Charles Callen, left, was named Futon's 2011 Veteran of the Year.  Callen is shown receving the award from the 2010 Veteran of the Year, John McGraw.  Each fall, the Fulton Veterans Council chooses a Veteran of the Year from among the membership of several Fulton veteran's organizations.  Callen will serve as the grand marshall for this  year's Fulton Memorial Day Salute.

Pictured are Frank Kehoe, Fulton Veterans Council, left, Larry Macner, VFW Representative and Donna Kestner, Director of Veterans Services.

The Fulton Memorial Day Salute Committee is proud to announce again this year that it will participate with the VFW's Operation Uplink program.  Operation Uplink was launched in 1996 to connect active-duty troops and hospitalized veterans with their loved ones. The program uses contributions from supporters to purchase phone time for the men and women who are serving, or have served, as well as hospitalized veterans.

Initially, VFW Operation Uplink exclusively distributed phone cards. In 2006, in response to growing demand, VFW began hosting “Free Call Days.”   Now, every month of the year, troops can call home, at no charge, from Internet cafes throughout Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait. Millions of minutes already have been provided.

Traditional phone cards are still being provided at military hospitals and VA facilities, as well as to troops in regions not served by the “Free Call Days.”

Since the program began, the Veterans of Foreign Wars has provided deployed service members and hospitalized veterans with millions of minutes of free phone time. The unique program is part of VFW National Military Services, which includes other initiatives that boost morale, aid struggling military families and encourage troop support.

The Fulton Memorial Day Salute Committee will be collecting money for this organization as part of its advertising booklet, as well as on site at the Salute.  For more information on Operation Uplink, go to www.vfw.org.    The Fulton Memorial Day Salute will be held on Friday May 25 and Saturday May 26  at the Fulton Community Center.