Old Navy, the USO and VH1's Divas want to help service men and women phone home this holiday season.
Old Navy, the exclusive retail apparel sponsor of The USO Presents VH1 Divas Salute The Troops concert special on Dec. 5, is asking its customers to purchase phone minutes that in turn will be donated to the United Service Organizations' Phone Home Operation.
From Dec. 3-9, Old Navy and its customers will aim to raise 1 million minutes for USO Operation Phone Home, which provides the time to U.S. troops stationed around the world to help them stay connected to their loved ones at home. Minutes can be bought in-store or online at OldNavy.com during the weeklong challenge: 100- minutes for $5, with the retailer making a like donation for every in-store check-in. Additionally, Old Navy Facebook fans can donate even more minutes during the week just by "checking-in" to an Old Navy store with their mobile device and claiming a Facebook charity deal.
"Old Navy understands the importance of family," said Tom Wyatt, president of Old Navy, in announcing the initiative. "Together with our customers, we hope that supporting USO Operation Phone Home with one million minutes will provide comfort, hope and joy over this holiday season for our troops overseas and their families at home."
"When we learned from the USO that staying connected to their families is a main issue for service men and women stationed overseas, we took the opportunity to bring the USO and Old Navy's national footprint together to build a great promotion tied to this year's Divas show," said Mark McIntire, senior vice president of integrated marketing, at VH1. "We are excited to play a part in Old Navy's initiative to bring U.S. troops and their families closer this holiday season."
Debuting Dec. 5 at 9 p.m. (ET/PT) on VH1 in the U.S. and internationally via the Armed Forces Network, The USO Presents VH1 Divas Salute The Troops special will showcase performances by Kary Perry, Sugarland, Keri Hilson, Nicki Minaj and Grace Potter & The Nocturnals from Marine Corps. Air Station Miramar in San Diego. Paramore will perform for troops deployed in the Middle East.
Hosted by comedienne Kathy Griffin, the show will also feature Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart, who will perform with Potter and The Nocturnals, comedian Jeffrey Ross, model Marisa Miller and "Snooki" and "The Situation" from MTVN sister service hit reality series, Jersey Shore.
