President George W. Bush recently signed a proclamation designating Sept. 9-15 National Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Week. The Department of Defense will open the nomination season for the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award on November 1, 2007. National Guard and Reserve members and their families are eligible and encouraged to nominate employers who have gone above and beyond in their support of military employees. Nominations will be accepted at www.esgr.mil from November 1, 2007 to January 21, 2008. (File Photo)

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Guard, Reserve on fast track

DOVER INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY, Del. -- Flying the colors of the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, driver Kerry Earnhardt races here Sept. 25 during the NASCAR Busch Series Race. ESGR is a Defense Department volunteer organization that provides free education and consultation for employers of guardsmen and reservists. Its goal is to support America's employers who share their employees with the nation to ensure national security. Mr. Earnhardt finished 23rd. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jason Tudor)

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NOMINATION SEASON OPENS FOR 2008 SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FREEDOM AWARD

Published Oct. 31, 2007
By ESGR
National ESGR

ARLINGTON, Va. -- National Guard and Reserve members and families encouraged
to nominate supportive employers

ARLINGTON, Va. - The Department of Defense will open the nomination season for the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award on November 1, 2007. National Guard and Reserve members and their families are eligible and encouraged to nominate employers who have gone above and beyond in their support of military employees. Nominations will be accepted at www.esgr.mil from November 1, 2007 to January 21, 2008. The Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award is the U.S. government's highest recognition given to outstanding employers.

The 2008 recipients will be announced in the spring and honored in Washington, D.C. at the 13th annual Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award ceremony on September 18, 2008. Recipients of the 2007 Freedom Award met with President George W. Bush, Vice President Richard Cheney and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates; Vice Chairman of the Joints Chiefs of Staff Gen. James Cartwright presented the awards at a ceremony attended by members of Congress and senior military officials.

Almost one-half of the U.S. military is comprised of the National Guard and Reserve. The Department of Defense shares these citizen warriors with their civilian employers, many of whom provide significant support to their employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve. Past recipients of the Freedom Award have provided full salary, continuation of benefits, care packages and even home and lawn care to families of employees fulfilling their military obligation.

The Freedom Award was instituted in 1996 under the auspices of the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) to recognize exceptional support from the employer community.

ESGR is a Department of Defense agency established in 1972. Its mission is to gain and maintain employer support for Guard and Reserve service by recognizing outstanding support, increasing awareness of the law, and resolving conflicts through informal mediation.

Previous Freedom Award recipients have included such large businesses as General Motors, Starbucks, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Sears, General Electric, DuPont, and United Parcel Service; state and local governments, including the State of Tennessee and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; and small businesses including the family owned Augustine & Sons farm in Rose Hill, IA.

Guard, Reserve on fast track