- Apr 12, 2002
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Hey all, for anyone interested in sending card(s)/note(s)/care package(s) to the troops overseas, I found this information on Snopes.
I've included all this information because a few people on the stickied thread here for Grunt03's care packages have said they had packages to send, but no address to send them to. Hopefully there will be some interest in helping out our troops during the holidays, and maybe the mods will sticky this until Christmas, maybe later.
Recent years have seen several Internet-based grass roots promotions of programs that enable the public to send letters, cards, gifts, and other greetings to U.S. troops serving overseas or recovering in stateside hospitals, particularly around the holiday season. Unfortunately, many such promotions have not worked out as well as hoped due to insufficient organization, deadlines, security concerns, and other factors.
For the 2008 holiday season, the Red Cross is sponsoring a "Holiday Mail for Heroes" program to distribute holiday cards to service members, a program that encompasses not just troops who are recovering in military hospitals but also service members stationed throughout the U.S. and abroad, as well as veterans and their families:
The American Red Cross will sponsor a national "Holiday Mail for Heroes" campaign to receive and distribute holiday cards to service members and veterans both in the US and aboard. Holiday Mail for Heroes, which begins on Nov. 11, Veteran's Day, is a follow-up to the successful 2007 effort that resulted in the collection and distribution of over 600,000 cards to hospitalized service members. This year's program will expand its reach to not only wounded service members but also veterans and their families. The goal is to collect and distribute 1 million pieces of holiday mail.
"As we enter this holiday season ? a time to celebrate with family and friends ? it's important to remember the thousands of men and women who serve our nation in harm's way and those who are recovering in military and veterans hospitals," said Army Col. Norvell V. Coots, commander, Walter Reed Health Care System. "The Holiday Mail for Heroes program is a wonderful outreach effort and a great way to acknowledge the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform."
As noted on the "Holiday Mail for Heroes" section of the American Red Cross' web site:
Our goal is to collect and distribute one million holiday cards to spread holiday cheer and facilitate thanks to these brave individuals and families.
Please send cards to this address, following the guidelines listed below:
Holiday Mail for Heroes
PO Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456
Please note that the referenced guidelines are important ? many contributors have been disappointed in the past to find that they missed the mailing deadline or sent gifts and other types of materials that could not be delivered:
* All cards must be postmarked no later than Wednesday, December 10, 2008. Cards sent after this date will be returned to sender.
* Please ensure that all cards are signed.
* Please send cards as opposed to long letters which delay a quick review process.
* Please do not include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
* Please do not include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process.
Participants should limit the number of cards they submit to 25 from any one person or 50 from any one group.
Also please note that the "Holiday Mail for Heroes" program is for the delivery of holiday cards only. Donations of phone cards, gift certificates, and care packages to service members are handled by separate programs:
Phone cards or gift cards will not be accepted with the holiday cards. Those wishing to send calling cards or gift cards/certificates should go to www.aafes.com, scroll down to "AAFES Community Connection" and click on "Help Our Troops Call Home" or "Gift Cards/Certificates for Our Troops" in order to send such items.
No 'Care Packages' will be accepted at this address. Those wishing to send care packages should go to www.AmericaSupportsYou.com and click under "Homefront Groups" to find out how to send care packages.
E-mailed entreaties from previous years have urged Americans to send cards addressed to "A Recovering American Soldier" or "Any Wounded Soldier" care of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, but Walter Reed officials have said that any material so addressed will not be delivered:
Walter Reed Army Medical Center officials want to remind those individuals who want to show their appreciation through mail to include packages and letters, addressed to "Any Wounded Soldier" that Walter Reed will not be accepting these packages in support of the decision by then Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Transportation Policy in 2001. This decision was made to ensure the safety and well being of patients and staff at medical centers throughout the Department of Defense.
In addition, the U.S. Postal Service is no longer accepting "Any Service Member" or "Any Wounded Service Member" letters or packages. Mail to "Any Service Member" that is deposited into a collection box will not be delivered.
I've included all this information because a few people on the stickied thread here for Grunt03's care packages have said they had packages to send, but no address to send them to. Hopefully there will be some interest in helping out our troops during the holidays, and maybe the mods will sticky this until Christmas, maybe later.