CAMP FOSTER, OKINAWA, Japan -- As the Combined Federal Campaign is well underway, service members and federal employees on Okinawa still have time to participate.
The CFC is an annual U.S. federal employee charity donation system supported by more than 200 campaigns worldwide, which provides a venue for direct donation to numerous charities. The 2013 campaign, which began Sept. 1, is scheduled to conclude Dec. 15.
The CFC is the world’s largest and most successful workplace charity campaign, according to Elaine Kaplan, acting director of the United States Office of Personnel Management, in a memorandum. Since its creation in 1961, the CFC has raised over $7 billion.
“I encourage people to give through the CFC for many reasons,” said Kaplan. “The payroll deduction option lets you spread your contribution across the entire year. It gives your charity a steady source of revenue throughout the year, it has low overhead costs, so more money goes to your charity, and it shows all Americans that federal employees care about our communities.”
CFC-Overseas, responsible for all campaign giving for service members and federal employees stationed abroad, raised almost $14 million during the 2012 campaign.
CFC streamlines the giving process by making it simple and easy to select the charity, donation method and amount that is right for each federal employee.
“The CFC is kind of like a ‘one stop shop’ for charities,” said 1st Lt. Melissa D. Lewallen, a budget officer with 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force. “There’s a list of charities you can donate to (online at) the CFC website or through pledge cards that representatives from each unit have.”
Service members and federal employees can choose to make a one-time donation for the year, or choose to give a set amount from each paycheck to the charity of their choice.
Unit or department CFC representatives are responsible for working with service members and federal employees to answer any questions regarding the donation process.
Participants may choose one or more charities on the list to receive the donation, or choose none and have the money distributed evenly among all CFC organizations.
The CFC is known to be the most inclusive workplace-giving campaign in the world, with the number of participating charities estimated at over 20,000 nonprofit charitable organizations worldwide, according to the CFC website. The charities supported through the CFC range from small, community groups to large, well-known charities.
Service members or federal employees looking to find out more or get involved can contact their unit or department representative or visit the CFC website at www.cfctoday.org.