{"id":1779,"date":"2018-04-10T18:42:39","date_gmt":"2018-04-10T18:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/?p=1779"},"modified":"2018-04-10T20:55:53","modified_gmt":"2018-04-10T20:55:53","slug":"service-members-retirees-win-big-with-exchange-credit-programs-your-holiday-bill-is-on-us-sweepstakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2018\/04\/10\/service-members-retirees-win-big-with-exchange-credit-programs-your-holiday-bill-is-on-us-sweepstakes\/","title":{"rendered":"Service Members, Retirees Win Big With Exchange Credit Program\u2019s Your Holiday Bill Is On Us Sweepstakes"},"content":{"rendered":"

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DALLAS \u2013 <\/strong>The Exchange Credit Program made the beginning of 2018 a little brighter for 40 winners of the annual MILITARY STAR card Your Holiday Bill Is On Us sweepstakes.<\/p>\n

The Exchange Credit Program paid more than $43,000 toward shoppers\u2019 MILITARY STAR card balances in its fourth annual sweepstakes. Five grand-prize winners had their balances paid in full, while 10 second-place winners received $1,000 statement credits. For third place, 25 winners received $500 statement credits.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>The sweepstakes saw nearly 6 million entries from authorized shoppers using their MILITARY STAR cards in person at military exchanges; online at the Army & Air Force Exchange Service\u2019s ShopMyExchange.com<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0myNavyExchange.com<\/a>; and at commissaries worldwide.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cEach year, this sweepstakes proves that real heroes walk away as winners,\u201d said Exchange Credit Program Senior Vice President Jami Richardson. \u201cIt\u2019s a privilege to honor our cardholders\u2019 service and sacrifice through the Your Holiday Bill Is On Us sweepstakes. We look forward to this every year, and we are excited to bring the sweepstakes back for the 2018 holiday season.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Retired Navy Chief Petty Officer David Auxier was the sweepstakes\u2019 biggest winner. During a presentation at the Whiteman Air Force Base Exchange, he took giant scissors to an oversize statement<\/a>, symbolizing his $8,100 MILITARY STAR card bill being wiped clean.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they first told us, we were in shock that we had actually won,\u201d said Auxier, who has a son in college and 11- and 13-year-old girls. \u201cWe use the MILITARY STAR card for a lot of major purchases as well as at Christmas time. Having this bill paid off creates breathing room in our budget and helps out for those unexpected things that come up. This has been a huge blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sweepstakes also helped 1st<\/sup> Lt. Blake Jones, who is attending the Army Logistics University captains career course at Fort Lee, and his young family. Jones made his winning purchase at the Fort Lee commissary after PCS\u2019ing from Fort Wainwright right before the holidays. His account balance of $5,200 was paid in full during a ceremony at the Fort Lee commissary<\/a>, which became the first commissary in the world to accept the MILITARY STAR card in October.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know there are other families that are struggling and hope we can use this to pay it forward as well,\u201d Jones said.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Three other grand-prize winners, Benjamin Neusbaum, a DoD contractor at Camp Foster in Okinawa; retired Army Col. Edward Lynch of San Antonio<\/a>; and retired Army 2nd<\/sup> Lt. Glenn Kipper, a Vietnam Army Veteran from Farmers Branch, Texas, each received a $2,500 statement credit.<\/p>\n

The MILITARY STAR card is an exclusive line of credit for service members and their families to use at exchanges and commissaries \u2013 no matter where they serve. Shoppers automatically received a sweepstakes entry every time they used their MILITARY STAR card from November through December at any Army & Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard exchange facility; ShopMyExchange.com<\/a> or myNavyExchange.com<\/a>; or at any commissary worldwide.<\/p>\n

For a list of winners and information about the MILITARY STAR card, visit MyECP.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Facebook-friendly version: <\/strong>The Army & Air Force Exchange brightened holidays by paying off more than $43,000 in MILITARY STAR credit card bills during its 4th<\/sup> annual Your Holiday Bill Is On Us sweepstakes. Learn more about the winners: https:\/\/bit.ly\/2v3EnHL<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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About MILITARY STAR:<\/strong> The MILITARY STAR credit card program offers affordable and responsible credit solutions to the military community. The Army & Air Force Exchange Service operates the MILITARY STAR program on behalf of the military resale community.<\/p>\n

About the Exchange:<\/strong> Since 1895, the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (Exchange) has gone where Soldiers, Airmen and their families go to improve the quality of their lives by providing valued goods and services at exclusive military pricing. The Exchange is the 56th-largest retailer in the United States. Its earnings provided $2.4 billion in dividends to support military morale, welfare and recreation programs over the last 10 years. The Exchange is a non-appropriated fund entity of the Department of Defense and is directed by a Board of Directors. To find out more about the Exchange history and mission or to view recent press releases please visit our website at http:\/\/www.shopmyexchange.com<\/a> or follow us on Twitter at https:\/\/twitter.com\/ExchangePAO<\/a>.<\/p>\n

###<\/p>\n

Media Notes:<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

For more information or to schedule an interview with an Exchange representative please contact Marisa Wolfe, 214-312-5111 or wolfema@aafes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Follow the Exchange:<\/p>\n

Facebook:\u00a0 www.facebook.com\/shopmyexchange<\/a><\/p>\n

Twitter:\u00a0 https:\/\/twitter.com\/shopmyexchange<\/a><\/p>\n

Instagram: @shopmyexchange<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DALLAS \u2013 The Exchange Credit Program made the beginning of 2018 a little brighter for 40 winners of the annual MILITARY STAR card Your Holiday Bill Is On Us sweepstakes. The Exchange Credit Program paid more than $43,000 toward shoppers\u2019 MILITARY STAR card balances in its fourth annual sweepstakes. Five grand-prize winners had their balances […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":1786,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press_releases"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2018\/04\/10\/service-members-retirees-win-big-with-exchange-credit-programs-your-holiday-bill-is-on-us-sweepstakes\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Service Members, Retirees Win Big With Exchange Credit Program\u2019s Your Holiday Bill Is On Us Sweepstakes","url":"http:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2018\/04\/10\/service-members-retirees-win-big-with-exchange-credit-programs-your-holiday-bill-is-on-us-sweepstakes\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2018\/04\/10\/service-members-retirees-win-big-with-exchange-credit-programs-your-holiday-bill-is-on-us-sweepstakes\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/04\/Your-Holiday-Bill-Is-On-Us-Whiteman1-e1523393742444.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/04\/Your-Holiday-Bill-Is-On-Us-Whiteman1-e1523393742444.jpg"},"articleSection":"Press Releases","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Marisa Conner"}],"creator":["Marisa Conner"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Exchange Newsroom","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2018-04-10T18:42:39Z","datePublished":"2018-04-10T18:42:39Z","dateModified":"2018-04-10T20:55:53Z"},"rendered":"