Deadline nears to send packages to deployed Soldiers
By Sgt. 1st Class Marcia Triggs
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, November 14, 2003) – Christmas is a month away, but individuals only have half that time to get their packages to deployed troops in time for the holidays.
The deadline to get packages to the Central Command area in time for Christmas is Dec. 4 by First Class or Priority Mail, according to the United States Postal Service.
The key to getting packages to deployed troops on time is not only meeting the deadline, officials said, but also making sure everything is spelled correctly, to include the recipient’s full name, unit and address.
The best packages to mail are smaller ones, the size of a large shoebox, that weigh one to 20 pounds, said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Brian Lomax, the chief of Plans and Policy with the Military Postal Service Agency. Other rules to remember is that troops serving in operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom cannot receive pork products, alcohol beverages, pornographic material or religious items against the Islamic faith, Lomax said.
The Department of Defense urges the general public not to send unsolicited mail, care packages or donations to service members deployed unless they are a family member, loved one or personal friend of a troop.
There are some well-intentioned and patriotic groups who are trying to continue to support some form of the anonymous mail programs “Any Servicemember” and “Operation Dear Abbey,” but their actions could pose potential danger to the troops they wish to support, states the DoD’s troop support mail policy.
After the 9-11 anthrax attacks in October 2001, the “Any Servicemember” mail programs were suspended. However, several installations have received donations, and are passing the public’s gratitude on to troops by sending packages through official military mail.
An Army Reserve chaplain has mailed 300 donated packages to Iraq for Soldiers in the 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas, and plans to keep forwarding them as long as donations come in.
Lt. Col. DeWayne Brewer, the 4th Inf. Div. Rear Detachment chaplain, heads Operation Peace and Joy, a program that gives the public an opportunity to show their kindness toward service members while still protecting the privacy of Soldiers.
“I kept getting inquiries from people in the community on how they could send items to Soldiers. So I e-mailed a two-page letter to a few people explaining that we are prohibited from giving out individual Soldier names and addresses due to privacy reasons, but they could send donations to my office” said Brewer, a Kentucky native.
“Now I’m overwhelmed with the gifts that I’ve received. We go through the contents as a safety precaution, and my office has turned into a mailroom,” Brewer said. “This out pour reminds me of when Jesus fed multitudes with only fives loaves of bread and two fish.”
Donations have poured into Texas from as far away as Washington and Maine. Brewer sends the boxes, which contain enough gifts for two people, to chaplains in Iraq, who then distribute the gifts to their troops.
At Fort Carson, Colo., the Directorate of Community Activities is accepting donations from outside of the post’s gates, but it doesn’t take on the responsibility of mailing the packages.
“When we get in donations, we call units and ask if they want to accept them, then they come pick up the items and distribute how they see fit,” said an official from Fort Carson’s DCA.
Gifts worth more than $200,000 have been provided by the surrounding communities, said Netty Eastlake, the DCA deputy.
“It just touches my heart everyday to see the unsolicited support our Soldiers are receiving,” Eastlake said. “One company donated 100,000 Christmas cards so that Soldiers could send something back to their family members.”
“I know that it frustrates some who can’t directly mail packages to Soldiers, but the military is providing wonderful support to take care of its own,” Brewer said. “My idea wasn’t original. I piggybacked off another chaplain who was doing something similar in his unit.”
Lomax also recommends that people look for local organizations that support the family members of deployed troops.
“I remember when I spent several months away, I worried about my wife finding time for herself because we have three small children,” Lomax said. “It would have been a great relief knowing that she had someone who would watch the kids while she had an opportunity to go shopping or get her hair done.
“It would be a gift to rake a family member’s leaves, shovel her snow or volunteer to help maintain her yard.”
There are also several other programs to help people support and acknowledge service embers and their families. Log on to the following Web sites to show support, to include virtual thank-you cards and calling card donations to help troops stay in contact with loved ones:
http://www.defendamerica.mil/support_troops.html
http://www.usocares.org/home.htm
http://www.army.mil/operations/iraq/faq.html
|
