Fighting French Relief Arm band and poem

The Fighting French Relief Committee was formed in New York early in World War II, with the purpose of providing aid and comforts to French soldiers and resistance fighters. The committee was part of the National War Fund and local Community Chests.

The National War Fund was a philanthropic federation with three aims: (1) to determine the nature and the extent of the war-related needs; (2) to see that everybody had a chance to contribute to the funds required; and (3) to channel the sums raised for its member agencies.

The Community Chests in the United States and Canada were fund-raising organizations that collected money from local businesses and workers and distributed it to community projects. The first Community Chest, "Community Fund," was founded in 1913 in Cleveland, Ohio by the Federation for Charity and Philanthropy. The number of Community Chest organizations increased from 39 to 353 between 1919 and 1929, and surpassed 1,000 by 1948. By 1963, and after several name changes, the term "United Way" was adopted in the United States, whereas the United Way/Centraide name was not adopted in Canada until 1973-4.