The Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) is inviting more than 1.5 million Army and Air Force retirees to visit its stores for special savings, prizes and events on its "Still Serving" weekend of Sept. 28 to 30. Invitations, in the form of a 24-page "Still Serving" mailer, are already hitting military retiree's mailboxes. They contain offers and coupons, as well as a chance to win one of more than a dozen prizes. Inside the mailer, retirees will find exclusive savings on gas, coffee, jewelry, electronics, footwear, eyewear, flowers, hardware, clothing and even a new set of tires. "Still Serving" savings also are available through the Exchange Online Store. For more information, call the local store manager. Contact information can be found online at aafes.com by clicking on the "store locator" link.

Retired ID Card Replacement Update

A single form of identification is no longer sufficient for retiree ID card renewals at issuing sites using updated software for the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System/Realtime Automated Personnel Identification System. Retirees and their dependents need to provide a primary photo form of identification and a secondary non-photo form of identification. Examples of photo IDs: military ID card; driver's license; federal, state or local government ID; U.S. or foreign passport; and foreign national ID. Examples of non-photo IDs: Social Security card; voter registration card; birth certificate; U.S. citizen ID card (INS I-97); school record or report card: clinic, doctor, or hospital record; and a day care or nursery record. ID cards for retirees need updating only if the card was lost, stolen or damaged, or if the retiree undergoes a change in status. Retirees' family members and survivors age 75 or over may receive a permanent ID card.

GAO Report on VA Data Security

Wednesday, 19 September the GAO released a 32 page report on the VA's efforts to secure personal data. This study was ordered after the theft of the hard drive that held personal information of millions of Veterans from the home of a VA employee. The GAO concluded that the VA has a long way to go before their job is completed. It found that as of now only 4 of 28 original recommendations have been completely instituted. They also found that steps have been made in many of the other recommendations. To read the full report, please go to: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d071246t.pdf

VA Honors Founder of Little Caesars

This week the VA presented the Secretary’s Award to Michael Ilitch, the Founder of “Little Caesars” Pizza for his support of Veterans entering business. (The full press release is attached below). Mr. Ilitch, a former Marine, has programs to help all veterans start a Little Caesar franchise with deep discounts for service disabled veterans. (These discounts include waiving the $20,000 franchise fee on the first store, $10,000 credit on the initial equipment order and more-again please read the press release.)

Veterans Affairs Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 17, 2007

VA Honors Little Caesars Founder for Supporting Veterans in Business

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson today presented a Secretary's Award to Little Caesars founder Michael Ilitch in recognition of his advancement of veterans in business through pizza franchise discounts.

Ilitch's restaurant franchise has a program to aid any veteran interested in starting a Little Caesars restaurant and also offers special opportunities with additional deep discounts, credit, training, and marketing support for those veterans who are service-disabled.

"Michael Ilitch recognizes the value of veterans in business," said Nicholson. "VA's Center for Veterans Enterprise will assist veterans seeking to become Little Caesars franchise owners and looks forward to helping veterans translate the leadership skills they learned while in uniform to business ownership and expansion."

In conjunction with the award ceremony, Ilitch, who is a former Marine, served pizza to homeless veterans at the VA headquarters in Washington from Little Caesars' "Love Kitchen," a pizza kitchen on wheels that travels across the U.S. and Canada to feed the homeless and disaster survivors.

To assist service-disabled veterans who want to open a Little Caesars restaurant, the program waives a $20,000 franchise fee on the first store, provides $10,000 credit on the initial equipment order, and provides a variety of marketing support and financing options and other benefits, which can total $68,000. For other veterans, the fee is reduced by $5,000 and the credit extended for equipment is $5,000.

Veterans are offered business opportunities by a variety of franchisers through the International Franchise Association's VetFran program. More information about the companies' special benefits for veterans is available at www.franchise.org and the VA Center for Veterans Enterprise's resource site to assist veteran entrepreneurs at www.vetbiz.gov.

(Courtesy of AAFES) Dallas (AFRNS) – Retirement has its benefits for former Airmen who shop their exchange during the Army and Air Force Exchange Service’s annual “Still Serving” weekend, Sept. 28 to 30.

This year, AAFES is inviting more than 1.5 million Army and Air Force retirees to visit base and post exchanges for special savings, prizes and events.

Invitations, in the form of a 24-page mailer, are already hitting military retiree’s mailboxes. Overflowing with select offers and coupons, as well as an opportunity to win one of more than a dozen prizes, the 2007 “Still Serving” mailer is twice the size of last year’s 12-page edition. Inside, military retirees will find exclusive savings on gas, coffee, jewelry, electronics, footwear, eyewear, flowers, hardware, clothing and even a new set of tires. “Still Serving” savings are not limited to local “brick and mortar” exchanges. In fact, Exchange Online Store and catalog offers have been incorporated into nearly half of the 2007 “Still Serving” booklet.

At 36 percent, retirees represent the largest portion of the exchanges’ authorized households. “Still Serving” is an annual effort to attract and retain loyal shoppers who continue to directly impact active-duty families’ day-to-day lives.

“Retiree patronage directly affects AAFES’ ability to fulfill its dual mission to provide quality goods and services at competitively low prices and generate earnings to support morale, welfare and recreation programs,” said Richard Sheff, AAFES’ chief marketing officer. “Whether or not authorized patrons choose to shop the exchange goes beyond dollars and cents; it is a quality-of-life issue for the entire military community. Without retiree support, AAFES wouldn’t have been able to return an average (fiscal year) ’06 per capita dividend of $229 for every Soldier and Airman, in addition to the shared earnings paid to the Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps.”

Authorized exchange customers can learn more about activities planned for the weekend of Sept. 28 at their specific exchange by calling their local store manager. Contact information can be found online at www.aafes.com by clicking on the “store locator” link.