Veteran's Day Discounts

Here is a list of the local Veteran's Day discount. Check the dates and times as many of these vary. Some of the companies listed below are franchise locations, so it may be a good idea to call ahead of time and make sure that they are a participating location. The majority of the offers listed are for the service member or veteran only, with valid ID. There are a few that are available for dependents as well.

Applebee’s – free meal, Friday, Nov. 11: Last year, Applebee’s served 1,024,000 million free meals to military veterans and active service members. Applebee’s is again offering a free meal to military veterans and active-duty service members on Veteran’s Day, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. There will be 7 entrées to choose from. Military ID or proof of service required.

Chili’s – free meal, Friday, Nov. 11. Chili’s is offering all military veterans past and present their choice of one of 6 meals. This offer is available during business hours on November 11, 2011 at participating Chili’s in the U.S. only. Dine-in from limited menu only; beverages and gratuity not included. Veterans and active duty military simply show proof of military service. Visit their website to find locations.

Golden Corral – Free meal, Monday Nov. 14: The 10th annual Golden Corral Military Appreciation dinner will be held on Monday, November 14, 2011 from 5 pm to 9 pm in all Golden Corral Restaurants nationwide. The free “thank you” dinner is available to any person who has ever served in the United States Military. If you are a veteran, retired, currently serving, in the National Guard or Reserves, you are invited to participate in Golden Corral’s Military Appreciation Monday dinner.

Hooters – Free Meal, Friday, Nov. 11. Hooter’s is serving up a free meal to military veterans all day on Veterans Day. Offer good for all veterans and active duty military personnel. Choose one of the new specialty items on the Hooter’s menu. Offer valid at participating Hooters only; open to all active duty and military veterans with valid military ID or proof of military service. Drink purchase required.

Krispy Kreme – Free doughnut. Available only at participating Krispy Kreme stores. Offer available to all active-duty, retirees & veterans on Friday November 11th. Be sure to call ahead to verify your local Krispy Kreme is participating.

McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurants – free lunch or dinner, Sunday Nov 13, 2011: McCormick & Schmick’s is celebrating their 13th annual Veteran’s Appreciation Event on Sunday, November 13th. Veterans will be able to choose a complimentary lunch or dinner entrée. Veterans must provide proof of military service. Be sure to contact your local McCormick & Schmick’s as this is valid at participating restaurants only. Also, Space is limited and reservations are highly recommended. For more information visit: M&S Veterans Appreciation Event.

Outback Steakhouse – A week of Free Bloomin’ Onions and Cokes Monday Nov. 7 – Friday Nov. 11. Outback Steakhouse is honoring America’s military veterans by offering active duty military and veterans a free Bloomin’ Onion and a Coca-Cola product during the week leading up to Veteran’s Day. This offer is available to Military Personnel who have one of the following forms of identifications: U.S Uniform Services Identification Card, U.S Uniform Services Retired Identification Card, Current Leave and Earnings Statement (LES), DD form 214 Veterans Organization Card (i.e., American Legion and VFW), Photograph in Uniform, Wearing Uniform.

Subway – Free Six Inch Sub. Select Subway locations offer a FREE six inch sub to military veterans on Veteran’s Day. However, Subway restaurants are franchises, so this offer may not be available everywhere. Please call ahead.

Texas Roadhouse – free meal, Friday, Nov. 11. Offer varies by location; our local Texas Roadhouse is offering a free meal from opening until 4pm. Other locations may vary in offer, hours, or availability. Call ahead to your local restaurant for more information.

T.G.I. Friday’s – Buy one get one free Nov 11-14. At participating locations for anyone with an old or current military ID. November 11-14.

