So, here are my rules on Care Packages. They were originally published on April 14, 2004, on my now defunct milblog "The National Guard Experience" from Afghanistan. But now they're here to help you before you piss off another soldier or anyone in the military overseas (joking).
1. Please, NO MORE MAGAZINES DATED BACK TO 1980. The average person keeps old magazines for 29 weeks before they throw them out. They're useless to us. Why don't you just mail us your garbage instead? If we wanted useless news, we'd go ask a local National. I'd actually like to see you read one of those old magazines to get your news info, instead of watching CBS or CNN.
2. Don't send a typed letter and copied signature. If a soldier has time to write you back or email, you must have time to send a handwritten letter. Nobody back home could be so busy that they can't write. Most officeworkers spend their time surfing the net or drooling on their keyboard. Trust me, I'm a National Guardsman, but in the Civilian world I work in an office. Receiving a typed letter is the lowest form of support known to deployed troops.
3. Do not send Beef Jerky. I repeat, DO NOT send Beef Jerky. Unless the war just started and you were the first person to get a care package to a soldier, don't do it. It's been years now since the war started and we've got Beef Jerky coming out the wazoo. If your goal is to disappoint a lonely soldier in a war-ravaged country, send it, but otherwise don't believe all the hype about Beef Jerky. It's a damn conspiracy. You may as well send sh%t shrink-wrapped.
4. Do not continue to write if the recipient doesn't write back. Take the hint. Recognize that the person is ignoring you and either hated the Care Package you sent and traded it at the local bazaar for something 100 times better, or simply didn't find you or your typewritten letter that interesting. Don't be a damn menace.
5. Don't send canned foods without can openers. We might be Soldiers but we're not the T.V. hero MacGyver. Basic training doesn't cover opening cans with bean sprouts and toothpicks. Yes, we know you have a lot of confidence in us, but get some common sense. It's like sending chips but no salsa or coffee but no creme. It happens all the time and we're sick of it.
Article comments
1 - diana hartman
On behalf of those sending care packages, I'm so sorry you're getting crap and letters that weren't written by hand.
Having collected donations for marines (in combat and the wounded) for a couple of years now, I'm floored by some of the things people send. Lavender soap flakes. Those little ball-bearing games. Obviously used toilteries. Etc.
When I first heard from my husband (while he was in Iraq) that some of the guys were getting funky things, I offered to be a collection point to head off some of those funky things. My trash bin filled quickly.
It reminds me of when I was a poor with two small kids rummaging the food pantry at the shelter. Beets. Cremed corn. Hominy. I oft wondered if green beans really cost that much more or if the donations were really just the result of someone cleaning out their own pantry of the food they would never eat.
I do recommend to a few people that they type out what they want to say and copy it or print it out if they're arthritic, but I'm taken aback by the number of computer generated letters.
To be sure, there are many people sending thoughtful brand name brand new things that are from "the list".
2 - vikk
I learned of OperationAC about a year and a half ago. At the time they were trying to get air conditioners, boots, socks, etc. to soldiers. When I did my care packages I used their recommended list. I also adopted a soldier, bought him a pair of boots that he requested, and sent two very large care packages for him to either keep or share with his fellow soldiers. If you're planning to ship, be aware that it is expensive. I spent as much on shipping as I did on purchases...but it was well worth it. The soldier wrote back and they all seemed happy to have received the packages. For ideas on what to send, look here
3 - Milblogging.com
Ahhhhhh, finally some readers that think alike. How refreshing...
4 - chris
well, i was thinking about sending a care package before, but after reading this blog i think i'm better off saving my money. i would think that any thoughtful gesture, albeit generic or otherwise, would be appreciated but obviously not. i don't want to piss any more troops off so i'm going to a nursing home instead.
5 - SFC SKI
I failed to notice the "SATIRE" banner at the top. After reading the comments, apparently I was not alone in this mistake. I really hope this won't put people off from donating.
Care packages are great to get, but my personal favorites are the letters we got from school kids and others, it's a connection to the world outside the warzone.
One idea that will probably increase the chances of receiving a response is putting a self addressed envelope inside the package. This way the receiver or receivers can write a thank you note or a whole letter and mail it off without delay. IIRC, mail to the US was free for service members, so no stamps are needed.
To any of you who have donated books, thank you very much! Most of us are not near a PX or bookstore of any type, so most units set up littel librraries of their own. I read "Cryptonomicon" when I found it in a donated box of books, and I started reading Vikram Seth's "A Suitable Boy" whenever I went to one unit. As it was a rather large book, I left it on the shelf where I could read bits whenever time allowed. THis went on for a few weeks, the book was always ther,, then someone eldse snatched it up. I can only hope to find another copy of this great book again so I can pick up where I left off.
