Ep. 4 A Million Thanks with Shauna Fleming

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

In this episode of “Militarily Speaking,” Tom and Jodi talk with the founder of A Million Thanks, Shauna Fleming. They discuss the how A Million Thanks was started, the different milestones they have reached, and discuss how A Million Thanks has expanded their mission to serve military families after they have returned from deployment. Tom and Jodi also play the next round of Military Minute and what charity they sent a donation to from the last episode.

“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.

Military Appreciation Month

Tom begins by asking Jodi if she can believe it’s May, which she responds is also Military Appreciation Month.

• Military Spouse Appreciation Day is on May 6th
• Mother’s Day is on May 8th
• Tom points out that in addition to those holidays, May also has Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Children of Fallen Patriots Day, and Month of the Military Care Giver
• Tom notes that their banking centers are going to be very active this month

A Million Thanks with Founder Shauna Fleming

• Shauna Fleming founded A Million Thanks in 2004 when she was 15 years old.
• The project began as a community service project in Orange County, California with the goal of sending one million cards and letters of appreciation to US Military serving around the globe.
• The local project turned into a national cause just 3 weeks after it’s initial launch as other organizations caught wind and took part.
• Within 6 months of starting, Shauna and her initial team of volunteers reached their goal of sending one million cards and letters.

What Inspired and Drives A Million Thanks

Jodi asks Shauna to tell the story of how A Million Thanks got started, and what continues to drive the mission forward today.

• Shauna says she was a freshman in high school as a community service project.
• While her school gave the students a bunch of options to participate in, she didn’t feel fully connected to any of those.
• She asked the school if she could come up with her own idea, to which they agreed.
• At the time, much of what was on the news revolved around troops being deployed overseas, so she thought what if there was an easy way to support them by sending them thank you letters.
• After presenting the idea to her school, they got on board to support, and shortly after word got out to more organizations, leading to it becoming a nation-wide effort after only 3 weeks.
• The organization just celebrated 18 years in March, 2022.

Grant-A-Wish and Fund-A-Scholar Expansions of A Million Thanks

Tom notes that there have been a few expansions of the A Million Thanks company over the last few years to now also include “Grant A Wish” and “Fund A Scholar” programs as well. He then asks Shauna to give more details on these programs.

• Over the course of the first 10 years, a large portion of the business was focused just on sending letters to the troops that were deployed.
• Shauna says they were also noticing a large gap in the support the military and their families were receiving once they came back from being deployed, being medically discharged, or for those who gave their lives for our country.
• She recognized that writing letters is great, and will always be at the core of A Million Thanks, but wanted to expand the organization to express gratitude to the entire military community and their families.
• Around the 10th anniversary of A Million Thanks, they added the Grant-A-Wish and Fund-A-Scholar missions.
• The Fund-A-Scholar mission is about funding scholarships to children of fallen military, to ensure they are able to pursue their higher education and career goals.
• The Grant-A-Wish mission functions similar to the Make-A-Wish organization, but is centered around quality of life wishes for injured military members.

How to Participate in A Million Thanks Letter Campaigns

Jodi thinks back to how A Million Thanks started 18 years ago aiming to send a million letters to service members, and then asks Shauna how many letters they have sent by this point.

• Shauna says the organization has sent about 12 million letters.
• She notes that the initial goal was 1 million, but then continued to raise that number with other symbolic numbers centering around the military.
• After a few times of raising the goal, she said they stopped setting new goals, but continue to keep track and continue to send the letters.
• Jodi notes that if there are any listeners looking to participate in this letter campaign, they can go to any Armed Forces branch and fill out a physical postcard, or go to the Armed Forces Bank website.
• Shauna adds that if you are not near one of those locations, you can go to amillionthanks.org to find the information on how to send the letters.

Shauna’s Celebrity Interactions

Tom says he knows Shauna has been around a lot of celebrities due to A Million Thanks, and then proceeds to list off many of her encounters.

• Shauna notes that the inspiration for the Fund-A-Scholar mission came from her father and Alex Wax starting an Armed Forces Children’s Education Fund.
• She adds that Alex Wax is also the one responsible for getting the bill passed through Congress to have May become Military Appreciation Month.
• After some further questioning from Tom, Shauna then details her favorite celebrity interactions that she has had over the years.

How to Become A Million Thanks Drop-off Location Partner

Jodi notes that while Armed Forces Bank has been the exclusive financial partner for A Million Thanks’ dropbox locations, there might be someone listening who wants to get involved and partner as a location as well.

• Shauna says that A Million Thanks partners with different organizations and community businesses, schools, and churches to become an official drop off location.
• She continues that this essentially means you are making yourself available as a drop off location, and then are responsible for sending along the letters to A Million Thanks.
• If you or an organization you are in is interested in becoming an official partner, there is an application on the website: amillionthanks.org

Military Appreciation Month

Tom explains all of the different ways that Armed Forces Bank locations are getting involved in their communities in celebration of Military Appreciation Month, and then asks Shauna in what ways A Million Thanks will be celebrating the month.

• Shauna says there are a number of organizations that have a number of events to bolster our military members right in their own communities.
• She then notes that there are a number of websites that pull together the list of extra discounts or freebies businesses may be offering during the month of May.
• Tom notes that links can often be found on Miltarytimes.com, airforcetimes.com, navytimes.com, etc.

A Million Thanks Radio

Tom recalls how A Million Thanks used to host a radio show and asks Shauna to share some details of that experience.

• Shauna says that growing up during the age of the early internet, before podcasts came out, a military owned radio station called WSO asked her to host her own radio show.
• She details the exciting experience of what it was like to create that show, starting as a sophomore in high school.
• She adds that it was a great way to interview the myriad of people she became acquainted with as A Million Thanks was growing into the larger organization that it is today.

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: How many Armed Services YMCA locations are in the state of Alaska.
• Answer: Three – Eielson Air Force Base, Fort Wainwright, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson
• Tom adds that from the prior episode, they sent a check to St. Jude’s organization, which gave them a great amount of joy to be able to do that.
• This week’s Military Minute question: Who said the following, “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”
• 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.

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