I work for Wal-Mart and we are putting together carepackages for the Marines in Iraq.  But I am in charge and I have never done anything like this before. I would appreciate all the help I can get.
212600
Your first move is to contact an organization that knows what to do.  I would suggest you locate a local USO, if there is one nearby.  \nIf you do not get any help there, here is a web site that matches 'any-soldier' type donations with  real recipients, since the military discourages unaddressed gifts.\nhttp://www.anysoldier.com/index.cfm
245732
The answer is.....they do it.They don't know how.But they do it.I'm a marine whife and i remember when we were getting by one that.It is difficult.I can't imagine how civilians without the health coverage and benefits given in the miltary such as BAH and Comrats and the commisary.I do feel terrible for those people.Even gas is kicking our tails now.But we can't live off the system.And it really won't do us any good to complain.All we can do is rely on our own devices.I.E.    Learn to cook less inexpensive meals that will feed everyone in our family at once.Save gas and start planning family activities at home.Take up bike riding.Or even just fight for some low profit public transportation in your town.Put aside a little pride and buy one or two outfits at the goodwill.not every outfit.lol.but 1 or 2.Quit smoking.ANd for crying out loud.Stop making excuses."Oh i have bad arches so i have to wear $75 sneakers.I know my kids need to eat but i need special sneakers more."
102068
Okay... you've got a lot of good advice there. But let me tell you what the hardest thing to deal with when deployed and you send all your letters and good things from home. Believe it or not, open ended letters. Those are the letters that say everything is great, and I got hurt. Everyone is fine, and Johnny's arm is doing better. Everything is wonderful, the electricity will be back on tomorrow. It may sound silly, but when away from home for an extended period of time, even the smallest thing on your end seems like a crisis on the other. So please take my advice, when you write about what's going on, both good and bad (we do want to know everything when deployed) make sure that he knows, that you've explained well, that all is okay. And please don't send him anything that will melt in the heat. All the best to both of you.
206431
Oh, I wish I was healthy enough to go help, I can't walk far at all, and I refuse to begin using a wheel chair yet. People that can please go. I sent money last week. I hope I can send more. Thank-yo for your dedication. They are doing it the right, honest way to keep terrorists out.
416897
First\nThank you for doing this!!!! We currently sponsor 5 groups of soldiers across afghanistan and Iraq.\n\nwww.anysoldier.com\n\nits the best site we found for being able to search and read descriptions etc.. covers ALL branches of soldier overseas\n\nNow for mailing.. we are pro;s at this now\n\nNo mailing of wax items, crayons or chocolate anything between May and Nov\n\nIt melts and you get liquid pacakges\n\nSoldiers are told not to eat homebaked  or unwrapped items.. so if you send these you take a good chance on having them not eaten.\n\nOur groups are 1/2 way through deployment and we know them now and will be seing homemade xmas foods... but they will take now and would not have 6 mos ago before they knew us.\n\nMost soldiers have some way to email.. some have laptops with daily access others dont have reg access... Include and email address with your packages,, many will email back..\n\nWe love our emails and pictures\n\nDo not send stamps as mail for them is free to send out\n\nDVD's unless  a soldier specifically asks for it are a waste of time as they sell bootleg copies over there for 1.00 new releases!  The Black market  is alive and well in Iraq!\n\nEach soldier will put items out on the site they would like etc... We avoid the long lists or lists with silly items.... The bottom line is... they are thrilled with just letters  , and many dont get mail.\n\nWe look for FOB's Forward operating bases or other more remote soldiers over ones on reg bases... these are the guys who dont have access to PX's ( stores) etc...\n\nMOST have chow halls called KBR's but some dont... \n\nThings we send to our guys are Microwaves stuff anf popcorn.. we also tape to DVD weekly shows they are missing like CSI and NCIS they like those.. we send Hard candy  , does nto melt and can be passed out to local kids..\nwe send Pnut butter, crackers, Powdered drink mixes like gatorade, T pastes, soaps,Jerky,\nChex mix, Pringles as they dont get crushed like a bag would, etc...Cookies\n\nOK so for mailing..... Dont mix food and toiletries.... even if you put stuff in baggies the food will taste like soap\n\nWe have mailed t paste with food though put it in ziplocs\nDont mail anything in a glass jar or that can break.... If it can leak, explode or break... IT WILL\n\nSo how much does it cost to mail???????\nWell you dont pay shippin to Iraq!\n\nYou pay shipping costs from where ever you live to NY. In NY it is handed off to the Military Postal system and they fly it overseas,, then it is sorted again by the APO or location and trtucked off to those places as soon as they can safely get it there.\n\nOur experience is ... about 3 weeks til arrival ..\nThere are 2 types of  ways to mail a package at the post office.. Priority and SAM ( space Avail Mail)  SAM is cheaper but can take longer to get to the soldiers.. SAM means once the plane is full and all 1st priority mail is loaded they shove any SAM mail in that will fit ...\nThe Post office will tell you it will never get to the soldier if you send SAM but thats not true...\nSAM mail is cheaper to send and good if its heavy or you can wait  for it to go... it will get to th em.. we have sent both ways... and sincec most of our guys only get mail runs every 2-3 weeks it did not matter.\n\nWhen you pack it ,,make sure you put stuff on the slip..if for soe reason you DO send DVD's DONT list it on the packing slip.. makes your box a target to get stolen!  If you ask post ofice about this they will say you HAVE to list it... so dont ask.. they dont go through the boxes and if you list it it may not get there... this is advice right from the soldiers.. they know.\n\n ALso there will be a box that says if package is undeliverable what do yu want done?? Instead of putting  our return in there to get it back.. we put another Units Address on there so if hte unit we were sending to is gone or cant be found it goes to another one!\n\n   ALso pack your items in plain cardboard or a pos
428168
Being a former soldier who just left Iraq for the second time, I really would not want the teddy bear I would rather have a beer. But getting one from the one I loved was great . It was something that was not "me" and reminded me of that person. So in the end I had 5 teddy bears that sat in a locker in Baghdad that I looked at every morning for a second and made me feel like I was home if but for an instant. I had 5 because I have 4 daughters and a wife. Send him the damn bear so he can hide it and think of you!!! :)
98225
www.USAJOBS.gov  Work for the federal government overseas. At least you will have the Marines protecting you. The world is not safe place, there are workers getting injured and killed each day in this country. But in this country there are not the hostilities you find in other countries. Click the Protect Democracy for opportunities created by our conflicts. But there are thousands of other jobs in all corners of the world.
