Supporting Military Families - Care Packages for Deployed Personnel

Kelly in Columbus is a romance reader, RT Convention volunteer, and the keeper of a list of deployed personnel seeking mail.   Her list includes individuals as well as whole units.   Contact her at columbussos@gmail.com for more information.

Readers often ask what they should write or send when signing up to correspond with deployed personnel.   All Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, and Coasties enjoy cards.   Here's a suggestion:

1.  Ask for several names (or a whole unit).

2.  Grab the neighborhood kids, church youth group, and/or Scouts.

3.  Pass out construction paper, fold in half, and have the kids write the cards:

Front cover:  Greetings from (town, county, state)

Inside card:   Thank you for serving.  We know you are away from home.  But we will think of you as we enjoy freedom and liberty.   Signed, First Name.

4.  Include a pack of gum, an individual tea packet, an individual drink powder, etc.   

5.  Insert into an envelope.  Address to the individuals.  If they are assigned to a unit, you can group together into one envelope to save on postage.  

If you are interested in sending a care package, I recommend the priority mail flat rate box.  the boxes are free and the USPS discounts the mailing cost to APO addresses.   I refer to Tamara Argyle, @tamara_argyle, a romance reader I met at RT/09 in Orlando.  As a Navy surgeon, she has plenty of experience being at sea .. and in the desert.  Here's what she recommends:

1.  Soap and shampoos, especially the kind that soldiers can use while holding a spout over their head.

2.  Foot powder and other personal hygiene items.

3.  Air freshener.

4.  Individual packets of drink mix that will replace lost electrolytes from sweating in the extreme heat.  She noted that care packages often include a large container with drink mix, which is thoughtful, but difficult to use if no pitcher is available.  The individual packets can always be mixed into water bottles.

5.  Candy that doesn't melt.

6.  Paperbacks, crossword books, and Sudoku books.

7.  No batteries - they require special disposal to prevent them from being used for bombs.

If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me at sos.aloha@yahoo.com.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Supporting Military Families - Soldiers' Angels

Hawaii's angels 

Continuing our spotlight on how to support military families, one of my reading buddies recommended Soldiers' Angels.  From its website (link),

Soldiers' Angels provides aid and comfort to the men and women of the United States Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and their families and to improve the lives of a growing veteran population.

Founded in 2003 by the mother of two American soldiers, hundreds of thousands of Soldiers' Angels "Angel" volunteers assist veterans, wounded and deployed personnel and their families in a variety of unique and effective ways.

"May No Soldier Go Unloved," encapsulates the motivation behind Soldiers' Angels. The volunteers of Soldiers' Angels work tirelessly to demonstrate active care and concern for veterans, the wounded, deployed service members and their families.

To date, our volunteers have sent hundreds of thousands of care packages and letters to "adopted" deployed service members; we have supplied the wounded with over 25,000 of our First Response Backpacks directly at the Combat Support Hospitals in Iraq and Afghanistan and the major military hospital in Germany, as well as provided care and comfort to those in stateside military and VA facilities; we have provided emergency aid to military families in need; we have partnered with the Department of Defense to provide voice-controlled/adaptive laptops to over 6,000 severely-wounded service members, as well as other technology that supports rehabilitation; we have provided flights to soldiers on leave or in emergency situations, and to their families wanting to be with them upon return from overseas; we provided Level III KEVLAR armored blankets to give personnel extra protection in their vehicles when it was needed early in the Iraq war; and we help to honor and uphold the families whose loved ones have paid the ultimate price for our freedom and safety. With the assistance of our generous supporters, the many volunteers of Soldiers' Angels have accomplished this and much, much more on behalf of the grateful citizens of the United States of America.

To see more about how Soldiers' Angels supports the troops and their families, click on the site menu or the link under "Teams and Projects - How to Help" on the homepage.

Soldiers' Angels was incorporated in the state of Nevada in June of 2003, Tax ID # 20-0583415. Click for the Guidestar Profile.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Submit any blurbs about ways to help or services for military to sos.aloha@yahoo.com.

Supporting Military Families - Matthew Freeman Project

Many readers ask me how they can support military families.  Likewise, several organizations ask me to post information about their services for military families.    I am using the time between Flag Day and Independence Day to do just that ... share info with you!

First a tidbit from the Cyber Command Weekly Newsletter for military families:

The first time Hollywood actor Jimmy Stewart applied to join the military, he was actually rejected for being 2.2 kilograms (5 lb) underweight. He did everything he could to gain extra pounds and managed to join the Air Force as a private, despite already being in his 30s. At first, his status as a movie icon was an inconvenience—instead ofseeing action, he was assigned as a pilot instructor. Eventually, though, Stewart went on to take part in multiple high-risk missions. He earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses for his actions during World War II and achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Despite the war being over, Stewart continued his military career and was promoted to Brigadier General. He finally retired from duty in 1968 and in 1985 he was presented with the Medal of Freedom and the rank of Major General by President Ronald Reagan.

Jimmy Stewart in uniform
National Museum of the Air Force
Public Domain 

I've seen several posts on Facebook about the Matthew Freeman Project.  From its website (link),

He was a true renaissance man. A two-time tennis champion for his high school team, a saxophonist in the marching band, Matthew sang at his high school graduation – having been nominated and accepted at the United States Naval Academy.

Matthew’s true passion though, was flying. As a young boy he fell in love with flying and went on to become a Marine pilot – the third generation of Freemans to wear Navy wings.

In 2009, he married his childhood sweetheart, Theresa Hess. Three weeks later, he opted out of the relative safety of the cockpit and volunteered for ground action when he heard the Marines needed more ground forces – in Afghanistan.

A week after he arrived, he saw something that led him to call his mother. He said, “Mom, the kids would rather have pens and paper more than anything, even food or water. Would you please start a collection and send them to me?”

Two days later, he was killed in action.

The Matthew Freeman Project: Pens & Paper for Peace was not created because Matthew is dead. Not because he died serving his country. It’s because of how he lived.

A life well spent.

A life given.

In service.

The Matthew Freeman Project has expanded to making "bears" for family members from military uniforms.   The website also offers scholarships for military families of fallen soldiers.   Learn more at freemanproject.org.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Submit any blurbs about ways to help or services for military to sos.aloha@yahoo.com.