The Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award  
Home About Nominate News Room Current Recipients Past Recipients Best Practices
2010 Announcements
Meet the Recipients
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
Logo of the National Committee for the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve
The following organization received the 2008 Freedom Award
Freedom Award TrophyWomble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC
Winston-Salem, NC
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice PLLC Managing Partner, Keith Vaughan, receives the 2008 Freedom Award at a Sept. 18 ceremony in Washington, DC. (Left to right), Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs Thomas F. Hall, Mr. Vaughan, Director, Air National Guard, Lieutenant General Craig R. McKinley, and Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Dr. David S. C. Chu. Photo by Jason Brunson
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice PLLC Managing Partner, Keith Vaughan, receives the 2008 Freedom Award at a Sept. 18 ceremony in Washington, DC. (Left to right), Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs Thomas F. Hall, Mr. Vaughan, Director, Air National Guard, Lieutenant General Craig R. McKinley, and Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Dr. David S. C. Chu. (Photo by Jason Brunson)
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge & Rice, PLLS, headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is a 2008 recipient of the Secretary of Defense Freedom Award in the Large Business category. A full-service business law firm, Womble Carlyle is comprised of over 530 lawyers in eleven offices along the east coast. The firm provides differential pay and full benefits during periods of military deployment. Additionally, Guard and Reserve employees are offered 10 days annually for military training and receive credit towards their annual community service hours for their military service. Members of the firm stay in touch with activated employees, providing regular updates so they are current on company business when they return from mobilization tours. To ensure all employees are aware and familiar with the firm’s Military Leave Policy, a copy is made available on Womblenet, the firm’s internal Web. Womblenet is also used to feature photos and articles on Guard and Reserve employees. Deployed employees receive care packages throughout their service and welcome-home celebrations when they return. Upon the return of a paralegal who served a year in Iraq, the firm paid for a three-day vacation in the North Carolina mountains for him and his wife. The firm has initiated an active Family Support Group that maintains contact and cares for the needs of families of mobilized service members. Womble Carlyle also makes their video conference equipment regularly available to family members to connect with their deployed loved ones. In 2007, the firm held the “When Duty Calls” campaign, its largest pro bono effort of the year, to help disabled military veterans receive the benefits to which they are entitled. The firm aggressively seeks to employ Guard and Reservists and retired military personnel, preferred for their leadership skills.
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice PLLC, with the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. Photo by Brien Aho
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice PLLC, with the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. (Photo by Brien Aho)
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice PLLC Managing Partner, Keith Vaughan with Deputy Secretary of Defense, Gordon England. Photo by MC2 Molly Burgess
Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice PLLC Managing Partner, Keith Vaughan with Deputy Secretary of Defense, Gordon England. (Photo by MC2 Molly Burgess)
 
The Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award
1555 Wilson Blvd., Suite 319, Arlington, VA 22209
1-800-336-4590
Enjoying Our Site?
Let Us Know!