Posted on 02/19/2005 12:40:42 AM PST by patriciaruth
Time for a new thread!
Our Merry Band of Patriots has seen a psy-ops unit at Bagram, Afghanistan, help educate voters in Afghanistan and come home successfully, while we supported them and special forces in the field by sending over 100 movies and many packages of snacks and toiletries and Hallowe'en candy. A Christmas tree and decorations (Daybreakcoming) and stockings (Ican'tbelieveit) and cards and over 400 candy canes were sent for their follow-on unit, and a box with movies and magazines and misc is just beginning to fill for their next care package. The movies and books we sent previously went into the Special Forces library there.
We've seen Beast Battery at Kirkuk, Iraq, through till their deployment home, sending them over 100 movies and dozens of books and a microwave and DVD/VCR player (from arjay) and many big boxes of snacks. Plus a huge wave of goodies was organized by McLynnan for Christmas in Kirkuk (2 prelit trees, ornaments, Santa suit, many stockings with stuffers, many cards, and a couple thousand candy canes to share out with all the forces there).
We've supported the 411th Engineers at Baghdad in 2004 with about 70 movies and several dozen books, a Playstation 2 and a Nintendo console with a couple dozen games (from asgardshill and ican'tbelieveit), a 4 foot Christmas tree and ornaments and boxes of snacks and many cards and 600 candy canes. In the next couple months we will be bidding them Godspeed as they return to their homebase in Hawaii.
We've sent over 50 movies, a DVD/VCR player (from arjay), and a dozen and a half books to an MI unit near Kirkuk, plus some Christmas decorations and stocking stuffers, and many cards and 156 candy canes. They have mostly left for home now and we just sent a package with more movies to their follow-on unit.
Also we have sent some packages to an Aviation unit at Balad, Iraq and to an Infantry Medics unit, and a small Christmas package each to another AVN unit and an MP unit.
Stryker Infantry company formerly at Fallujah and now at Mosul since November has been the major focus of our care packages these past months. All of Stryker at Mosul has taken fire, and our adopted company has suffered a KIA and some soldiers with severe injuries.
Early on we sent food items (mostly power bars and dried fruit and nuts) then Christmas stockings stuffed with goodies and many cards and 200 candy canes, and since Christmas have begun sending movies. They recently received a DVD/VCR player (from arjay) and with the movies just mailed today their collection will total about 75 movies and a dozen books.
And all this happened because our grassroots volunteer group began forming in the early summer of 2001 to send care packages to Camp Bondsteel in Kosovo, when the 101st Airborne and then the 10th Mountain were there.
The contents of packages just mailed will be listed in post below.
Bump to #626.
Yes, he took the customs forms (which I had already filled out and signed)with the boxes to the post office -- had no trouble as we live in a small community and they know us.
Thanks for asking about Daddy. He's doing OK.
I sent 29 regular bags, and 10 mini bags today.
You are prescient!
Those extra 2 boxes will help alot! There are more soldiers in this battalion than we thought.
You have definitely brightened my day!
News about omegatoo being posted next.
What a jewel you are!!
I heard from omegatoo. She's still fine, her house is on a bank and may be okay as far as water goes but may have gotten more wind damage, no one knows yet. One of her sisters has a house in St. Bernard's parish and it is probably under water.
Thanks for helping us pick up the slack for the soldiers in Baghdad while omegatoo is "under the weather" or the sword of Damacles...
Ours is a small community, too, but the post office clerks are sticklers for the rules.
So glad to hear your Dad is okay.
Nina0113 has volunteered to handle Christmas for Bagram.
I'm looking for volunteers to coordinate Christmas for the other units.
We have already sent some decorations and trees last year to some of these units, but I don't know whether they were able to store them.
Our other units are
2 in Kirkuk, about 100 soldiers each
2 in Baghdad (1 about 36, another about 750 soldiers)
1 in Mosul, but it is currently turning over, and I haven't got a new APO for the followon unit yet...last unit had about 200 soldiers/
I may be getting contact with a unit in Tal Afar, but they may not be a semipermanent base situation as the others are.
I kiss the feet of anyone who takes on the job of head honcho coordinator for a unit.
Interested?
Post 645 has update on omegatoo.
What all does it require? I am interested.
Choose a base or unit and then get in touch with them to find out if they still have anything stored from last year, and find out what they'd like for the holidays. (I'll give you an email and APO address, and email them to expect you)
Find out what THEY want to have around to make them feel more Christmas-y while away from home, but don't promise that you can fulfill all the wishes, just that you will try to fulfill some of them.
Do they want...
Stockings with stocking stuffers? What would be popular if included in the stocking?
A tree and decorations (they may already have one stored somewhere)?
A big present for all to share, like an Xbox or Playstation2 or portable DVD player or an assortment of games or movies?
Sports equipment?
Christmas snacks?
Christmas music CD's?
Then figure out what it would cost and how many people it would take to fill those desires.
And then we put out an appeal on the thread or start a special thread for that base or unit, like Christmas in Kirkuk thread. You can hit up your family, friends and neighbors to make contributions, too.
