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 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!