The Combined Federal Campaign

The CFC is the only national authorized workplace giving drive of employees in the Federal workplace for charitable organizations. The Combined Federal Campaign of the National Capital Area (CFCNCA) is the local campaign for Federal employees in the Washington, D.C. area. The campaign is conducted from September 1st to December 15th annually.

In 2011, the campaign generated more than $64.5 million in pledges for people and communities in need through the collective contributions of more than 121,000 civilian and military Federal employees. Critical to this success were the more than 35,000 Federal campaign workers who spent time running the campaign.

You can donate as little as $1 a pay period or you can donate as much as you like. While the military does track to make sure all are given an opportunity to give to the CFC, no one is obligated to give.

Yes. You may choose any of the charities listed in the 2012 Catalog of Caring to receive your gift or check out the charities in the DCMilitary.com CFC Guide to Charities. You can designate your gift by writing the appropriate 5-digit charity code in the boxes on the Pledge Form. The 5-digit codes can be found in the 2012 Catalog of Caring or online at www.cfcnca.org. In the catalog, there is a brief description of each organization followed by the percentage of its total revenue used for its administrative and fundraising expenses and other pertinent information. If you designate your contribution, only the charity(ies) you select receives your gift. Note that only charities listed in the 2012 Catalog of Caring can receive designations.

By leaving all the designation boxes blank, your gift will be considered an "undesignated gift." In accordance with CFC regulations, (see CFC Regulations, 5CFR Part 950 for details at www.opm.gov/cfc.), all undesignated funds will be distributed to those organizations in the campaign that have received designated contributions, in the same proportion as they received those designations. For example, if a charity received 1 percent of the total designated contributions to the CFCNCA campaign, it would receive 1 percent of the total undesignated contributions. Organizations that do not receive designated dollars cannot receive any undesignated donations.

Take a look below at the charities you could be helping with as little as $1 a pay period. Remember that in the toughest of times, the need is even greater for those less fortunate. Make your pledge today.