Once again, thanks to all who have sent letters or packages to those deployed around the world.
6 - uao
This is pretty funny; I was wondering how much crap people were sending to the troops (I statrted wondering this when I heard that people were sending things like soiled, unwashed underwear, musty Gorilla costumes, and old jigsaw puzzles with missing pieces to hurricane Katrina survivors).
I guess if people miss the "satire" banner, they mat take this the wrong way, but I think it's a gentle, amusing way to get the word out.
7 - Shark
Satire is not a big hit on Blogcritics. You'll spend as much time explaining it as you do writing it.
Good luck, tho!
Shark -- a retired BC satirist
=====
Other stuff to include in CARE packs to Iraq:
1) Nivea for Men
2) DVDs of Brokeback Mountain
3) Body armor
4) Birth control pills (see Pvt. Lynnie Englund)
5) Copies of the books "2005 Price Guide to Assyrian Antiquities" and "Mastering EBAY"
NOTE: please don't send digital cameras to anyone stationed at Abu Ghraib. Thanks in advance.
8 - Shark
Just a serious aside:
my dad, a WWII vet, said the greatest gift he ever received was on the front lines during the Battle of the Bulge; it was snowing for days-- about 15 degrees -- his lips were cracked and bloody -- and he opened a small package that contained a tube of Mentholatum; Said it was one of the most memorable moments in his life.
9 - diana hartman
i guess you'd have to be in a dire situation and on the receiving end of things you couldn't possilby use to appreciate this article...
i thought it was funny and informative...
if the giver is only thinking of him/herself then i suppose one's once-used toothbrush is a fine gift...if the giver is thinking of the recipient, they would buy a new toothbrush...
we'd all do well to remember there's a big difference between "generic" and "used/useless"...
i just got a few boxes this last week for the wounded at landstuhl...they contained hotel toiletries...several of the lotion and shampoo containers came open and went all over, including all over the 100 unpackaged toothbrushes...had someone in iraq or at landstuhl opened this, it would've netted a huge waste of time -- time they can ill afford...the product waste is an issue for those in iraq and afghanistan as landfills there are not the same as they are in developed countries...
one of the other packages contained several hundred hotel soaps wrapped in paper...i don't know when the humidity got to them -- before or during shipment, but they too had to be thrown away...
things like this are why a lot of charities prefer money, so they can insure the quality of the items that are distributed...it needn't be brand name, but i don't think it's too much to ask that the product be useable...
as has been noted by other posters, the cards and letters, especially from kids are always appreciated and well received...every time i take kid's words to landstuhl the wounded want them hung up on the wall behind the head of their bed or all over the door to their room...there are plenty of rooms there with pictures and letters hung up with first aid tape...
if you're a teacher or other person who works with kids, don't be so quick to tell the kids what to write or not write...let them use their imaginations...it's a little disheartening to get several dozen kid's cards all decorated the same way and all saying the same thing...that's not really a kid's card, that's kids doing an adult's work...
be minimal with suggestions when the kids ask what they should draw or write...ask them what they would want to see/read if they were in the hospital...show them a map (of iraq, afghanistan, germany) and show them pictures of these places...if they ask you questions about these locales, tell the kids to ask the servicemember these questions...encourage the kids to talk about their own lives (new sibling, bothersome sibling, any holiday/birthday traditions, favorite teacher, trips of any kind, etc)...remind the children that what they think is boring is quite exciting to someone who can't leave their hospital bed...
if you're a teacher and you're up for it, consider the flat stanley project as an interesting way to connect with those at war...
10 - SFC SKI
Kids do write the darndest things! They are up front about being safe and killing "bad guys". the Mother of one of my squad leaders is a gradeschool teacher, the letter we got from her students were fun to read.
As for what to put in them, the small bottles of stuff are great for passing out to people.
I had liquid soap burst open on my toothbrush as well, that'll teach me to curse!
