Ford Receives Special Department of Defense Recognition

DEARBORN, Mich. -

Late last week, it was announced that Ford is to be recognized as a recipient of the 2011 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award for exceptional and exemplary support given to employees serving in the National Guard or Reserve.

Out of 4,000 nominations submitted this year, Ford is one of 15 companies nationwide to be selected. The awards are sponsored by the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR).

“We are proud of our employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve, and it is our privilege to support them,” said Mike Bannister, Ford executive vice president, chairman and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Credit Co. and executive champion of the Ford Veterans Network Group.

“We thank ESGR and the Department of Defense for this recognition. We appreciate the honor, and we deeply appreciate all the men and women involved in military service,” he added.

A national selection board composed of senior defense officials, business leaders and prior awardees selected the 15 recipients for the 2011 Freedom Award. The 2011 recipients will be honored in Washington, D.C., at the 16th annual Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award Ceremony in September.

Ford was nominated for the award a total of six times, one of which was submitted by Todd Brooks, an employee who also serves in the Navy Reserve.

“Ford makes service to our country much easier. From senior leadership all the way down the ladder, they understand the necessity of the citizen soldier and the difficulties their loved ones face as a result of their commitment,” said Brooks, an engineering supervisor at Body, Chassis & Steering Test Labs.

“Ford really gets it. Truly, it is one team and for that we are ever so grateful,” Brooks expressed.

Ford was recognized for formal and informal initiatives put in place for its Guard and Reserve employees and their families, such as offering differential pay for employees on active duty. Out of approximately 700 Reservists and Guardsmen and 7,000 veterans employed by the automaker, nearly 30 are currently actively serving in the military.

The automaker revealed that it began its relationship with the Disabled American Veterans in 1922, when Henry Ford organized a cross-country caravan of 50 Model T’s to take disabled veterans to their convention in San Francisco. Since 1974, Ford and the fund have provided more than $6 million to veterans organizations.

“Ford Motor Co. is honored to support our disabled veterans by partnering with the DAV on many programs, including the DAV Transportation Network," said Jim Vella, president of Ford Motor Fund and Community Services. "Our partnership dates back nearly 90 years, and we are continuously amazed at what our partnership has produced."

Recently, Ford donated $200,000 for the purchase of eight vehicles for the DAV Transportation Network and also made a $25,000 donation allotted for the DAV’s Jesse Brown Memorial Youth Scholarship program

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which provides 12 scholarships to youth who have volunteered their time to help sick and disabled veterans in their community.

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“We are extremely grateful for Ford’s generosity,” said DAV National Commander Wallace Tyson. “These vehicles will be used by veterans hospitals to transport wounded warriors to and from medical appointments, continually providing a vital link between thousands of sick and disabled veterans and the health care they so desperately need.

“We also deeply appreciate Ford’s support of the Jesse Brown Youth Memorial Scholarship, as well as the $25,000 they donated to the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, which is a unique sports rehabilitation program for hundreds of severely disabled veterans,” Tyson said. “Ford has always shown its pride in being American made, and it backs that up by reaching out with a helping hand to those who sacrificed so much to defend the American way,” he continued.

Additionaly, Ford has donated 156 vehicles to the DAV Transportation Network to date, sponsors the DAV’s winter sports clinic and made a $500,000 contribution towards the American Veterans Disable for Life Memorial, among other donations of time and money.

On an employee level, Ford Veterans Network Group (VETNG), one of Ford’s corporately supported Employee Resource Groups, sponsors activities throughout the year in support of its veterans, military personnel and their families.

“The Veterans Network Group is committed to serving and supporting all members of the U.S. Armed Forces,” said Dan Duderstadt, lead security supervisor and president of the Veterans Network Group.

“And we could not do it without the ongoing support of our senior leadership here at Ford Motor Co.,” he continued.

While congratulating the 15 recipients of the 2011 Freedom Award, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs Dennis McCarthy said, “To stand out among the many thousands of employers who firmly support our Citizen Warriors is a testament to the remarkable efforts of these 15 recipients. On behalf of the Department of Defense, I congratulate the 2011 honorees and thank them for serving as outstanding partners in our nation’s defense."

The 15 recipients of the 2011 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award recipients are as follows:

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Employer	Location
3M Company	St. Paul, Minn.
Ameren Missouri	St. Louis, Mo.
Burt County Sheriff’s Office	Tekamah, Neb.
CSX Transportation	Jacksonville, Fla.
Electrical Contractors Inc.	Omaha, Neb.
Ford Motor Company	Dearborn, Mich.
Hanson Professional Services Inc.	Springfield, Ill.
Integrity Applications Incorporated	Chantilly, Va.
Orange County Sheriff’s Department	Santa Ana, Calif.
Principal Financial Group	Des Moines, Iowa
Qwest Communications, Denver, Colo., acquired by CenturyLink Inc.	Monroe, La.
St. John’s Lutheran Church	Yankton, S.D.
State Employees’ Credit Union	Raleigh, N.C.
Town of Gilbert	Gilbert, Ariz.
Wells Fargo & Co.	San Francisco, Calif.