Defense Logistics Agency employees in the National Capital Area received a nod of appreciation from the Department of Defense in a March 12 ceremony celebrating the department’s collective $10.2 million contribution to the 2018 Combined Federal Campaign.
For its contributions, DLA won the Summit Award for raising its donations by 3 percent and the Participation Achievement Award for increasing the number of participants by 2 percent.
“This is a wonderful accomplishment, and I want to thank our DoD civilians and military men and women for your support this campaign season. Your monetary donations and pledges of volunteer hours will go a long way,” DLA Director Army Lt. Gen. Darrell Williams said in a March 13 email announcing the recognition.
Employees raised $268,000 toward a $300,000 goal. While donors gave various amounts, the total equals about $812 per person for the 330 employees who gave.
“That’s only 14.6 percent of our people. Just imagine what we could have accomplished if 50 percent of our workforce had participated,” said Anita Eggleston, DLA CFCNCA campaign manager and operations manager for DLA Information Services’ Security Cooperation Enterprise Solution Program.
In comparison, 314 DLA NCA employees donated $249,265 in the 2017 campaign despite there being an additional 194 employees in the NCA that year.
Many of this year’s contributors shared personal stories of how they and their families have benefited from CFC charities. Skip Gieseking of DLA Energy was 15 months old when a drunk driver rammed head-on into the family vehicle, killing his mother and oldest brother. He, his father, younger brother and sister were hospitalized. Charitable organizations helped feed, clothe and shelter them throughout their recovery.
“A lot of this year’s donors said they’d actually used the services of CFC charities. These are people who are adamant about giving every year, and they tend to give substantial amounts,” Eggleston said.
A team of 75 people – 10 coordinators and 65 keyworkers spread throughout DLA NCA offices – were available to answer employees’ questions and assist those who needed help navigating the online giving portal.
CFC gives federal employees the chance to contribute to charities that have special meaning to them and every dollars counts, Eggleston added.
“It’s not so much the goal that’s important as getting people engaged in helping others, because you never know what could happen. You never know when you might find yourself in need.”