As teachers and employees who support education, we take pride that our daily work will make a difference for the 24,000 students we serve in DoDDS-Pacific and DDESS-Guam.  Now is our opportunity to make a difference in a different way through contributing to the Combined Federal Campaign.

The theme for the 2007 CFC is “Be a Star in Someone’s Life! Support CFC.” The focus was inspired by the idea of exactly what life would be like if the CFC did not exist.  What is the impact of our contributions?  Look at these statistics:

$2 per month buys a winter sleeping bag for a homeless child.	$10 per month feeds a child for thirty days.
$2 per month removes 100 pounds of trash from a beach.	$12 per month protects six acres of rainforest
$3 per month supplies a luncheon for families of deployed service members to thank them for their sacrifice.	$20 per month provides vaccines against measles, yellow fever, diphtheria, tuberculosis and polio for 60 children in a developing country.
$6 per month promotes environmental conservation in an isolated village in a developing country.	$21 per month can deliver a “waiting child” out of an institution into the arms of a loving family.
$8 per month supplies a doctor with one surgical kit to assist earthquake victims.	$25 per month sponsors a career exploration program for a young adult.
$8 per month buys one infant scale to monitor child suffering from malnutrition.	$31 per month buys medicines to treat 1,000 adults and children for three months.
$9 per month helps rebuild a war-torn country.	$43 per month connects a child at risk with a caring mentor for one year.
$9 per month can help a child with cerebral palsy through four therapy sessions.	$50 per month buys one veterinary kit to help keep a town’s livestock healthy in a developing country.

Contributing to the CFC is also a great chance to help your local base charities, which also support many organizations in the United States. 

The CFC was created in the early 1960s in order to offer federal employees an efficient and effective way to donate to charities.  The convenience of payroll deductions, the choice of over 2,000 participating charities, and the confidence of a well run, regulated program all have contributed to the success of the CFC.

The Combined Federal Campaign-Overseas (CFC-O) represents an opportunity for U.S. Government personnel serving overseas, both service members and civilians, to help those suffering hardship or need by contributing to worthy charities.  Public servants may not only make monetary contributions to the campaign, but may also assume leadership roles to ensure its success.  Last year, the CFC raised almost $271 million with $15.4 million coming from bases and installations overseas.  This was a result of the generosity of thousands of military and civilian contributors.  In past campaigns, educators and administrators from DoDDS-Pacific and DDESS-Guam have also been very generous.  Over the past three years DoDDS-Pacific and DDESS-Guam employees have increased their contribution by $100,000 reaching $265,800 in the 2006 campaign.

This year’s CFC-O runs from October 15 through December 14 and already some of the 2,650 DoDDS-Pacific/DDESS-Guam employees have made pledges.  For more information about the CFC and to read personal stories of how CFC has improved the lives of people, you can go to the Combined Federal Campaign Overseas Website at http://www.cfcoverseas.org.

While the CFC is completely voluntary, I encourage each of you to consider contributing to these worthwhile causes.  Contributions to the CFC truly can make you a star in many lives.

Nancy C. Bresell
Director, DoDDS-Pacific/DDESS-Guam