Denny’s Veterans Day Appreciation Event, Nov. 11. 2011. Free Grand Slam breakfast to any veteran from. Participating markets include select diners in Maryland, Virginia, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Indiana, Colorado and Washington, DC (from 6:00am – 2:00pm), as well as the following New York locations: Syracuse, Rochester, and Buffalo areas (from 6:00am – 10:00pm). Call ahead to verify, and check with your local Denny’s if you live in another area.
Little Caesars Pizza. Little Caesars is honoring the men and women of the United States armed forces this Veterans Day by providing veterans and active military members with a free Crazy Bread with proof of military status or proof of service at participating stores nationwide.

Spaghetti Warehouse Once in a Lifetime Veteran’s Day Celebration. In honor of US military veterans and the unique once in a lifetime date: 11-11-11, Spaghetti Warehouse is offering lasagna or any original recipe spaghetti entree for only $0.11, with the purchase of a lasagna or any original recipe spaghetti entree at regular price. This offer is open to everyone, not just veterans. Download the coupon at their website.

The Olive Garden, Free entrée. Offer good for veterans and active duty military, on Friday, November 11th during regular business hours. Chose from a special menu; all entrées include freshly baked garlic sticks and choice of soup or salad. Offer good in US and Canada, proof of service required.

Seven-Eleven. 7-Eleven, Inc. is saluting active, veteran and retired U.S. military personnel and their immediate families with free, small Slurpee drinks between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m.


Home Depot and Lowes Coupon Updates
Update: Home Depot and Lowes 10% Military Discount Available Everyday.
Home Depot: The Home Depot(R) is offering all active duty personnel, reservists, retired military, veterans and their families a 10 percent discount off their purchases in honor of Veteran’s Day. The offer is valid on purchases of up to $2,000 for a maximum of $200 and is available at The Home Depot stores, The Home Depot Design Center locations, Yardbirds and EXPO Design Center(R) locations. The 10% discount is available everyday for active duty and retirees, but not all veterans. Home Depot makes this offer available to all veterans on most military holidays. You can also find Home Depot discounts online.

Lowes: Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will offer all active, reserve, honorably discharged, retired military personnel and their immediate family members a 10 percent discount on in-store U.S. purchases made during the Veterans Day holiday. The discount is available Nov. 7 – Nov. 11. The discount is available on in-stock and special order purchases up to $5,000. To qualify, individuals must present a valid military ID or other proof of service. Excluded from the discount are sales via Lowes.com, previous sales, and purchases of services or gift cards. Like Home Depot, Lowes offers this discount daily to active duty military members, but not to veterans. However, they extend the offer to military veterans on military holidays. You can also find exclusive discounts at Lowe’s.com.

Free Park Admissions for Veterans Day
Here's to the Heroes
Anheuser-Busch Parks offers Active Duty Service Members free admission for them and up to 3 dependents to any of their parks once a year. Throughout 2011, members of the military and as many as three direct dependents may enter SeaWorld, Busch Gardens or Sesame Place parks with a single-day complimentary admission. The Here’s to the Heroes program is only available to Any active duty, activated or drilling reservist, or National Guardsman. Eligible parks include: Adventure Island, Busch Gardens (Tampa Bay or Williamsburg), SeaWorld (Orlando, San Diego, or San Antonio), Sesame Place, and Water Country USA. Not valid at Discovery Cove and Aquatica. Christmas Town at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Va. is not included as part of this program. For more information and to register, visit: Free admission summary, and ticket application.

Free Day at National Parks. To honor America’s service men and women, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced that areas managed by the National Park Service would not charge entrance fees for Veteran’s Day weekend – November 11-13, 2011. Over 100 national Parks will be participating in this event.

San Jacinto Monument and Museum (La Porte, TX). November 7-13: Free admission to the theatre, Observation Floor, and (on November 12-13) the special exhibit to all veterans and their families. More info.

Bed and Breakfast for Vets
In the third year of the program, B&Bs for Vets has organized over 485 (and counting) participating Bed and Breakfasts and Inns across the US and Canada which will be offering veterans a free night’s stay on November 10th, the night before Veterans Day. This offer is available to both active duty military members and veterans with ID, but space is limited. Each Inn and B&B has at least one room available for this promotion and reservations must be made directly through the participating Inns and B&Bs. For more information visit B&Bs for Vets.

