Subject: THE FIRST LADY AND DR. JILL BIDEN CELEBRATE THE 5TH ANNIVERSARY OF JOINING FORCES
From: White House Press Office<[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 2016 15:10:05 -0500

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the First Lady 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 28, 2016 

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*THE FIRST LADY AND DR. JILL BIDEN CELEBRATE THE 5TH ANNIVERSARY OF JOINING FORCES*

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"Next week, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden will celebrate the 5th anniversary of their Joining Forces [ joiningforces.gov ] initiative. In 2011, the First Lady and Dr. Biden launched Joining Forces, a nationwide initiative that calls on all Americans  in both the public and private sectors - to rally around service members, veterans, and their families and support them through employment, education and wellness opportunities. "

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"In addition, throughout the week of May 2nd, Joining Forces will be sharing a digital series called the Stories of Joining Forces. This series will showcase short stories from servicemembers, spouses, children, parents, and caregivers across the military community. You can follow along on the First Ladys Medium page HERE [ http://www.medium.com/@FLOTUS ] and share your own story using #JoiningForces*.*"

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*_Monday, May 2nd _*

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*NBC * 8:00 PM ET * The First Lady and Dr. Biden will kick off the 5th anniversary of their Joining Forces initiative on NBC's "The Voice". They will join Carson Daly, Christina Aguilera, Pharrell Williams, Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, and an audience filled with active duty and retired service members and military families for The Top 10 of "The Voice". 

"The Voice will air at 8:00PM ET on NBC. Check your local listings for other air times. "

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*_Tuesday, May 3rd _*

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*Fort Leonard Wood, MO*The First Lady and Dr. Biden will visit service members and their families stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, which is one of the largest training bases in the U.S. Army. During their visit, Mrs. Obama and Dr. Biden will be joined by LeVar Burton, host of Reading Rainbow, for a story time event with students on-base at Thayer Elementary School. 

"This event will be open press, but space is limited. Members of the media who wish to cover this event must RSVP to Ryan Vilfer at [email-masked] by Monday, May 2, 2016 at 5:00PM ET. Please include full legal name, social security number, date of birth, country of citizenship, current city/state of residence and gender in the request."

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*CBS * 8:00 PM ET*The First Lady will appear in an episode of The CBS Television Networks "NCIS".* *

"NCIS will air at 8:00PM ET/ 7:00PM CT on The CBS Television Network. Check your local listings for other air times."

*_Thursday, May 5th_*

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*The White House * 10:00 AM ET*The First Lady and Dr. Biden will host an employment event announcing commitments from more than 50 companies that have pledged to hire and train veterans and military spouses. 

The commitments announced will come from companies ranging from tech startups to some of the largest manufacturers in the world, and represent careers in the fields of aerospace, telecommunications, tech, financial services, and manufacturing.

This announcement is part of the ongoing employment commitment [ https://www.whitehouse.gov/joiningforces/issues/employment ] of Joining Forces. Over the past five years, Joining Forces has worked hand-in-hand with the private sector to expand employment and career development opportunities for veterans and military spouses.

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"This event will be open press and available via livestream at www.whitehouse.gov/live [ http://www.whitehouse.gov/live ]. Members of the media who wish to cover this event must RSVP to [email-masked] by Wednesday, May 4, 2016 at 5:00PM ET. Press who do not have a White House hard pass must include their full legal name, social security number, date of birth, country of citizenship, current city/state of residence and gender in their request."

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*Joint-Base Andrews * 6:00 PM ET*The First Lady and Dr. Biden, joined by President Obama and Vice President Biden, will kick off a USO comedy show celebrating Military Appreciation Month as well as the 5th anniversary of Joining Forces and the 75th anniversary of the USO.

The event, " A Celebration of Service," will include nearly 1,500 servicemembers and their families for an evening of comedy hosted by USO tour veteran Jon Stewart, and featuring performances by comedians David Letterman, Judd Apatow, Mike Birbiglia, Kristen Schaal, Hasan Minhaj, John Mulaney, and Jeff Ross among others. ""

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In addition, the USO will host live viewing parties for active duty service members at USO centers on domestic and overseas bases.

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"This event will be livestreamed at whitehouse.gov/live and opened to pre-credential media, but space is limited. Please RSVP with full name and outlet to Oname Thompson at (703) 908-6471 [email-masked] by 3:00PM ET on Monday, May 2, 2016. Media who RSVP will receive confirmation of the check-in location and time as well as background materials. "

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*_Sunday, May 8th _*

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*Orlando, FL *The First Lady will join Prince Harry to celebrate the Opening Ceremonies of the 2016 Invictus Games at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. The Invictus Games is an international adaptive sporting event for wounded, injured, and ill service members and veterans. More than 500 competitors will participate in these games, representing 14 countries in 10 adaptive sporting events.

In the lead up to the 2016 Invictus Games, this past October [ https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/10/22/first-lady-michelle-obama-dr-biden-and-prince-harry-support-joining ] the First Lady, Dr. Biden, and Prince Harry met with wounded servicemen and women in rehabilitation programs and watched adaptive sporting events at Fort Belvoir in Virginia. In 2014, Dr. Biden led a Presidential Delegation [ http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2014/09/14/dr-jill-biden-cheers-team-usa-invictus-games-london ] to the inaugural Invictus Games in London, UK. This year, Dr. Biden will attend the closing ceremonies on Thursday, May 12th.

"The Invictus Games Opening Ceremony will be broadcasted live on ESPN2Sunday, May 8th from 8:00-10:00PM ET. This event will be available to pre-credentialed media. Please RSVP to Brian Walton at [email-masked] and Dan Ronayne at [email-masked] by Friday, April 29 at 6:00PM ET. "

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