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Personnel pennies pay off for Fisher families
Posted 7/6/2011 Updated 7/6/2011
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by Debbie Gildea
Air Force Personnel, Services and Manpower Public Affairs
7/6/2011 - RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Pennies paid off for the Lackland Air Force Base Fisher House when Air Force Personnel Center civilian force integration directorate members waged a penny war that raised $800 for the military support organization.
The Fisher House Foundation provides free lodging for family members of wounded warriors near the medical and rehabilitation facilities where the wounded members receive care. Since the program began in 1990, more than 12,000 family members have benefitted from the support. To help the foundation -- a private/public partnership -- continue to serve military members and their families, many organizations donate funds and volunteer time to the house nearest them, including the Lackland Fisher House.
The AFPC civilian personnel penny war, organized by the directorate morale committee, was a way to raise funds for a worthy cause and boost directorate morale at the same time, said Tara Ballard, the committee vice president.
"It was our tangible salute to those who have made serious sacrifices to serve their country," she said about the competition. "But it also was a great morale boost for all of the employees here."
Competition was between buildings, rather than divisions or sections, Ballard said.
"We have three buildings in the AFPC campus where the majority of civilian Airmen work. So, we put jars in each building and encouraged people to fill the jars."
The trick was that only pennies earned points. Other coins and paper money took points away from a building.
"I'd walk into one of the other buildings for a meeting and dump a handful of pennies into our jar and stuff dollars into the other jars," Ballard said. "Everyone was doing that because that raised our point score while dropping another building's points."
The event was one of many simple but effective impact activities planned by the directorate morale committee. A recent safety slogan contest resulted in an easy-to-remember slogan, "Work Safe, Play Safe, Stay Safe, earning movie passes for the author.
The civilian force integration directorate never settles for good enough, whether it's duty-related or community support, Ballard explained.
"We attacked this (fundraiser) with reckless abandon, and I'm proud to be part of such an awesome group of professionals," she said.
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