You could call Cam Atkinson a sniper. The 26-year-old forward has 20-plus goals in his last two seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets. But what you may not know is that Atkinson has a dream of being a sniper off the ice as well.

"I’m just a big fan of the military," Atkinson said. "I read a lot of World War II and military books and I watch a lot of military movies. I’ve said that if I wasn’t playing hockey, I’d probably end up going into the military."

With a grandfather who was in the Navy, an uncle who was a paratrooper, two cousins who attend West Point and two brothers who serve as volunteer fire fighters, it’s no surprise that the passion for serving one’s country runs strong with Atkinson. And he has constantly looked for ways to support those in uniform.

"It seemed like every summer I tried to figure out a different fund to give back to and I always wanted to give back to the military," Atkinson said. "It’s so important because what they do and the sacrifices they make allow us to live with freedom and just live our daily lives the way we do."

Thus, an idea began to come together. Atkinson’s uncle, Robert Robben, a former Army officer and volunteer fireman, was already heavily involved in fundraising for military families and had been doing so since 9-11.

Both Atkinson and Robben’s high school friend Paul Martin, a music agent, approached Robben around the same time about doing more and the threesome, along with burgeoning country artist Kerry Degman, realized it was time to make the fundraising efforts bigger than just what Robben was doing.

Over the course of the past three or four months, the team created the Force Network Fund, a non-profit organization dedicated to directing funds for military personnel, first responders, and their families to the areas of most urgent need.

What makes Force Network Fund unique, according to Robben, is that it’s designed to be flexible to suit the ever-changing demands of America’s servicemen and women. The Fund has defined a portfolio of credible charities to which people can donate – Robben started with 12, but to honor Atkinson’s jersey number the list increased to 13.

Donors to the Fund can select specific charities to receive their money, or they can make a general donation to the Fund to be directed to the area of highest urgency. Robben believes this structure will allow the Fund to provide long-term support to military and first responders as challenges and needs of that community change.

"We want to create a fund that accommodates that ebb and flow (of what servicemen and women need) and provide for the fund that has the most relevance," Robben said. "Now we have the flexibility to give to not just who we want to but what’s the most important thing at the time."

Robben has carefully chosen the 13 recipient funds. Each organization was selected based on his knowledge of the military fundraising sector and was evaluated via Charity Navigator and a review by a New York City financial executive. Robben also counseled with current military families to find which programs are providing them the most benefit.

As part of the Force Network Fund’s launch, the group is highlighting two specific funds: the Unit Scholarship Fund which provides merit-based scholarships for families of current and veteran military members; and Save a Warrior, a program designed to mitigate the threat of suicide for high-risk military members.

Both of these charities will be featured at The Force Network Fund’s formal launch event Friday night in New York City.

At the event, Degman will perform a few of his songs, including his signature song for the Fund, "Pray for a Soldier in Pain" and attendees will hear from a speaker who benefitted from the Save a Warrior program after serving as a fire fighter at the World Trade Center on 9-11 and completing several tours of duty overseas.

And while the event brings much excitement and hopes for fundraising, the Force Network Team is also getting creative with how to engage people long-term. Robben shared that in addition to fundraising events, there will be social media campaigns that the Fund hopes go viral. Both Atkinson and Degman are asking people to post different things on social media and use hashtags to spread awareness.

Additionally, Degman has watermarked his music, meaning that whenever the song is identified using the smartphone application "Shazam," users will see a screen allowing them to make a donation to the Fund. Degman has also earmarked 100 percent of the proceeds from his signature song to go directly to the Fund.

The more people donate or participate in the social media campaigns the Fund is launching, the more chances they have to hear back from Atkinson or Degman on social networks or win other incentives from the two celebrities.

While Force Network Fund officially launches Friday night, Robben hopes that this is the beginning of a marathon, not a sprint, and he is excited about the participation of Martin, Degman, and of course, Atkinson.

"Cam had mentioned to me, ‘If I wasn’t a hockey player I’d probably be wearing a uniform of one of the military services and since I am wearing a different uniform of an NHL player I’d like to give back to our military and our first responders,’" Robben said. "It’s remarkable to find young people with such patriotism and pride and selflessness like he has."

For more information on the Force Network Fund visit http://www.forcenetwork.com.