You organize who's going to do what, keep track of who's donating what (money and goods), and keep people on schedule to get little things sent to you for packing efficiently or to mail off themselves their larger items or packages on time to reach the bases before Christmas, and finally use the collected money to buy, pack and mail off other things.
I'll support you with information to pass along on how to mail stuff....as you already know from Operation Popcorn.
Finally, you check with me before giving out an APO so I can screen them. We have a lot more people now that have proven trustworthy troop supporters than we had at the beginning, so it is wonderful now that I don't have to do all this myself, knowing a lot of people now from experience who are good, loyal Americans who want to help our troops in harm's way and can be trusted to mail their packages directly to the troop unit contact.
Any more questions? I also bow down and say "I am not worthy" to anyone who takes on a base or unit for Christmas holidays.
I'll take one of the Kirkuk groups, and yell for help as needed.
Cool! I'll fire off a message, checking they'll still be around in December.
I don't know when their deployment ends.
I'll get back to you. May be after my new power cord for my laptop comes the day after Labor Day, and I don't have to deal with this clunky old desk top from the Ice Age.
Yahoo!
They arrived! Hip deep?
Did you have enough?
Do you have enough to cover the postage?
Also, glad to hear about Omegatoo.
Prayers for all in the gulf.
I spent your money on leis and decorations at eBay for the Hawaiian luau party in a box for Baghdad that the psyops soldiers there requested.
They are currently being shipped to MJY1288 as he is on the East Coast and it is cheaper for him to remail them to the APO in Baghdad. If you want to see them, just access patriciaruth on eBay and check my latest purchases.
Kattracks sprang for the blenders that they requested, and Amazon is shipping them to MJY1288. Heh-heh...
I've been hip deep in stuff I got here locally, bags of pineapple, shredded coconut, cans of tropical fruit salad, 6 artificial sprays of orchids. Bottles of sugared lime juice. Straws. Maraschino cherries. Decorated toothpicks.
My husband keeps muttering about our living room looking like a warehouse....
I sent out 6 boxes of these things today, and will rest tomorrow and then continue to search for cream of coconut and pack and send some more stuff.
Know anyone who has a Hawaiian shirt or beach straw hat they would be willing to send over?
Time for me to keel over.
Thanks for the 50 beautiful silk flower leis (large assorted flowers, different colors) and the other goodies!!
I think the leis are going to be the best part of their party!
Cheers!
Patty
Not me, but I have a friend that used to have some.
I'll ask, and let you know if I have any luck.
Thanks for letting me help.
Patty-
I would love to help coordinate one of the Christmas units but I'm about to start EMT training (on top of my regular full-time job) and I just don't know what kind of time I'm going to have.
I'll contribute goods and/or money to one of the units, tho.
Iceskater, it's wonderful to hear you're going to be an EMT!
We can put you on one of the teams to help with monetary and goods support as you can manage.
Mathluv, for whichever unit you chose in Kirkuk, write down iceskater as your first supporter.
You two are terrific!
Even one Hawaiian shirt or palm frond/straw beach hat for atmosphere would be great!
If you're lucky enough to ply one away from your friend, I'd have them sent to someone in Eastern U.S. to mail to the APO, as I don't know how to send directly to our troops except through the U.S. postal service.
Thanks - this is something I've wanted to do since I was in college but never did. 9/11 kind of put it back in my mind. So now, I'm finally doing it.
mathluv - just let me know when you're ready to get rolling and I'll pitch in what I can.
For info on the Hawaiian party that grew into a monster and ate the house, check post 654.
I'm currently overdosing on badly made fake Hawaiian drinks trying to come up with some nonalcoholic drinks made with stuff than can be shipped legally and not rot on its way to Baghdad.
*Burp*
Excuse me.
The kids in pysops battalion got so happy just thinking this party might come off and then be able to pack the nonconsumables and resupply the consumables and send their "Party in a box" around to other units who need some fun.
It was their idea, and even though it was insane to do it the way they conceived it, I have been trying to help.
Anyone who is willing to contribute toward this big morale effort monetarily or with Hawaiian theme goods, please FReepmail me.
*****
Also, FYI, I sent some children's DVD's to the Astrodome via Amazon. There is a set of Disney children's book and the DVD of The Lion King I'd like to send also if anyone is willing to order them, or donate the money to pay for them.
Shipping Address:
Salvation Army or Children's Entertainment Dept.
Houston Astrodome
Houston, TX 77320 (the dome now has its own unique zipcode)
Shipping Speed: One Day Shipping
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - The Movie [DVD] $13.46
Charlotte's Web (Widescreen Edition) [DVD] $5.99
Disney's Sing Along Songs - The Lion King Circle of Life [DVD] $17.99
Ice Age (2-Disc Special Edition) [DVD] $7.99
Magic School Bus - Bugs, Bugs, Bugs [DVD] $9.97
Item(s) Subtotal: $55.40
Shipping & Handling: $23.94
----
Total $79.34
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