Free Hugo® Canes for Veterans.
Sam’s Club® locations nationwide will distribute 36,000 Hugo® canes free of charge on November 9th, 10th, 11th, 2011 to U.S. military veterans in need of mobility assistance. Limited quantities available, while supplies last. Sam’s Club® Membership is not required, but proof of military service may be required. For more information, visit HugoSalutes.com.

Other Veteran’s Day Discounts
Here are some additional Veteran’s Day Discounts. In all cases, be sure to provide proper ID or proof of service. In addition, some of these stores are franchises, so verify participation before assuming the discount is in place.

• Grace for Veterans. Free Car wash. Thousands of car washes around the country are offering vets a free car wash on Veterans Day. Find a list at Grace for Veterans, which helped veterans receive 101,537 FREE Washes on Veterans Day in 2010.
The Carwash Barn 1701 E Veterans Memorial Blvd Killeen
Today's Car Wash 541 South Fort Hood St Killeen
Today's Car Wash 514 South Fort Hood St Killeen
Perfect Image Mobile Detailing 212 Villa Rosa Way
• Amazon.com – Discount “Veterans Day Honor” MP3 album download. This downloadable album includes 12 songs as performed by the military bands and ensembles of the U.S. Armed Forces. Visit Amazon on Veteran’s Day to download the album.
• Sport Clips – FREE haircut to active-duty military & veterans. Offer only available at select locations. Please call to verify local participation.
• Big Lots – 10% off your entire purchase with valid military ID.
• Dollar General. 10% discount on entire purchase on Veteran’s Day. Offer good for all active-duty military, retirees, veterans, Guard/Reserve, & immediate family members. The coupon can be found in the store circular, or by asking an employee. Also good online from Nov 11-13, use Coupon Code VETERANSDAY.
• K-Mart. Exclusive Early Veterans Day Sale – Nov. 10th! EXTRA 5-10% off Almost Everything with coupon code VETERANSDAY. Friday & Saturday Specials + EXTRA 5-15% off & FREE Shipping orders of $49 with coupon code HOLIDAY.

Sears Heroes At Home

The Sears Heroes At Home Wish Registry is a program that gives America the chance to say “Thank You” and to provide military families with something extra during the holiday season. In 2010, over 21,000 military families participated in the Sears Heroes at Home program and received more than $4 million in gift card donations from the Sears community.

Registration for 2011 will open this Wednesday, August 31st from 1300 - 1500. Active duty families are selected on a first come, first serve basis and registration goes fast. Each family that is selected will recevie a Sears gift card and donations will be spread evenly across all of the families.

Please visit the Sears Heroes At Home website and FAQs page for additional information.

**Updated the link for 2011 FAQs

**Due to technical problems experienced by some applicants, Sears has rescheduled the registration. This is the message on their Facebook page. Everyone must reapply.

A number of you have expressed concerns over problems encountered with the Wish Registry application process. Given the sacrifices all our military heroes and their families make, it’s important that everyone have an equal opportunity to register. Accordingly, a new registration process will be conducted on Saturday, September 3, 2011 at 1pm CST.

PLEASE NOTE: All prior applications will be discarded. If you were able to submit a registry application yesterday, you must re-apply during the new registration time period in ordered to be considered for the registry. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused but want things to be fair for all families.

To learn more or apply for the 2011 Wish Registry, visit www.Sears.com/HeroesatHome.

Change of Responsibility

Yesterday, the 1SG change-of-responsibility ceremony was held at Gauntlet Field. In a very emotional speech, 1SG Davis said his farewells and handed over the reigns to 1SG Shorey. 1SG Davis and Cynthia will be greatly missed by the Gunfighter family, and we wish them the best in their future en-devours. We are also very excited to welcome 1SG Shorey and his wife Veronica and their 2 children into the company.

