WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The premier voice for our Nation’s Soldiers has stepped forward to help preserve a vital benefit for military service members and their families. The Coalition to Save Our Military Shopping Benefits announced today that the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) has joined the Coalition as a Valued Associate.
AUSA has added its support to a growing number of military and Veterans organizations that have joined the Coalition’s efforts to increase public awareness of the contributions that commissaries and exchanges make to military life, and to alert patrons to the ongoing threats to curtail their benefits. Save Our Benefit is working to preserve the military resale system, which saves military families $4.5 billion annually and contributes billions of dollars to the military communities they support.
“AUSA is committed to maintaining this important recruiting and retention benefit which is vital to keeping our all volunteer force strong,” said LTG Guy C. Swan III, AUSA’s Vice President for Education. “We look forward to working with the Coalition in support of this vital benefit for our military community and the Nation.”
“For the past 63 years, AUSA has worked tirelessly to safeguard the benefits of America’s Soldiers and their families,” said Patrick Nixon, President of The Coalition to Save Our Military Shopping Benefits. “AUSA’s support is critical to the Coalition’s efforts to protect the military resale benefit which continues to rank as one of the most important benefits for military families and is stronger today than ever,” said Nixon.
Millions of service members and their families rely on commissaries and exchanges to stretch their household budgets. An average military family of four can save $7,000 a year. In remote and overseas locations, it is often the only affordable shopping opportunity available. In metropolitan areas, where prices are consistently higher, commissaries and exchanges help keep prices affordable. For some junior enlisted military families and fixed income retirees, savings are the difference between making ends meet and filing for public assistance. Commissaries and exchanges are also the largest employer of military families in the world and the leading employer of Veterans in the Nation, adding to the financial stability of the military community.
AUSA is a professional, non-profit association representing America’s Army on Capitol Hill and in the local communities. With 125 chapters worldwide, its primary mission is to support Soldiers and their families, and the civilians who work alongside of them in the local community. AUSA is also dedicated to supporting deployed Soldiers and families left behind. Since its founding in 1950, AUSA and its chapters have contributed over 2 million dollars to awards, scholarships, and support of soldier and family programs.
Organizations, service members and their families, and concerned citizens who wish to learn more about The Coalition to Save Our Military Shopping Benefits or to join in our efforts, please visit www.SaveOurBenefit.org.