Goodwill® Joins Got Your 6 Campaign

Goodwill teams up with entertainment industry and civic partners to prepare veterans for success in civilian life            

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Every day, 500 military veterans change out of their uniforms into civilian lives. Americans are grateful for their service, but gratitude only goes so far; veterans need employment and support services to ensure they can provide for their families and live lives of dignity in the country whose freedom they helped secure.

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By working together, our country can connect veterans and their families with work, homes and the supports they need. That is why Goodwill is proud to serve as the national activation partner of "Got Your 6," one of the first examples of a nationally focused collective impact campaign led by the entertainment industry and national nonprofits that will help create a new conversation in America, one where veterans and military families are perceived as both leaders and civic assets.

In the military, "Got Your Six" means "I've got your back." Got Your 6 seeks to connect Americans with veterans and military families to build relationships that will aid transition, foster leadership and reinvigorate our communities. In order to set up veterans and military families for success in civilian life, Got Your 6 will focus on the six pillars of reintegration: jobs, education, health, housing, family, and leadership.

Each pillar is led by an activation partner—nonprofit organizations that are subject matter experts on each topic. Activation partners will establish a set of goals that can be identified, measured and reported.  The goals will be made public and provide the campaign with specific, substantial benchmarks. Goodwill, which has been serving veterans since World War I, will serve as the national activation partner—working in tandem with partners from all six pillars to prepare and place veterans and their families in jobs across the country. The collective goal of these partners is to prepare and place 500,000 veterans in sustainable employment over the course of the campaign.

"We believe in the value and potential of America's veterans. As a leader in workforce development and training, Goodwill will leverage our programming and extraordinary reach in more than 2,700 neighborhoods to compliment the powerful commitments of the partners of Got Your 6 and play an integral role as the national activation partner," said Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. "With our engagement in Got Your 6, we are humbled to be able to work with such accomplished nonprofits as well as the full breadth of the entertainment industry."

Goodwill has a long history of helping veterans prepare for new careers as civilians and connecting them to necessary support services. These services not only include housing assistance but also primary and mental health care, meal service, vocational rehabilitation, facilitation for treatment for substance abuse and mental illness, and a variety of trainings so that they have stability both at home and in the workplace.  Last year, Goodwill provided employment placement services and other community-based programs to more than 44,000 veterans, military spouses and their families, hiring more than 1,000 of these individuals. The goal is to match these efforts this year in our role as a Got Your 6 partner.

Nearly every major Hollywood entertainment studio, broadcast and cable network, talent agency, and guild, together with nonprofit organizations, are involved in this unprecedented awareness campaign. This multipronged effort includes nearly two dozen top-tier national nonprofit and government organizations, and will feature events, initiatives and groundbreaking ideas from the public, private and nonprofit sectors. The organizing body and fiduciary agent is ServiceNation, a campaign of Be The Change, Inc., a registered nonprofit 501 (c) (3).  

"Veterans need an advocate and a voice," said Gibbons. "At Goodwill, our employment specialists in every municipality throughout the U.S. strive to provide services, including employment plans, career counseling, resume help, and skills training, so that veterans can obtain employment positions in emerging industries, such as banking, health care and technology. We are proud to facilitate services and treatment to equip veterans and their families to maintain an increased quality of life."

About Goodwill Industries International
Goodwill Industries International is a network of 165 community-based agencies in the United States and Canada with 14 affiliates in 13 other countries. Goodwill agencies are innovative and sustainable social enterprises that fund job training programs, employment placement services and other community-based programs by selling donated clothing and household items in more than 2,600 stores and online at shopgoodwill.com.  Local Goodwill agencies also build revenue and create jobs by contracting with businesses and government to provide a wide range of commercial services, including packaging and assembly, food service preparation, and document imaging and shredding. In 2011, more than 4 million people in the United States and Canada benefited from Goodwill's career services. Goodwill channels 82 percent of its revenues directly into its programs and services. To find a Goodwill location near you, use the online locator at www.goodwill.org, or call (800) GOODWILL. Follow us on Twitter: @GoodwillIntl or find us on Facebook: GoodwillIntl.

About Got Your 6
Got Your 6 is a campaign designed to change the conversation in America such that veterans and military families are seen as civic assets and leaders who will reinvigorate our community. The campaign combines the reach and resources of the top American entertainment studios, networks, guilds and agencies with the expertise and commitment of more than two dozen non-profit organizations. Through an extensive media footprint and a set of substantial service commitments, Got Your 6 will ensure successful reintegration of veterans into civilian life. For more information, visit www.gotyour6.org. ServiceNation is the organizing body and fiduciary agent for Got Your 6. The campaign is managed by Propper Daley. Mering-Carson developed the Got Your 6 brand, star/six device, and related creative. Brand Knew LLC developed the GotYour6.org website and the social media presence. Beck Media & Marketing handles all media and publicity.

SOURCE Goodwill Industries International