342078
You CAN work.  You chose not to.  Are the Marines paying for you to lay around and do nothing or did you get a medical discharge?  I bet a discharge.  So get your butt up and go to work and stop feeling sorry for yourself.  No one is going to donate money to you.  You see REAL veterans coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan?  They are missing body parts and they don't whine like you do.
415925
I'm a liberal and I'll tell you what-- I arrainged to have 56 gift boxes of Hickory Farms products sent to active fighting units in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as a medical company in Iraq for Christmas.\nI received a list of active duty members from my brother at Fort Rucker, Alabama.\n56 gift boxes with messages from total strangers, wishing our soldiers a Merry Christmas.\nTop that.
418338
I love it!\nThank you so much!\nMy husband is a Marine, and he says thanks, too. \nSemper Fi!
141756
All you need is his/her address.  Do not send alcohol, pornography, weapons, ammunition or anything else that common sense would tell you is not allowed by the military.\n\nAnother thing not to send is chocolate.  You can get away with sending it in winter but now the tempratures are high enough that it will melt (and get all over everything).  fragile items are also not likely to survive the trup.\n\nBelow is a link to a Usenet article that discussed what to do/not do when sending care packages to servicemembers in Iraq.
673007
Money and relocation benefits. Look for an ethical, honest person who would not afraid to speak his or her mind with an excellent work ethic. Someone who will put people first before the bottom-line because he or she knows that without good people the bottom-line will suffer. Someone who will defend the organization as long as it is doing everything right, yet will not be afraid to speak out on behalf of the patients if quality of care is suffering. Is there such a person out there?? Yes, me. I am getting ready to retire from the military with 20 years experience. I have a BSN, MPA and working on an MSN. I have over 18 years of management and leadership experience along with ethics training. Strong people person who knows how to get things done through others. I love it where I am, but if the price is right I will consider working for your company. I worked in the White House Medical Unit for over 3 years in the Clinton administration so I also know how to deal with VIPs, politicians, plus the average guy off the street...contact me at datsmeyall@yahoo.com.
164460
Hey kid, how's it going? I'd be glad to help you out.\n\n1. Operation Iraqi Freedom 2 (OIF2)\n2. Pres. George W. Bush\n3. Iraq (Mostly in and around Kirkuk)\n4. M-4 Carbine (rifle), M67 Anti-Personnel Fragmentation Grenade, and the M252 81mm Mortar System.\n5. Yes, we used Humvees. The actual designation for the vehicle is HMMWV which stands for High Mobility Multile Wheeled Vehicle.\n6. While serving in Iraq I held the rank of Corporal(E-4)\n7. I led a 5 man infantry mortar squad.\n8. The short answer is that we were asked to do a job so we did it to the best of our ability. The long answer: We helped alot of people out(Iraqis), and they let us know every day how much they appreciated us being there and how happy they were to be out  from underthe control and tyrany of a dictator like Hussein. I felt good about what we did in Iraq, and no amount of negative press will ever change that. I also feel that if we left Iraq now, before the job was finished, we would be letting the Iraqi people down and also saying that the men and women who given their lives, died in vain. I myself am not prepared to do that.\n\nHope all this helps. Good luck on the report and feel free to ask any others questions.
503793
I think it's good to help people no matter where they are, but it's true that a lot more focus needs to be done here.  How can Bush say he is concerned with the welfare and safety of the Iraqi people when he can leave his own people stranded in New orleans for all of those horrible days? He was on vacation when he knew a huge storm was coming. Did he send troops there to protect his own people? I see your point.
74997
I am in the Marine corps and I am his supporter.  You cry baby libral hippies dont know jack.  Iraq is 200% better now and we have bush to thank for that.  he has his down falls but so does everyone, INCLUDING YOU.  stop being a cry baby and do something about it if you think something is wrong.  what do you do?  work your dead end job and get on here and cry?  get a life loser
420639
The DOD website "America Supports You" has a ton of useful information... here's a page called "Helping Troops Help Others" that should steer you in the right direction.\nhttp://www.americasupportsyou.mil/AmericaSupportsYou/help_troops.html
626087
I check the list from time to time - but I know I'll hear about the people I'm looking for from friends before I see them on the net.\n\nBest way to support? Be strong, send care packages, letters, take advantage of video conferencing if your base has a program. My dad and I went in and bought my uncle a spare bullet proof vest, in case he misplaced his - crazy I know, but you never know.\n\nLean like hell on your family and troop support groups. Stay busy, don't read to much news. Alot of it is bad news that looks alot worse then it is.\n\nKeep the faith.