Deadline nears to send packages to deployed Soldiers [Dec. 4 ~ First Class, Priority Mail]

Army News Service ^ | Sgt. 1st Class Marcia Triggs

[katz]

http://treatsfortroops.com

Check this site.

[flowergirl]

thank you so much for all the ideas!

[VOA]

from Corin Stormhands in 198... If you are sending things directly to a particular unit/soldier, it is most important than you already have a personal connection.

follow up from lakey:
VOA - shouldn't this be clarified now? I have everything ready to mail tomorrow morning, but will not till someone re-assures me.

OK, here comes the best amateur explanation VOA can make of the situation:
PART 1.
In order to personally (e.g., meaning you lakey, or myself, VOA) send a care package
to someone serving in the military, you MUST have a military address (APO or FPO)
for that specific service-person.
This is a break from tradition in past wars in which we could drop a package with
"TO: Any Soldier or Sailor" into the mail system and somehow the military made
sure the goodies got to some soldier or sailor.
Sadly...9-11 changed all that and the "To Any Soldier/Sailor" is a defunct relic
of the innocent past (thanks to that murderous band of cowards and their love-interest,
Osama bin Laden).

PART 2.
This is more specifically what I think Corin Stormhands is talking about.
Given the security concerns I detailed in Part 1., it is wise policy (BUT NOT MANDATORY,
as far as I can tell) that you send packages to someone you have some prior contact
with, or some sort of connection of mutual trust.
For example, I impulsively sent a care package to a soldier from my hometown that I
have never met...or even knows who I am; I got his APO on a list that our mutual
hometown newspaper had listed, along with other "homeboys/girls" serving in
the military.
So, somewhere deep in Iraq, a young soldier is going to get a care package
with comfort (junk) food such as Oreos and M&Ms and some hygiene products from
basically a total stranger...except that I wrote on the "FROM" area on the box that
it was from a fellow alum of our high school. And I included a letter inside telling
him who I was, how I got his address, and how he could contact me.

BUT...since he doesn't have a clue who I really am...I wouldn't blame him and
his buddies for feeding an Oreo or two to the camp mascot-dog just to make
sure some psycho-killer Islamo-nut hadn't sent them a bunch of poisoned goodies.


lakey, your patience has been admirable.
Going the route of personally mailing individual care-packages is NOT trivial.
I'd not blame you in the least if you donated the goods to some local person
that is in true need of them.
I'm no moral paragon, but I'd say whatever route you pursue...your heart and mind are
following the path of righteousness.

PS: I don't know if you came to the discussion on carepackages a little late...but
I, Ragtime Cowgirl, and a few others tried to keep threads going some weeks back
about the November 13th cutoff for the less expensive mailing route of parcel post.

Please indulge me as I play Solomon (perhaps a foolish exercise):
1. Give the goods you have now to some local person who is in true need.
2. Wait until maybe Jan. 1st, 2004; buy up some goodies and send to some
service-person you have some connection with...then use the less-expensive parcel post route.


After all this verbiage, please let me say this...
working on this care-package situation has given me some appreciation for the
groaning I've occassionally read about from billionaires who said that
giving away their money was harder than making it!

[Wneighbor]

One Hobbit Hole coordinator at your service here? Do we need troop support information? We mailed our Christmas packages 2 weeks before the deadline because the weekly packages I've been sending have sometimes taken as much as 3-1/2 weeks to arrive and I didn't want to take any chances with the Christmas rush!!!

The Hobbit Hole sends at least a package every week to support a platoon in Baghdad and this week we added another person, son of a Freeper to our mailing list. The Renegade Chaplain that we supported in Afghanistan is also about to go to Iraq so that's 3 groups of people we will be supporting. If anyone needs information contact me or 2jedismom.

[Wneighbor]

I have everything ready to mail tomorrow morning, but will not till someone re-assures me.

As long as you have the name of someone who knows you'll be sending the package your package will be good. Not sure of your situation, ping me if you have questions.

[Coop]

If you are sending things directly to a particular unit/soldier, it is most important than you already have a personal connection. hmmm VOA - shouldn't this be clarified now? I have everything ready to mail tomorrow morning, but will not till someone re-assures me.

Your personal connection comes from me. I gave you their contact info, and you can mention my name in the note.

[Coop]

You do great work! God bless.

[Wneighbor]

Thank you! Between all our FR efforts in this area I think we are blessing a lot of young men and women in the war zone. The reports I get back from the guys over there are very humbling! It is an honor for us to be able to do this I think. :-)

[VOA]

Wneighbor and Coop,
thanks for helping out and summing up my short novel in a few good words.

lakey, hope this all finally makes some sense. Good luck and blessings,
no matter what course of action you take for now.

[VOA]

The reports I get back from the guys over there are very humbling!

The contact that got to me was talking to a mom whose son in Iraq has had leave cancelled
a couple times due to Army's needs (surely understandable).
I could tell she was a bit miffed, but had it under control...really made of strong stuff.

