The truly beautiful thing thing Uber and Lyft did for veterans today

Uber and Lyft are known rideshare competitors, but today, on Veteran’s Day, they teamed up to help former military members out in a big way.

Today, as the Huffington Post reports, both rideshare companies offered complimentary rides to homeless veterans going out on job interviews. The White House’s ‘Joining Forces,’ an initiative launched in 2011 by First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, that works with both the public and private sectors to give veterans the tools they need to succeed, explained in a statement why it was so meaningful that these rideshare companies came together to help vets out today in this way:

“…we have heard time and time again that transportation to and from work and job interviews is often a significant hurdle for homeless veterans trying to find work. If a veteran is working a night shift or employed in a remote area of a city, public transportation is not always a viable option and there is limited funding available for alternative transportation.”

This is just the beginning of a commitment for both rideshare companies to help veterans out in a major way. Over the next year, Uber has pledged to offer an estimated 10,000 rides to veterans in need.

“This initiative by Uber will have a major impact in helping our nation’s veterans get to where they deserve to be … employed,” Baylee Crone, executive director of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, said in a statement.

Lyft has not offered up an exact amount of rides that they’ll be comping veterans, but a spokesperson for Lyft did tell the Huffington Post that it will “be in the thousands.”

We are so touched that these competitors came together for such a wonderful cause and look forward to seeing more awesomely philanthropic joint efforts in the future.

Related reading:

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Meet the amazing teen who created a “Make a Wish” program for military brats

(Image via Shutterstock)