TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- In a ceremony held at the Tinker Exchange July 22, a dividend check for $811,326 was presented to Tinker Air Force Base leadership from the Army & Air Force Exchange Service.
The check, presented by Tinker BX General Manager Charles Eaves, will go to the 72nd Force Support Squadron, whose mission is to provide exceptional combat readiness through quality of life and mission enhancing programs. The 72nd FSS owns facilities including base gyms, child development centers, recreational facilities, among others, and hosts a number of morale events throughout the year.
“The dividends to the community are the heart of the Exchange mission,” said Tinker BX General Manager Charles Eaves. “We don’t have shareholders; our focus is maximizing support to the military community. This is part of your Exchange benefit: when you shop with us, you’re not just getting tax-free savings and military-exclusive pricing but you’re also helping support Warfighters and families.”
In total, 100% of Exchange earnings are re-invested in military communities; 60% goes to quality-of-life programs such as those provided by the 72nd FSS. The remaining 40% goes to improving the shopping experience through capital reinvestment, new technology and added services.
In 2023, the Tinker Exchange renovated the Express Station on Patrol Road, adding two new restaurants. The main exchange added two new stores and renovated the dry cleaning and alteration shops.
The opportunities for the Exchange to give back to Team Tinker increased in 2021, when the Department of Defense announced that Civilian employees, both appropriated and nonappropriated fund, would be granted shopping privileges at the Exchange.
In the last 10 years, the Exchange benefit has provided $3.7 billion in earnings that support the military communities worldwide, including through contributions to critical military Quality-of-Life programs.
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service was originally founded July 25, 1895, when the War Department issued General Orders No. 46, directing commanders at every post to establish a post exchange wherever practicable. Their mission is to go where Warfighters and their families go to provide quality, tax-free merchandise and goods and services military communities need, regardless of location, risk or challenge.