On Independence Day, a Salute to the Brave ACCORDING to the calendar, the Fourth of July is nigh. But consumers may be excused for believing that it is November and Veterans Day is approaching. The potential confusion stems from a change in the kinds of advertisements that Madison Avenue has been bringing out as Independence Day approaches. The typical celebratory pitches - usually humorous or even silly, with, for instance, founding fathers promoting automotive clearance sales - are being joined by ads that take a more serious tack to honor the veterans of the nation's wars, particularly those who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq. Many such ads also announce donations by marketers to organizations that help those veterans, encourage consumers to make donations, or both. For example, OgilvyOne Worldwide in New York, part of the Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide division of WPP, is introducing this week a pro bono campaign to raise money for Building for America's Bravest, which builds smart homes - technologically advanced and handicapped-accessible - for members of the armed forces who have been gravely injured. The campaign includes commercials, directed at no charge by the commercial director Joe Pytka, featuring wounded veterans who are among hundreds on a waiting list for the houses, which cost about $400,000 to $500,000 each. "We felt there needed to be communications in the marketplace to build awareness" for the program, said Brian Fetherstonhaugh, chairman and chief executive of OgilvyOne. Starting the outreach around the Fourth of July recognizes that "it's an emotional touch point" for the public, he added. There is also a goal to connect Independence Day with the desire for self-sufficiency among the veterans, Mr. Fetherstonhaugh said. That is voiced by a veteran in one commercial, who declares, "For me to gain independence again would be amazing." Executives at Building for America's Bravest, which is administered by the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, say they have so far given houses to six veterans, and by the end of the year hope to have the number of houses delivered or broken ground on reach 23. "This is exactly the time to start" the campaign, said Frank Siller, chairman of the foundation. We're going to enjoy the Fourth of July, but there are some others we can't forget. Among them is Todd Nicely, a Marine corporal who was severely wounded in Afghanistan in 2010 and lost all his limbs. He and his wife, Crystal, received a house, in Lake of the Ozarks, Mo., in June 2012. "Every time I step into that home, I get a sense of freedom," Mr. Nicely said. I want other guys to have that same feeling. Having a smart home "took a huge weight off your shoulders" so "you can focus on other things, like therapy," he added. It took me 10 times longer to take a shower than it does now. Mr. Nicely described advertising as "one of the greatest tools we have" to provide the public with information about Building for America's Bravest. "It's mind-boggling the amount of veterans coming home who need assistance like this," he said. America doesn't owe me anything, but the fact I got something is heartwarming; it's a huge thank-you that's really appreciated. In another example of Independence Day salutes to veterans, Oral-B, sold by Procter & Gamble, is sponsoring a campaign this week that includes a $100,000 donation to an organization, Hope for the Warriors, that helps members of the armed forces who have served after Sept. The campaign, which promotes Oral-B products that are "Built in the USA," was the brainchild of employees of the Oral-B manual-toothbrush plant in Iowa City, Iowa, many of them veterans, said Rishi Dhingra, North American oral care marketing director at Procter in Cincinnati. The campaign, which first appeared on Memorial Day, will return for Labor Day and Veterans Day, Mr. Dhingra said. There are also video clips featuring employees of the plant, which will appear on Web sites like the MSN and Yahoo video networks, foxsports.com, nascar.com and YouTube. Print ads will feature a Nascar driver, Ryan Newman, who is sponsored by Oral-B. These are other examples of marketers running campaigns in the spring and summer, rather than in the fall and around Veterans Day: ■ Major League Baseball and People magazine, published by the Time Inc. division of Time Warner, are asking the public to "honor a military hero" by selecting 30 veterans to represent each of the 30 M.L.B. teams at the 2013 All-Star Game on July 16 at Citi Field. The Web site for the promotion includes a link to the Web site of an organization called Welcome Back Veterans, which helps returning veterans and their families and is an initiative of Major League Baseball Charities and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. ■ From mid-May through early June, the Macy's division of Macy's Inc. raised $3.4 million for a veterans" organization, Got Your 6, through a cause marketing effort that was part of the retailer's ongoing American Icons campaign. ■ The Dove Men + Care line of products, sold by Unilever, promoted donations to Operation Homefront, which assists veterans, members of the military and military families, with a campaign theme of "Mission: Care." ■ Brawny paper towels is running a campaign that pledges a donation of up to $350,000 to support the Wounded Warriors Project. Brawny is sold by the Georgia-Pacific Consumer Products unit of Koch Industries, owned by the Koch brothers; according to Forbes magazine, they were, as of March, worth $34 billion.