Logistics companies honor veterans, active-duty military with services, celebrations

Logistics and transportation companies UPS, FedEx Corp. and Werner Enterprises marked the Veterans Day holiday with a host of programs and services designed to honor veterans as well as active-duty military members.

Mississauga, Ontario-based UPS Canada launched its annual Wishes Delivered campaign November 8, ahead of the country's November 11 Remembrance Day holiday. The global program supports individuals who are making a positive impact on their communities, and this year UPS Canada kicked off the program by collaborating with Wounded Warriors Canada (WWC) to help Sergeant Matthew Bradley in his efforts to support veterans through his Veterans Business Resource Group (BRG).

Bradley is a health and safety supervisor at UPS Canada as well as a veteran of the Canadian Forces. He says he founded the Veterans BRG to help veterans find employment with companies like UPS and to provide resources and recognition to those who have served. With the help of Wishes Delivered, Wounded Warriors Canada and the National Service Dogs (NSD) program, Bradley matched a local veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with a service a dog as part of the PTSD Service Dog Program, UPS said.

"For UPS and the Veterans BRG to join forces with Wounded Warriors Canada and give back in some way, it means the world to me," said Bradley, noting that UPS delivered food and toys for the service dog to the veteran's home and also donated $5,000 to help fund training for WWC's next service dog.

Also on November 8, Omaha, Neb.-based Werner Enterprises honored military veterans and their families with Veterans Day ceremonies at its global headquarters in Omaha as well as at its terminals in Joliet, Ill., and Denver. Werner received the 2018 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award for its support of National Guard and Reserve members; military veterans and their spouses comprise 20 percent of Werner's global workforce, the company said.

"We will continue our mission to actively support all military veterans, veteran spouses and their families every day within our organization and our communities," company President and CEO Derek Leathers said in a statement about the Veterans Day events.

Also in conjunction with the Veterans Day holiday, FedEx Corp. announced its support for the Trees for Troops program, which kicks off November 13 in Thorntown, Ind. FedEx volunteers will prepare to ship 250 Christmas trees to service members stationed overseas. The trees were donated by members of the Indiana Christmas Tree Growers Association and will be delivered by FedEx Express to service members stationed in Guam and Puerto Rico.

In the second phase of the program, FedEx Freight will deliver more than 17,000 fresh-cut trees to 65 military bases in late November and early December.