Supporting Our Military Heroes

By Jason Leiker

Like many movements, it started with a single voice. The voice of a 15-year-old girl:

“I know that you are a big company and probably get requests for help all the time, but our troops really need us to help them right now more than ever.”

That was the voice of Brittany Bergquist who, with her younger brother Robbie, founded a nonprofit in 2004 called Cell Phones for Soldiers, an organization dedicated to providing deployed and returning troops free ways to connect with their family back home while serving their country. AT&T rose to meet her call – forging a relationship and commitment that has spanned six years and generated more than $3 million in support from AT&T and our customers.  

At AT&T we feel it is our duty to support both our deployed soldiers and those returning home, as we have for over 90 years. This is one of the reasons we actively recruit military veterans for positions throughout the company and support organizations like the 100,000 Jobs Mission, Tip of the Arrow, the Army's Partnership for Youth Success and various states' veterans agencies and commissions.

While we are proud to support all of these organizations, Cell Phones for Soldiers and the Bergquists will always hold a special place in our heart.  Over the past six years we’ve been able to see the Bergquists grow from inspiring adolescents to bright and motivated adults. That’s why we were honored to continue to financially support their organization.

As the Bergquists grow, so does their contribution to our nation and our troops. Recently they launched a new program, Helping Heroes Home. Through this venture they plan to support returning veterans soldiers by providing them emergency funds to alleviate communication challenges as well as physical, emotional and assimilation hardships.  

We’re proud to support this expanded mission through a financial commitment of more than $450,000, as well as through a new campaign on our Causes.com community, Connect For Good .

That’s where you come in.  If you visit this site and watch a video about Cell Phones for Soldiers, we will make an additional donation to Helping Heroes Home, up to $50,000.    

I hope you’ll take a moment to learn more about AT&T’s commitment to our service men and women as well as Cell Phones for Soldiers. I think you’ll agree that these two young people are proof that each and every one of us has the ability to make a positive impact on the world around us.