent of the undesignated funds," she said.

Donations can also be made on hard-copy pledge cards by check or money order through Foster.

The CFC is the only authorized solicitation of employees in the federal workplace on behalf of charitable organizations.

It continues to be the largest and most successful workplace fundraising model in the world, according to the CFC web site. There are millions of reasons to donate to CFC, and each one has a name, face, and a need.

Helping people is what CFC is all about, and donating to CFC is the best way for federal employees to make a difference in the lives of people in need.

Foster said her goal is to ensure every federal employee here is made aware of the CFC, and has an opportunity to donate.

"We all probably need to volunteer more in the community, or give back, but we get very busy," she said. "The Combined Federal Campaign is a wonderful way to give back."

For more information or to make a hard-copy pledge, contact Foster at cheryl.o.anderson.civ@mail.mil , or call her at 580-442-3113. Her office is in Bldg. 4700.