Happy Veteran's Day

Image by Christian Huth from Pixabay

With gratitude to all of those who have served and sacrificed.

As always, I am grateful to all of those who serve and protect us, whether in the military or as first responders here in the States. They, as well as their friends and family, contribute and sacrifice so much to keep the rest of us safe.

If you are so moved, these are some of the organizations I have worked with over the years, but there are plenty of other ones out there. Even if you don't have enough discretionary funds to send boxes, the soldiers always appreciate cheery letters that help them remember who they are fighting for.




Operation Gratitude

AnySoldier.com

Wounded Warrior Project

Soldiers' Angels

Operation Paperback

Happy Memorial Day

My apologies for the blog being quiet lately. I've been dealing with a few personal challenges and have gotten behind. I appreciate those who continue to visit!


I am grateful to all of those who serve and protect us, whether in the military or as first responders here in the States. They, as well as their friends and family, contribute and sacrifice so much to keep the rest of us safe.

If you are so moved, these are some of the organizations I have worked with over the years, but there are plenty of other ones out there.




Operation Gratitude
(when I have time, I will post the pictures of how to make a paracord bracelet, since my past few months have been taking them apart and making them consistent!)


AnySoldier.com


Wounded Warrior Project


Soldiers' Angels


Operation Paperback

Happy Veteran's Day!

Today (and every day) is a great day to remember those who have sacrificed so much to keep us safe and to allow us the freedoms that many struggle achieve. There are plenty of folks in the romance world who have either served or are part of a family who has served, or is still serving. Say hi or thank you when you have a chance.

Other ways to support range from letter writing or sending holiday cards to sending boxes of goodies or adopting a military family. I warn you, it breaks my heart when I read the lists of things being requested--folks putting their lives on the line should not have to ask for basic hygiene necessities such as toothbrushes or socks or laundry detergent!

Please be advised that the post office allows the use of flat rate shipping for military addresses (thank you, USPO!) but it's still a fairly hefty charge for a large flat rate box (about $18-19). Make sure you wrap things that COULD leak, in sealed plastic bags, and take into account the weather when choosing goodies, since nobody really wants liquid chocolate all over everything, lol. For safety, please send prepackaged non-expired items, and remember the distance the box has to travel, so pack snugly and know things can (and do) get crushed.


There are many organizations to support, but these are the ones I have dealt with over the years:


AnySoldier

Operation Gratitude

Soldiers' Angels

Operation Paperback


If you need more tips, feel free to contact me!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Independence Day to my fellow Americans. May we remember the precepts that led us to becoming an independent country and focus on how important tolerance and teamwork are!





If you are looking for ways to honor the soldiers who are risking their lives for us, please remember organizations such as:

Operation Gratitude
(yes, I am honing my skills at making paracord bracelets and I was there--but not packing boxes--this past weekend when they packed more than 8,000 boxes in fewer than three hours!)


AnySoldier.com


Wounded Warrior Project


Soldiers' Angels



Operation Paperback

The Grand Canyon

Happy Memorial Day

Take a moment to thank the soldiers who sacrifice so much to serve our country and keep us all as safe as possible.  There are multiple organizations out there for those who want to offer support, either monetary or otherwise.  There are letter-writing teams available through organizations such as Soldiers' Angels where you can sign up to write a letter once or periodically or you can adopt a soldier and send letters and/or care packages.

The site AnySoldier.com has wishlists from soldiers from various branches, be warned, my heart clenches whenever I read these requests for basics...especially when it is for things that I think that these soldiers should be entitled to without having to ASK for it!  e.g. One soldier's request: Body wash, shampoo, and conditioner would be great. Towels, hand sanitizer. Also, due to budget cuts we are losing one of the meals.  
Grr...I would think that they should be entitled to get as many meals as they need, their lives are filled with enough sacrifice as it is!


Operation Paperback provides books to soldiers and they have expanded to help support military families and hospitals and centers for the injured as well.



Wounded Warrior Project is dedicated to helping our brave soldiers who have been injured.

I have participated in the top three organizations so if you have any questions, feel free to ask, I will share my positive and negative experiences which have more to do with administrative things than anything else.  One thing to make sure that you remember is that these folks are focused on doing their duty and surviving so don't expect to get a response very often, if ever.  It is a bonus when you are able to stay in contact with your soldier but they have other things that they should be concentrating on and we far prefer that they worry about keeping themselves safe!

Happy Memorial Day

For those of you who celebrate this holiday...have a great holiday weekend.  Please take the time to remember those brave souls who have served and are serving to help keep us safe.  If you are looking for a way to reach out, there are always soldiers who are looking for a pen-pal or goodies from home so that they know they are being thought of.  Keep in mind the heroes who have returned home as well, the local veteran's organizations are always in need of volunteers.  There are many lovely groups that can use helpful hands and there are plenty of people who can give you some direction.

Author Caridad Pineiro is working with the Wounded Warriors, please visit her blog at this link.

Kim at the SOS Aloha blog did a nice post about Caridad's efforts at this link.  You can also contact Kim about adopting a soldier (or three).  (And join me in thanking Kim and her family for their service)

Anysoldier.com provides sometimes heart-tugging requests from our soldiers who are often in need of just basic toiletries.  Make sure you read the FAQs and then click on the Where to Send tab to choose your recipient.

I personally have not had the best of experiences with Operation Paperback but they are a worthy organization that tries to ensure that soldiers receive the reading material that they are requesting.

Soldier's Angels has a wonderful organization that also links those of us at home with the brave soldiers who are serving around the world.  There is a minimal fee and a 'vetting' process but they offer many ways to serve, including providing hand-worked blankets, hats and scarves to those in need.

Also...this was just sent:

Hi again Volunteers!

Our own Andrea has just heard from her husband's unit ... they are
deployed to Afghanistan and desperately need twin-sized sheets.  They
say:

"Our guys downrange are in dire need of twin sized sheets! We are
looking for new or gently-used sheet sets (any pattern is fine.) We
can also accept donations of twin sized mattress protectors, or
pillow protectors. Anything you can donate will be appreciated."

If you want to help, please email me for the address.

If anyone wants more information about any of the aforementioned, please leave a comment or send me an e-mail at elewkf1@yahoo.com.

Have a wonderful weekend!