DFW International Airport’s Rest And Recuperation Initiative Earns Distinguished National Award

DFW INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, November 8, 2005 –Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge has awarded DFW International Airport’s Rest and Recuperation (R&R) Program, known as Welcome Home, the George Washington Honor Medal. This prestigious honor is part of Freedoms Foundation’s National Awards Program. Recognition is reserved for entities that exemplify the essence of the National Awards by promoting an understanding and appreciation for America’s rich heritage and unique freedoms. 

DFW officials will be recognized Thursday, November 10 at the Freedoms Foundation Dinner at Royal Oaks Country Club in Dallas. The award recognizes the freedoms that are celebrated on a daily basis at DFW. Airport staff and community volunteers, led by the North Texas Commission, have greeted more than 190,000 soldiers on 772 flights since the program’s inception in July 2004. These citizens have donated time, money and supplies as the troops travel through on their way to or from DFW. 

“We are grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of this marvelous program to welcome home our nation's heroes and to work with our fellow citizens from across all of North Texas who selflessly serve those who serve us all,” said Jim Crites, DFW executive vice president of Operations. “The Welcome Home Program could just as well be named the Reuniting and Reinvigoration Program because of its impact on our brave soldiers. They are not only reunited with their families, but also with their community. Likewise, it is reinvigorating for both soldiers and community volunteers, representing our entire nation, as they come together in an outpouring of thanksgiving and appreciation of one another."

DFW’s R&R Program was selected as a National Award winner based on quality and content. Recipients chosen become part of a historically prestigious group of American citizens that work to advance the American ideal. Previous National Award recipients total more than 56,000 individuals from across the nation ranging from young to old. 

About Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge

Since 1949, the Freedoms Foundation's National Awards Program has honored exceptional work. Freedoms Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to communicating to young people the principles upon which the United States of America was founded and the balance of rights and responsibilities of citizens in today’s increasingly diverse society. The Foundation is located approximately 25 miles west of Philadelphia on a 105-acre campus which once served as part of the encampment for General Washington and his Continental Army. Freedoms Foundation has an annual budget of approximately $2.5 million. The Foundation’s total endowment stands at $5.9 million.