It's the Army and Air Force Exchange Service's 120th birthday, and you could be the beneficiary of some big deals they're offering, including some for your back-to-school shopping.

While shopping at an exchange is relatively easy today, AAFES has operated stores in some unlikely configurations, officials said.

That includes a tent at Pine Camp, N.Y., (now Fort Drum), in 1908; mules serving as mobile PXs in Hawaii in 1942; a railway PX fro troops maintaining 500 miles of rail in Alaska in 1943; a bombed-out swimming pool stadium in Naples, Italy, in 1943, shared with a GI kitchen; and snack PX trucks at Travis Air Force Base in 1950.

The big day is Saturday, July 25, but the deals start today, in brick-and-mortar stores as well as their online store. As long as you're an authorized exchange shopper, anyone from any service branch can shop at these stores.

A few examples of the deals available:

**July 24-26: 10 cents off per gallon at an AAFES gas station when you use your Military Star card to pay. (Pay off the bill at the end of the month!)

**July 24-30 in brick-and-mortar stores:

--20 percent off boys', girls' and toddlers' Fruit of the Loom underwear and socks (also available online)

--Specials on children's clothing items for $5, $10, $15, $20

--20 percent off backpacks by Swissgear, JanSport, High Sierra

--$3 for a box of 64 Crayola crayons

--20 percent off select Wenzel tents and sleeping bags

--20 percent off Coleman 30-qt. cooler

--10 to 15 percent off select Intex airbeds

--$400 off a 55-inch Samsung 4K Curve TV

--Macbook Pro for $939

--30 percent off all Skullcandy gaming headsets

--15 percent off Basset and HGTV Design Studio by Bassett furniture

--Free fountain drink or Gold Peak tea for authorized shoppers at Expresses, all day July 25

**July 24-26 at the online store, Shopmyexchange.com ;

--$1,500 off a 65-inch Samsung 4K curved Smart TV

--Up to 50 percent off select styles of brand name handbags and brand name apparel

--Char-Broil six-burner gas grills for $199

--$20 off select Rockwell tools

--$500 off Bowflex PR3000 home gym

As always, do some research at other stores before you shop to make sure you're not missing a better deal elsewhere.

Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.

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