WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Elizabeth Dole Foundation is encouraging all Americans to send their well wishes to former Sen. Elizabeth Dole in celebration of her upcoming birthday on July 29. For the first time in nearly 50 years, Dole will be celebrating her birthday without her husband, Bob, who would have turned 99 on July 22.

She is keeping with their tradition of using their birthdays to give back to others. When Americans sign her birthday card, they will learn how they can join her in supporting the nation’s 5.5 million military caregivers — the spouses, parents and other loved ones caring for a wounded veteran at home.

The Foundation is collecting messages through a virtual birthday card, available at HiddenHeroes.org/birthday.

Dole repeatedly shattered glass ceilings, starting at Harvard Law School when she was one of just 24 women in a class of 550. She went on to become the first woman to be Secretary of Transportation, the first woman to be a U.S. Senator from North Carolina, the first woman to oversee a service of the Armed Forces (Coast Guard), and the first woman to lead the American Red Cross since its founder. She is among the few to have held two presidential Cabinet posts, serving also as Secretary of Labor. She also helped pave the way for women seeking the highest office in the land with her own presidential campaign. For the last decade, she has served as the nation’s leading advocate for Americans caring for a wounded, ill, or injured veteran at home.

The Elizabeth Dole Foundation hopes grateful Americans will share messages of cheer and good wishes Dole celebrates her birthday.

Visit hiddenheroes.org for more information on the Elizabeth Dole Foundation.