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The Call of Duty donation announced its largest private donation ever, a $2.5 million gift from Citadel founder and CEO Kenneth C. Griffin.
The Call of Duty Endowment finds high-paying jobs for military veterans and celebrates Military Appreciation Month and its 15th anniversary with the donation and a new in-game challenge and pack.
Griffin's donation will support job placement for more than 4,000 veterans. The donation also launches the Call of Duty Endowment Knight Recon: Tracer Pack in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, Call of Duty: Warzone, the Call of Duty Warzone Mobile and the Call of Duty Mobile Regulator Pack to raise additional funding for employment for veterans.
You assist veterans
The Endowment is launching a new in-game challenge called U Assist Veterans, presented by USAA, which will allocate $1 million toward veterans' employment.
The donation continues Griffin's longstanding support of organizations that support military personnel, veterans and their families. The endowment's rigorous standards and effectiveness in placing veterans in high-quality positions complement the strategic approach of Griffin Catalyst, Mr. Griffin's grassroots initiative, which partners with high-impact organizations to deliver innovative, data-driven and timely promote solutions to critical challenges. .
“We would like to thank Ken and Griffin Catalyst for their generous donation,” said Helene Imperiale, senior director of the Call of Duty Endowment, in a statement. “The Endowment is proud to partner with nonprofits that are most effective at providing the services veterans need most in their job search, and we are honored to have our work recognized by the team from Griffin Catalyst.”
Since its inception, the Endowment has helped more than 125,000 veterans find jobs, creating more than $7 billion in economic value for veterans and their families through salaries.
“I am proud to support our military veterans who have given years of their lives to defend America and our freedoms. These men and women represent the very best of our country's enduring values,” Griffin said in a statement. “The Call of Duty Endowment honors the service of these heroes by helping them apply their capabilities to outstanding private sector jobs.”
Call of Duty Endowment Knight Recon: Tracer Pack and the Call of Duty Endowment (CODE) Regulator Pack
The donation also launched the Call of Duty Endowment Knight Recon: Tracer Pack in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, Call of Duty: Warzone and Call of Duty Warzone Mobile. The pack includes two operator skins, two tracer weapon blueprints and much more. The Call of Duty Endowment (CODE) Knight Recon: Tracer Pack is now available on PlayStation, Xbox, Steam, iOS and Android.
And as a special thank you for their service, the endowment and USAA are offering free Call of Duty Endowment Knight Recon: Tracer Packs to U.S. military personnel and veterans.
The donation also launched the first donation pack on Call of Duty: Mobile, the Call of Duty Endowment (CODE) Regulator Pack. This pack features the Endowment's pioneering female operator, Splicer, and also includes a vehicle skin, calling card and more.
100% of net proceeds from these in-game packages will support the Endowment's mission to place veterans in high-quality jobs.
From May 8 to May 22, players can take on the challenge to help U.S. and British military veterans in their career search while earning in-game rewards. Throughout the Challenge, Activision Blizzard will allocate funds as part of a total $1 million donation that Activision Blizzard has made to the Endowment to help place veterans in high-quality jobs.
“2024 marks the Endowment's 15th anniversary, and we are making this one of the largest military appreciation months ever,” Imperiale said. “We aim to help more than 15,500 veterans find jobs through our fundraising this year, and we know our community will rise to the challenge and love getting those UAVs in and playing with the Knight Recon package .”
In 2023, the average cost for any grantee to place a veteran in a job was $618, about 1/13th the cost per placement of the U.S. government's efforts.