In connection with Veterans Day 2014, AT&T and FleishmanHillard told a heartfelt story, via video, about a Jacksonville, Fla., AT&T employee and retired veteran who makes funerary urns for families of military veterans who have died. The result was a video story that was not only beautifully conceived, shot, and edited but also emotionally gripping.
The genesis of the story dates to an article that MSgt USAF (Ret.) Mike Delpizzo had read about a veteran's cremated remains being buried in a cardboard box at the nearby national cemetery because the family couldn't afford anything else in which to bury the remains. That sparked Mike to make a difference, so the self-taught woodworker started building. He completed a few initial prototype wooden urns, using small bags of sand to test their durability. Soon after delivering them to the cemetery, he received a callasking for more, and he continues to receive requests when the cemetery runs out.
So far, he's made more than 200 wooden urns.
AT&T and FleishmanHillard hoped to tell Mike's story in a way that would honor veterans, inspire AT&T employees, and make them proud of Mike.
The AT&T Corporate Communications video/newsroom team operates much like a regular TV newsroom. It is run by former TV news directors who focus on turning around stories very quickly from start to finish. From time to time, though, we come across a story that cries for deeper treatment.
This is one of those stories. It is about an AT&T employee who makes wooden funeral urns for veterans who have died and whose families cannot afford urns. This story was clearly one that deserved the best work the team could produce.
The video team leader and one of the team's best videographers went to Florida to put the story together, setting aside more than twice the amount of time normally spent shooting a video.
The shooting locations included:
The crew painstakingly planned the shoots. For example, they made sure to be at the cemetery as the sun rose on the first day there in order to capture the most beautiful, tone-setting video possible to open the story. The team made a second trip to the cemetery at a later date for the memorial service. Mike's appearance there in uniform illustrated the powerful emotional impact his labor of love has left on him.
While the team captured remarkable images, they also knew video editing would be equally important. Therefore, the team took the videographer out of the daily news mix for as long as he needed to edit, re-edit, and then re-edit some more to ensure the story hit just the right note. The team is proud of the artistic and technical quality of the final video, along with the deeply emotional appeal of its story.
The video was posted to the AT&T Facebook timeline on November 10, and in no time visitors viewed the story 40,000 times. To date, it's generated nearly 800 "likes" and nearly 400 shares. The video also was posted to the AT&T online news page for employees only.
The feedback from viewers has been richly satisfying. A few comments from the Facebook timeline:
"Dear Mike, I had no idea of this situation. Thank you for what you do for our Veterans. God bless you."
"This is a great story about an amazing man who is trying to make a difference."
"#AT&T just awesome"
"God bless you Mike! And thank you for your service to the great country.
Beautiful piece. Beautiful guy. Thank you Veterans for your service and sacrifice."
In the story, Mike said he hoped others who live near national cemeteries would do as he has done and make urns for veterans in their hometowns. Here's what Mike reports today:
"I have heard from people from all over the country and Australia! (When the video was first posted), my email and instant messaging EXPLODED! I was also contacted by an executive from Steinway Pianos in NYC. They got wind of what I'm doing and stated they wanted to donate their scrap wood to the project. They told me not to worry about paying for it and they will ship it to me here in Florida. Go figure! I have no idea at this point how much material to expect, and for all I know, a tractor trailer could pull up in front of my house.
"This project has grown into a life of its own. So many people and organizations have reached out to me, it's hard to keep track."
Mike tells us people are still contacting him, wanting to make donations and asking for his plans so they can create urns for their hometown military cemeteries. "I don't have an exact count, but there were dozens who have reached out from places like Atlanta, Charleston (S.C.), Shreveport (La.), Fort Sam Houston (Texas), Jacksonville (Fla.), Dallas, San Antonio, Cerritos (Calif.), Anthony (Fla.), Fort Worth (Texas), Breckville (Ohio), San Ramon (Calif.), Springfield (Ill.), Johnson City (Tenn.), Schaumburg (Ill.), La Mesa (Calif.), Jackson (Miss.), and on and on and on."
View the video at:
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10152843822273909&set=vb.8576093908&type=2&theater
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrwHeLTSDhY
