Operation Homefront just got a $26,000 boost thanks to the generosity of Church Mutual Insurance Company and its employees.
The company’s employees raised $13,346 for Operation Homefront, and Church Mutual matched the donation dollar for dollar, during a fundraiser for veterans and their families held in early spring. The donation – $26,692 – was presented to representatives of Operation Homefront today during a special event held at the company’s home office on Schuster Lane.
Today’s contribution brings Church Mutual’s total donation to Operation Homefront to nearly $50,000. In 2016, employees raised $11,164, and the company matched it dollar for dollar for a total of $22,328.
“I am very excited to be partnering with Church Mutual again this year,” said Darcy Clardy, regional director of Operation Homefront. “Community partners like Church Mutual aid in our success in helping build strong, stable and secure military families, so they can thrive in the communities they have worked so hard to protect.”
“Supporting veterans is very personal to me,” said Church Mutual President and CEO Rich Poirier, who retired from the U.S. Navy in 2010 at the rank of captain. “Our giving is also very much in keeping with Church Mutual’s mission to protect the greater good. At its core, Church Mutual is built on service to its customers and community.
“I can think of no better way to give back than to thank and recognize veterans, who understand better than anyone what it takes to serve others.”
Operation Homefront, headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, assists military families during difficult financial times, providing food assistance, home and auto repair, for example, and helping families gain long-term stability.
Operation Homefront puts 92 cents of every dollar donated back into its program, Clardy said. Church Mutual’s contribution will be spent where the need is greatest.
Church Mutual’s donation is yet another example of its appreciation for veterans and their families.
In November 2016, the company donated 4.3 acres to the Northwoods Veterans Support Group for a $2 million veterans post to be built on Johnson Street near the Merrill Memorial Park Cemetery. The new post includes conference rooms and offices; medical rooms; a banquet area; and fitness room. It also will serve local scouting organizations – Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts.
Church Mutual also has been a generous supporter of the Wausau-based Never Forgotten Honor Flight. This organization flies northcentral Wisconsin veterans who served during World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam eras to Washington, D.C., to visit memorials erected in their honor.