11 - Karen
Every soldiers likes and dislikes are not the same. My son is 20 yrs. old and very intelligent, but he likes to color and do word search puzzles, they can be very relaxing and fun. He requested a coloring book and colored pencils (not crayons)--maybe also a sketch pad. The presharpened pencils are best and you could also include a pencil sharpener. I also sent a notepad,composition book, pack of pens, pack of pencils and some blank envelopes and some pre-addressed envelopes (to parents, grandparents and siblings. Remember, they don't need to be stamped cause soldiers can send letters for free. As for the postage, I am in SC and the PO said that all military packages go to NY(don't know if that is world-wide or just from SC though)and then NY gets them overseas to the soldiers so there is no distance/overseas postage charge. The priority mail boxes that are at the PO are a good size and can be mailed for only $8.10 no matter what the weight or contents is. You can cram these boxes full and the charge is still the same. But I had a plain box that was almost twice the size of priority box and it was only $2.00 more to ship--Post Master said it did not need insurance or tracking# (just check, return to me if undeliverable--just in case)since it was going to a US address and it was rare that they lost a military package. It only takes 1-2 weeks for the package to arrive. My son and his friends say that new/name brand is always good,but generic is acceptable (if that's all you can afford)--just please don't send them something that is used unless it is something of theirs that they have requested. I hope that these comments have helped someone out there.
12 - Karen
I am the mother of the 20 yr old that likes to color (with colored pencils) and draw. I also listed info about shipping packages, but failed to mention that my son is in Iraq, (was in Kuwait) and the info is pertaining to Kuwait and Iraq. They also appreciate any denomination of money (in Iraq), because they have no atm's over there. They had atm's in Kuwait and could access there money anytime but in Iraq they have to take out a military loan against there paycheck and it is time consuming/aggravating so if you are sending a package directly to a soldier (not having some food company or business/group ship it)you could put a few dollars (US money) in an envelope and label it drink money or something to that effect. If you have access to their bank acct. you could also make a deposit if you are feeling generous.(The soldiers have to pay for their meals, military issue towels and clothes and everything the military does for them---it comes out of their pay before they get it so your "boys" may not have as much money as you think they do and if they are in Iraq, it is hard to access so send a card or letter with a little cash in it cause it is very hot and sandy over there and drink money would be greatly appreciated. Thanks and I hope I have helped.
13 - K Emery
Those who are ungrateful should not recieve anything...instead of bashing what people have been sending..why not have helpful and informative lists of what you would really like to recieve? Any idea how much it costs to send over those boxes of generic mac and cheese? Can the items that the soldiers do not want be given to the poor Iraqui people or school children? Why not start a campaign to collect all unwanted items for donation over there. Make a positive out of a negative. I got on-line to try to find positive info on sending a package. Now, I am offended and turned off.
14 - Nell
I am writing a proposal for the company i work for to start sending care packages. I have a lot of info about what to include and what not, however i get a lot of conflicting information about what food we could include, so any suggestions would be helpful, also none of the darn sites tell me what size the box should be.
they say "don't make the box too big" but what is too big???
15 - tiffany
LMAO!!! This is freakin hilarious! My fiance is in Iraq right now and he would laugh his head off at this. Good joke there dude!
16 - sarah
We are making it easy to send a really awesome care package to troops overseas - these packages go directly to men and women who don't get much mail. They get 7 pounds of really good snacks, that BELIEVE ME, everyone wants. Fresh roasted peanuts, gummy bears, power trail mix, that kind of thing.
17 - Lindsey Hallerberg
I volunteer with an organization that sends care packages to our deployed heroes overseas. I understand that this article was "satirical," but I have to say that is left a bad taste in my mouth. This is obviously not a generalized feeling among our troops. Below is one of the MANY letters we have recieved over the past several years.
Dated 23 May, 2008
Iraq
"Dear Give2TheTroops (Connecticut Branch),
Hello! I just want to thank you all for everything you sent us. I received your care package & didn't know what to do as that package brought tears to my eyes. It's a blessing to know that you have people in the States thinking about us who to take time out of their busy lives to show us support. I appreciate all of you! My fellow Soldiers and I want to thank you all for everything. We understand that it takes time to get things ready, so please don't apologize for any delays because it's just a blessing that you do what you do.
We thank you all even if you just send a card ... we thank you all. God Bless & keep us all!!
PFC J***** W*******
U.S. Army"
For more troop letters, or a list of requested items, go to Give 2 The Troops.
18 - s.merritt
I understand the satire in this article, but I think it is very uncalled for. This article is a waist of time to read, and very frustrating. I am sure there are some things that they don't need, or want but I am sure they understand.
My solider is being deployed in the first week in January and I know anything and everything he has received and will receive on his second deployment is greatly appreciated.
Thank you to all those wonderful people that support our troops. God bless.
19 - Tina
I have been talking to my family about putting together a care package for our troops and have been doing research on what to send and where to send it to. I came acroos this site and really could not believe what was said at the very beginning it was very rude and unfriendly. I almost decided not to send one but this is about our troops not the person who wrote this. I am sending a care package anyway and I am very excited about it. I hope it makes some ones day brighter and may help a little.