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Sometimes the only thing that calms Tanya Williams’ 5-year-old daughter is a phone call from her “daddy.” Chris Williams, a sergeant in the United States Army, is currently serving overseas. This is his third deployment to Iraq, and Tanya says the VFW Operation Uplink™ Free Call Days help her family adjust to the sudden absence of a father and husband.
“We cherish the phone calls because that is all we have right now. We listen to their voices and know that they are okay. It truly helps me sleep at night when I get to talk to him,” says Williams. “Sometimes it seems like no one understands that it is not just the soldiers going through this, it is the family members back home as well.”
Tanya and Chris have two children; Aryiana, 5 and Dillon, 8. Tanya says because Aryiana is so young, she doesn’t fully understand why her father isn’t home. But, after talking with him thanks to Free Call Days, she’s able to cope.
Williams says, “The thing I like the most about the free calls is that it shows that there are people who understand how much the phone calls mean to us all.”
Chris Williams has served in the U.S. Army for seven years and plans to reenlist while overseas. But while he’s gone, his family counts on the Free Call Days to help them sleep better at night.
VFW Operation Uplink makes it possible for troops to call home—at no charge—from Internet cafes throughout Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait. | 
