AAFES Giving Away America 250 Challenge Coins and Collectible Military POGS During Salute to Service Month
The Army & Air Force Exchange Service is bringing back its Salute to Service Month giveaways in November, with eligible military shoppers able to pick up commemorative keychains, challenge coins and collectible Service-specific penny POGS at participating Exchange locations.
The giveaways will take place on three dates during the month and are available to active-duty service members, military retirees and service-connected disabled Veterans who have in-store shopping benefits. All items are available in stores only and while supplies last. The first giveaway arrives November 7 with Veteran for Life keychains, which the Exchange describes as a tangible badge of honor recognizing Veterans’ service.
The biggest collectible of the month follows on Veterans Day. On November 11, or near that date depending on location, the Exchange will distribute a new Salute to Service challenge coin. The 2026 coin marks the seventh year of the Exchange’s challenge coin giveaway tradition and features an America 250 design on one side. The reverse brings together the emblems of all six branches of the U.S. military, giving the coin a broad Service-wide design rather than focusing on a single branch.
A second collectible giveaway comes November 20 with Service-specific penny POGS created specifically for Salute to Service Month. The Exchange says the penny POGS are intended as commemorative mementos and draw on a history that dates to Southwest Asia in the early 2000s. Unlike the challenge coin, the POGS are designed around individual Services, adding a branch-specific element to the November promotion.
“Salute to Service Month reflects the Exchange’s commitment to serving those who serve,” said Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Angela Holden, the Exchange’s senior enlisted advisor. “One day is not enough to honor our heroes. We are looking forward to recognizing those who have given so much to protect our freedoms.”
The Exchange uses November’s Salute to Service Month to recognize active-duty personnel, retirees and Veterans throughout the month rather than limiting recognition to Veterans Day alone.