Deh-E Mogholan Atmospherics Patrol

3rd Platoon. Security patrol in the town of Deh-E Mogholan, near Combat Operating Post Baraki Barak, Logar province, Afghanistan, Feb. 6.

Cpl. Andrew Galfo

Spc. Jeffrey Hullberg


Cpl. Andrew Galfo (in front)


An Afghan National Police officer gives out cards with emergency contact information to the citizens of Deh-E Mogholan.

1st Lt. Chris Glasser

Afghan National Police Officer

1st Lt. Chris Glasser

Sgt. Elias Solano (front) and Cpl. Jarus Perez

Cpl. Michael Stimpson

Free "I Served" Stickers

The Military Times, in conjunction with Operation Home Front, is currently offering free "I Served" stickers for IRQ, AFG, and Vietnam. You are limited to 1 order per person, but you may choose 1 or all 3 stickers.

Redeployment Brief

We are entering into the exciting part of this deployment, redeployment. This means that our soldiers are getting ready to come home! Being roughly a month out from homecoming, it is time to discuss what redeployment means for our family members. On Tuesday we held our redeployment briefing. Here is some general information that was discussed at the meeting. If you need more detailed information you may contact frg401st@yahoo.com.

• Soldiers have been discussing possible homecoming dates with their families, and a "official" flight window has been given. Please keep in mind that these dates are not set in stone, and you need to be fluid with your planning. For those of you who will be traveling from out of town, it is not advised to purchase your airline tickets just yet. You will need to continue to be flexible through this entire process. Flights can be changed at the last minute, delays can happen, and arrival times can change as our soldiers are in route. We will have several different methods of communication to make sure that everyone receives the most up to date information.


• One of the methods of communication will be via our Facebook page. If you have not done so already please visit our page here and "like" us.


• If you are a family member who is currently on the distribution list you will need to make sure that we have your most up to date contact information. Please send the following information to frg401st@yahoo.com.
• Your Name
• Your Soldier's Name
• Relationship to the Soldier
• Your preferred contact number


• A list of local hotels will be provided soon to our out of town family members. Families who are moving back to the area need to contact the FRG as soon as possible if you have not already done so.


• Approximately a week prior to homecoming day we will be scheduling a family dinner to take place tentatively the night before homecoming. This meeting will be to discuss the details of the homecoming event and hand out maps to the location as well as providing important contact information.

We will be doing our best to make sure that all of our families are kept up to date with the most recent information. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

February Gunfighter Newsletter

GUNFIGHTER NEWSLETTER - feb

Harley Davidson Shirts

Our soldiers recently received a gracious gift from Shenandoah Harley Davidson of Stauton, VA. Harley Davidson t-shirts for everyone! We wanted to give them a very sincere thank you for their support.

January Gunfighter Newsletter

GUNFIGHTER NEWSLETTER - Jan

A Story Before Bed

A Story Before Bedtime allows you to use your own webcam to record audio and video of yourself reading a children's book. This program is great for the military lifestyle and the frequent separations that we face not just from our soldiers but from our families and friends as well.

A Story Before Bedtime is currently offering 200,000 free books to military service members. They have already given away 80,000 books, so sign up now before they run out.

There is also a section for free books that is open to everyone.

CPL Perez Receive Purple Heart

U.S. Army Cpl. Jarus Perez a soldier from Sacramento, Calif., assigned to 3rd Platoon, 401st Military Police Company at Fort Hood, Texas, describes the enemy encounter during which he suffered wounds to U.S. Army Col. Bruce P. Antonia, commander of 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division's Task Force Patriot, from Manchester, Conn., on Forward Operating Base Shank, Jan. 4. A few minutes later, Antonia presented a Purple Heart to Perez, who is attached to TF Patriot from Fort Polk, La. and earned the medal for wounds he suffered during an armed enemy conflict in the Baraki Barak district of Logar province, Jan. 3. (Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Matt Meadows, Task Force Patriot)