Tuesday, Dec 2, 2008

Holiday Cheer: Books for Our Soldiers

Giving Back What We Have

In the spirit of giving thanks, I want to provide a suggestion for your holiday gift list.  Since we all have the luxury of being able to read books, I thought we might want to share it with our men and women overseas who would most likely love to receive a Christmas package.  This is what I was thinking:

If we all just sent ONE BOOK in a small package, that would be a sizeable amount of boxes reaching soldiers.  The “package” can be just a book and a card… or, more if you’d like.

Gifts need to be shipped out no later than December 11th.

If you would like to send more than a book, here are some of the items the soldiers would really appreciate: laundry soap, lufas, tampons & pads (assorted sizes), Bodywash, bodyspray, Shampoo, Conditioner, brushes, hair ties, white socks (no ankle socks please), coloring books and crayons, sunscreen wipes, babywipes, deodorant (male and female), drink mix packets, oreo cookies, cup of romen, twizlers, breatmints, toothpaste, shower shues, toothbrushes, T-shirts (M,L,XL no white please, white shirts tend to start looking brown after a short time.), Travel games, Q-tips, cans of soup, spagettie o’s, pringles, life-savers, kleenex, mixed nuts, starbursts candies, chapstick, hand & body lotion, pillow cases, sheets, hard candies, skittles, coffee, creamer, sugar, cheese crackers, nutrigrain bars,combos,chex mix and of course beef jerkey and sunflower seeds.

The post office has a bit of an issue with sending packages to “any soldier,” “a soldier,” “any person,” etc.  You really need an address.  So, I’ve picked two people from AnySoldier.Com who I think will spread out the gift packages to their platoons (as they expressed an interest in doing so).  Kimberly Dent is also looking for a Santa costume to hand out the gifts with.  Both are supply clerks, so they can make great delivery gals!

PFC Kimberly N. Dent
Attn: Any Soldier^®
B CO 404TH ASB, CAB, 4ID
UNIT #6009
APO AE 09378

SPC Alicia M. Brenneis
Attn: Any Soldier^®
1-506TH ALOC
TF CURRAHEE
APO AE 09354

You can go to AnySoldier.Com and you can obtain two addresses on your own, if you’d like. 

From what I understand, the USPS has an issue with “Attn: Any Soldier”… so, what you have to do is put a thin line through those words so that it’s visible but lined out.  Here’s the scoop on that:

We wish to thank the many hundreds of postal workers who have been doing a great job helping our supporters! However, some folks are running into a problem with a postal clerk or two who won’t accept packages addressed as we show here. Those postal clerks are misinformed.

There IS NO USPS regulation concerning “Any Soldier”, however there is a DOD Postal Manual (DOD 4525.6-M) Issue #22093 dated 9 January 2003, which states, “a. Mail addressed to “Any Service Member,” or similar wording such as “Any Soldier,” “Sailor,” “Airman,” or “Marine”; “Military Mail”, etc., is prohibited. Mail must be addressed to an individual or job title such as “Commander,” “Commanding Officer,” etc.”

NOTE it says “…addressed to…

All of our addresses belong to real Soldiers with the addition of an attention line, which is completely legal.  The real Soldier is aware of and volunteered for this program, and uses the attention line as notification of what the package is for.

Some postal clerks get confused by this so we suggest to avoid any arguments you simply draw a line through the attention line. The Soldier will see this and appreciate your valor at the post office and he/she will still know what to do. We don’t advocate getting into an argument with anyone.

The USPS FAQ is available online at http://www.usps.com/supportingourtroops/supportingfaqs.htm 

  This is more information on sending the package:

 

For military families, associations and groups preparing to send care packages to service members overseas, Priority Mail is the packaging of choice. To address the current demand, the Postal Service has created a special “kit” that contains the necessary mailing materials based on the most popular items ordered to send care packages to the troops.

This free kit may be ordered by calling 1-800-610-8734 Press 1 for English, and press 1 for express mailing.

Dimensions for Priority Mail Box-4:	7 x 7 x 6	(in inches)
Dimensions for Priority Mail Box-7:	12 x 12 x 8	(in inches)
Dimensions for the Mili-Pac:	12 x 15	(in inches) (Tyvek envelope)

All care packages must be addressed to INDIVIDUAL SERVICE MEMBERS as per the Department of Defense. The Mili-Pac features detailed addressing information and it is encouraged that that process is followed for all mail destined for military units overseas. The address block on the Mili-Pac includes Service member full name; Rank or rating; Military organization or unit; APO/FPO (Air/Army Post Office or Fleet Post Office) with 9-digit ZIP Code. See graphic attached.

A detailed description of contents is required on the customs form. Do not list items such as “food,” “medicine,” “toiletries,” “gifts,” or other general terminology. The contents of APO/FPO mail follow International mailing requirements. Flammables, corrosives, toxins and other dangerous goods are not permitted. Some of those items include perfumes, colognes, hairspray, matches, butane, flea and tick collars and sprays, shaving cream, and other aerosols, some cleaning agents, paints, etc.

OR

The U.S. Postal Service also has a Military Care Kit to make it easier for military families and friends to send packages to servicemen and women and their families stationed overseas. Each free kit contains three flat rate boxes, two cube boxes, nine address labels, and 16 customs forms. The kit may be ordered by calling the USPS Expedited Package Supply Center at 1-800-610-8734.

“Another good deal,” said Eakle, “is the Priority Mail Large Flat-Rate Box introduced earlier this year. It offers a $2 discount to APO/FPO destinations and ships for $10.95. Go online, use Click-n-Ship and the price drops to $10.50.”

DO NOT SEND!!!:

Obscene articles (prints, paintings, cards, films, videotapes, etc).

Firearms. (no kidding…)

Any matter depicting nude or semi nude persons, pornographic or sexual items,
or nonauthorized political materials.

Bulk quantities of religious materials contrary to the Islamic faith.
Items for the personal use of the addressee are permissible.

Pork or pork by-products.

•  Check the USPS site

 

OK, so I’m sending a BOOK, a Christmas Card and some Chapstick.  I want a soldier who may not receive a package to get one, one in which will give them a story to get lost in!

 

For all of you who participate, thank you for joining in on this… for me, this is a very important cause.

 

 

 

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