Operation Gratitude and VidDay Launch Nationwide Campaign to Break a World Record for America's 250th Anniversary

Americans Asked to Record a 10-Second Thank You to Service Members, Veterans, and First Responders as Part of "Make History. Say Thank You."

LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, July 2, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Operation Gratitude, the nation's leading volunteer-powered nonprofit dedicated to expressing gratitude to the military and first responder communities, has partnered with VidDay, a group video platform trusted by millions around the world to bring people together through video messages and shared tributes, to launch "Make History. Say Thank You." — a nationwide campaign inviting Americans to record a short video of thanks to those who serve, while attempting to break a world record in the process.

Beginning July 1 and continuing through July 31, 2026, with July 4th serving as the campaign's national day of activation, Americans are being asked to record a 10-second video saying thank you to service members, veterans, and first responders. Submissions will be collected through VidDay's dedicated campaign page, with no app download required.

The campaign honors the more than 165,000 U.S. troops currently deployed around the world, many of whom will not be home to mark this historic anniversary; the 17.9 million living American veterans who have served this country; and the more than one million first responders who protect communities across the country every day.

The campaign is also attempting to break the world record for the largest online video album of people saying "thank you," currently standing at 5,735 submissions. Organizers hope America's 250th anniversary will be the occasion on which that record is claimed for the United States.

“At Operation Gratitude, we believe gratitude should be more than something we feel. It should be something we do. As America marks 250 years, this campaign gives every American a simple way to take ten seconds and say thank you to the service members, veterans, and first responders who serve and protect us every day. My hope is that every person who sees these messages feels what we want them to feel: that their service is seen, their sacrifice matters, and their country is grateful. We are so proud to partner with VidDay to help make that possible.” — Emily Schwartz, President and Executive Director, Operation Gratitude

"This campaign makes it easy for every American to take a moment, look into a camera, and say thank you. VidDay is honored to help Operation Gratitude turn those individual video messages into a powerful shared video tribute for service members, veterans, first responders, and the families who stand beside them." — Denis Devigne, Co-Founder, VidDay

Participants who want to carry their gratitude even further will also be invited to make a gift to Operation Gratitude, helping send Care Packages to deployed service members, veterans, and first responders. The video says thank you. A gift helps deliver that gratitude directly into the hands of someone who has served.

To record a thank-you video and learn more about the campaign, visit www.vidday.com/operation-gratitude. Follow along and share using #SayThankYouAmerica.

About Operation Gratitude
Operation Gratitude was founded in 2003 on a simple belief: that gratitude should be something you can hold in your hands. For more than two decades, the organization has mobilized volunteers across the country to hand-assemble care packages, write personal letters, and deliver meaningful acts of thanks directly to deployed troops, veterans, and first responders — more than 4.5 million care packages in total. Operation Gratitude is also the original creator of the Battalion Buddy, a hand-filled bear sent to military children with a deployed parent; nearly 200,000 have been delivered since the program's launch in 2011. A nationwide nonprofit committed to ensuring every person who serves this country feels seen, supported, and genuinely appreciated, Operation Gratitude is one of the largest hands-on volunteer organizations in America. To learn more or find a volunteer opportunity near you, visit OperationGratitude.com.


About VidDay

VidDay is an online group video platform trusted by millions of people to bring friends, families, teams, schools, and communities together through video. With one simple shareable link, VidDay makes it easy to collect video messages and photos from any device, with no app download or editing experience required. VidDay is used to create birthday video gifts, employee recognition and farewell videos, milestone tributes, school celebrations, and large-scale community video campaigns that turn individual messages into meaningful shared video experiences. Learn more at www.vidday.com.

Emily Schwartz
Operation Gratitude
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