Ep. 27 Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation with David Kim

Welcome to the "Militarily Speaking" podcast with Tom McLean and Jodi Vickery.

In this episode of “Militarily Speaking,” Tom, Jodi, and guest David Kim, Co-Founder and CEO of Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation, discuss the background and start of the foundation, current goals of the foundation, and how they aim to help fund every children of a fallen patriot.

“Militarily Speaking” is a podcast produced by Armed Forces Bank that is dedicated to the military lifestyle and all the things that makes military community who they are.

Ep. 27 — Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation with David Kim

Introducing David Kim and Children of Fallen Patriots

Tom and Jodi introduce their guest David Kim, and give his military background and current career, and ask him to explain his organization.

• David says that the mission of Children of Fallen Patriots is to provide college scholarships for military children of all branches who lost a parent in the line of duty.
• He says this is their way of honoring the sacrifice of our fallen heroes by investing in the future of their children.

Tom congratulates David on recently winning Veteran of the Year, and asks about David’s personal connection with the mission and with Sgt. William Delaney Gibbs.

• David talks about their shared time in the 7th battalion, and his death a short time before the birth of his daughter.
• He says that thinking about his daughter was what prompted him and his wife to start the foundation.

Connect with and Support Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation

Jodi asks how children get connected with the organization, how do they receive help, and how many children have they helped so far.

• David says that there are about 25,000 gold star children, and they are trying to find all of them and put them into a single database, noting that they have found about half.
• He explains how they find other gold star children through partnerships with the VA, Gary Sinise Foundation, and other organizations serving the same population.
• He continues by noting they have helped roughly 3,000 students go to college, half of which have graduated debt free.
• David goes over the financial gap that currently exists in trying to send all of these students to college.
• Tom refences the tightknit world of military supporters, including the likes of Sam Meek, the Pat Tillman Foundation, and encourages how they are all working towards a common goal.

Tom asks David to go into detail about how their support has helped families over the years.

• David says that they think of it as wholistic care, trying to get those students through college debt free to lighten the burden.
• He adds that they also provide emotional care and support for their students, and tells the uplifting story of one their students who connected with other individuals like her.
• He continues by discussing their career seminars that they host to help those students find internships and jobs.
• After Jodi asks how a company can get involved with those career seminars, David explains a number of companies and their varied ways of giving.

Background and Inner Workings of Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation

Jodi asks how David manages to work a fulltime job on top of working with the organization.

• David notes how great his team and board are, mentioning that most of those are veterans or gold star children.
• He also thanks to all the people that donate to supporting our veterans and their families.

Tom asks David to speak about the different and innovative ways the organization raises money.

• David explains how there are individuals in addition to corporate sponsors who raise money through a variety of ways.
• He then gives examples of some of the different ways individuals have raised money.
• David continues the topic by discussing where the money goes, how it is used, and noting that they have a 100% on charity navigator.

Family and Foundation Goals

Jodi asks how David enjoys getting to work together on the Foundation.

• He talks about how great working with his wife has been, and how inspirational she is.
• David also mentions their background and upbringing, and the tough times when they first started the organization.
• Tom and David discuss some of the other people they both work with, as the military community and military banking community are intertwined.
• Tom continues the conversation by asking David to talk about his family and their trajectories in life.

Tom notes that David is 10% of the way to his goal for the Foundation, and asks if there is anything else he would like to achieve.

• David says his big goal is still to find all 25,000 students, and get them funded by raising $600 Million.
• He says they are a focus factory and that his goal is go achieve those things before he stops working on it.

Military Minute

Jodi introduces the Military Minute segment of the show, beginning by closing out last episode’s Military Minute.

• Last episode’s Military Minute: What was the name of the first bakery opened in the United States?
• Answer: United States Bakery or Franz Family Bakery
• This week’s Military Minute question: What was initially supposed to be Luke Skywalker’s last name in the original script for Star Wars: A New Hope, that eventually was used as the name for a military base.
• Watch for Facebook and Instagram posts about this episode.
• Answer with the correct answer and you plus a charity of your choice can each win $50.

Tom closes the episode by asking listeners to go to www.afbank.com and subscribe to the show, as well as leave a rating and comment on your favorite podcast platform such as Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Join us to hear how to better navigate your finances, military life, and the crossroads of the two.

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