I didn't think about it until now...that lady makes all that Hillary! "strong woman"
rhetoric into so much bloviation...

[lakey]

Coop, yes, you did give me personal info. Then, the thought occurred to me that this party still doesn't know me or my name. However....

VOA - you said the magic words. APO/FPO and I do have those.

The packages are going in the mail! Sorry to be such a pain.

[Wneighbor]

I didn't think about it until now...that lady makes all that Hillary! "strong woman" rhetoric into so much bloviation...

You are so right! I gotta tell ya my strong woman story (because I'm a braggin' mama)

One of the groups we send things to from the Hobbit Hole is my son-in-law's platoon in Baghdad. He was not happy when he was not among the first to go into Iraq but received his orders to go in March, after the war began. 4 days after he received orders my daughter found out she was pregnant. They were stationed in Germany. Well, my son-in-law deployed, my daughter cared for a 5 year and and a 3 year old while going through an extremely difficult pregnancy. She gave birth to my first grandson 1 week before Thanksgiving. Her husband was not with her - he was dealing with mortar rounds coming into their compound in Iraq - and their were no English speaking hospital personnel in the delivery room. She is a STRONG WOMAN!

Now, the other strong woman. My second daughter graduated high school on May 31. She was 17 years old. But, on June 1 she flew over to Germany to help her sister with the children and through the pregnancy. She gave up her plans to attend seminary this year and learned to get up early, get breakfast for the 5 year old and walk her to school. The older daughter was hospitalized twice due to pregnancy complications but the younger daughter met the challenge of caring for the home and kids even though at her age, she ought to be doing all the fun stuff that a recent high school graduate does. Another WOMAN who could teach Hitlery a thing or two about being a strong and PATRIOTIC woman!

I'm proud of my girls. They are what the women of this country are supposed to be!!!

[Wneighbor]

The packages are going in the mail! Sorry to be such a pain.

I can promise you this is no pain when we know the joy it brings those guys to get those things! I'm sure these guys will agree too. It is a bit daunting when first learning the "ins and outs" of sending these packages but let me share with you a message from some guys on the receiving end! It makes light work of learning to send these!

This is a message from my son-in-law after one of the weekly packages he recently received from our group.

I want you to know still that EVERYONE knows you over here! The packages you all have sent have made their way around to every foxhole and soldier out here. The command and the guys and girls I work with all know when SFC Bromley gets a package. Actually it is kind of funny. They remark if you all are buying out the stores down there! The cheeseballs went in almost three hours! That big container gone! It was cool. You should have seen everyones faces when the saw it. Anyway know that we are very grateful!

[VOA]

I'm proud of my girls. They are what the women of this country are supposed to be!!!

Sounds like some good 'uns!

[VOA]

The packages are going in the mail! Sorry to be such a pain.

LOL! Fuggedaboudit!

For me, the naive civilian, figuring out what TO do AND what NOT to do in
shopping/selecting, packing, labeling and eventually shipping an individual package
has probably been more of a trip than some Masters degree theses!

But the intangible rewards of sending out the packages are...priceless.

[boxerblues]

I made it to the post office with packages today Sat 11/29. At this time they are not guaranteeing delivery in time for Christmas delivery even when shipping priority mail.

With the attack on the DHL cargo plane in Baghdad all flights has been suspended. DHL had been flying in a lot of the mail for our guys, so its back to military flights and a long wait for mail temporarily.

[VOA]

At this time they are not guaranteeing delivery in time for Christmas delivery even
when shipping priority mail.

Guess we'll just have to have a bit of faith.
Besides, once security gets beefed up, I suspect the good vibes of
that Thanksgiving meal in Baghdad will power those Baghdad International workers into
cleaing out the backlog!

[boxerblues]

Mail early and mail often is my motto. Even if they have a few packages that get there late they will be appreciated. Beside just how many cookies and candybars can they eat in one day?

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

With the attack on the DHL cargo plane in Baghdad all flights has been suspended. DHL had been flying in a lot of the mail for our guys, so its back to military flights and a long wait for mail temporarily.

Thanks, boxerblues. I wondered about that. The 'mail truck' drivers are modern day heroes, imho.

The three wise men didn't arrive on Dec. 25th...and there's New Years ~ and Winter in Iraq (Afghanistan, Kuwait ~ Summer, Fall and Spring). *g*

Also, from this handy Vcorps link:

YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER doing something other than mailing a package to servicemembers deployed this holiday season.  For some other suggestions about how to brighten the holidays for deployed troops, click here.

[VOA]

Mail early and mail often is my motto.

I'm just glad that my last batch of parcels (mainly comfort/junk food and
hygiene products) went out two weeks ago.
I was guessing that those boxes might make it right before Thanksgiving, if not,
they'd fill the inter-holiday gap and/or get cached for Dec. 24th.

My brain is still trying to adjust to "CTOCS" (and United Airlines) donation
of virtually 1.5 MILLION air miles for the troops making that last leg home.
Just awesome and humbling.