Norman Rockwell’s painting “Freedom from want” is perhaps the most iconic image of our national Thanksgiving holiday — a proud mom and pop presenting an enormous turkey to the head of a table of scrubbed family members. I had forgotten about this painting until listening to drive-time radio on my way to work and had not remembered it as anything other than an innocuous image of Americana. Read the rest of this entry »

This Thursday is Veteran’s Day. Throughout the week, Microsoft will be sharing unique and inspirational stories about United States military veterans and the organizations who serve them through the Microsoft Citizenship website, the Unlimited Potential Blog and its Citizenship Facebook page. 

“As we see greater numbers of men and women returning from active duty, we know that these individuals and their families need our support, expertise and resources to help them transition successfully back to civilian life,” said Dan Bross, Microsoft’s Senior Director of Corporate Citizenship.

Through its citizenship efforts, Microsoft has a longstanding commitment to provide technology access and training to individuals and communities around the world.

In March the company launched the Elevate America veterans initiative to help prepare our country’s veterans and their spouses with the skills and resources they need to be successful in today’s workplace. As a part of this work, Microsoft has convened a coalition of public, private and nonprofit organizations around the country to contribute expertise, cash and in-kind resources to give U.S. veterans and their spouses the skills and resources they need such as career counseling, technology skills training, job placement and additional support services like childcare, transportation, and housing. On Wednesday, Microsoft will announce the nonprofit recipients around the country who will receive the cash and software grants from Microsoft to support these services.

Microsoft also has a long history of supporting the military and veteran community as an employer. The company’s Military2Microsoft program assists U.S. veterans and those serving in the National Guard and Reserve transition into the civilian workforce and find job opportunities within Microsoft. The Military2Microsoft program incorporates a variety of resources to help make the job search experience easier for military talent. This includes the recent launch of We Still Serve, a site that connects transitioning military members to Microsoft’s employee-initiated group of veterans and helps match candidates to job opportunities within the company.

We encourage you to visit the Microsoft Citizenship website each day this week to read stories, get inspired and honor the men and women who have selflessly served. MSN is helping to raise awareness of the resources provided by Microsoft and its partners. You can also follow Microsoft on Twitter @msftcitizenship.

Said Bross, “We are proud to recognize the selfless contribution of our veterans.  We hope, in a small way that we’re making a positive contribution to helping them make the transition to civilian life.”