The All American Beef Battalion is recruiting patriots who want to help boost the morale of U.S. military personnel at home and abroad by feeding each one of them a thick, juicy American ribeye beef steak.

The Beef Battalion is the brainchild of Bill Broadie, a fourth-generation cattleman and Vietnam War veteran from Ashland, Kan. He launched the effort about nine months ago because he understands that long and repeated troop deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other war zones around the world inevitably affects troop morale.

Broadie, who served in the 3rd Marine Division in Vietnam in 1967 and barely survived a near-mortal leg wound, explains that “I know what it’s like to return from an unpopular war and not feel appreciated. I didn’t want it to happen to our troops today.”

“It’s not just the steaks that will boost morale for our troops,” the “old” marine and current fieldman for Superior Livestock Auction explains. “It’s knowing that Americans care about them, their families, their missions and their sacrifices.”

Broadie’s vision is nearing fruition. He’s got a committed board of directors. He’s got an informational website—www.steaksfortroops.com—where donations can be made. The money is flowing in and the red tape is about to be overcome.

The website explains it best. It says, “Our vision is to support the troops fighting the war on terror while promoting American Beef. We can do this as an industry by having steak feeds for deploying troops and at their homecoming. As we advance into this mission we hope to take the cookouts directly to the combat zones wherever they may be.

“As our experience grows we believe there are many avenues we can take to support the troops and promote American Beef. There are many ways we can help the troops, not only by feeding them, but also by helping their families or by helping the families of those killed in combat. To do this we have a dream... its a mission bigger than any individual, but not bigger than our industry.

“We ask for your help to support these young men and women who offer so much for all of us.”

The All American Beef Battalion got off the ground so swiftly thanks to the assistance and support from some key military brass and then right on up through Kansas Senator Pat Roberts, former Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns, and ending with the Commander in Chief—President Bush.

“I don’t know precisely what they each did,” Broadie acknowledges. “But, they facilitated what we’re doing somehow because we formed our tax-exempt corporation and got it approved in 35 days. That’s unheard of speed through the government bureaucracy.”

Some details are still being worked on in the procurement and distribution of the steaks, particularly overseas. “We’re still working on finding an approved facility for interstate shipping. We’re looking for commercial sources of standard quality steaks. And, we’re working with the military on the overseas distribution of our steaks. Gradually, it’s all coming together,” Broadie says.

As for feeding steaks to troops getting ready to deploy, or those coming home, Broadie says the Beef Battalion will rely on local beef producers to coordinate their steak feeds with the specific military units. “We’re sure finding local volunteers will be the least of our problems,” he says.

In fact, Broadie says it look as if the first steak feed for returning troops will take place in Kansas in April.

The Battalion also wants to identify military families who are struggling with the loss of a loved one or struggling financially. For those folks, the Battalion would like to provide them with Beef Debit Cards they can use to purchase their own steaks.

And the end goal is to feed a steak annually to every deployed troop in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines.