One of the worst things that a Military person has to overcome is the sense of separation that occurs when the time for deployment arrives. While the members of a Military Unit tend to gravitate to a level of closeness that resembles family, there is no replacement for those people a soldier has known and grown to love over a lifetime. Care packages that are sent to a soldier from those left at home can mean more than any words could ever describe, and provide creature comforts that are generally not available in a combat situation. A care package gives an emotional lifeline to a usually young adult in a brutal and harsh situation, and can reinforce the best attributes of humanity in an inhumane circumstance.
The CARE Package was the original unit of aid distributed by the humanitarian organization CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere). Although "CARE Package" is a registered trademark,the term has since been widely adopted as a generic term for a parcel of food or supplies sent for relief or comfort purposes.
CARE is one of the world's largest private humanitarian organizations. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, it is part of an international confederation of 11 member organizations committed to helping communities in the developing world achieve lasting victories over poverty.
Founded in 1945, 22 American organizations came together to rush lifesaving CARE Packages to survivors of World War II. Thousands of Americans, including President Harry S. Truman contributed to the effort. On May 11, 1946, the first 20,000 packages reached the battered port of Le Havre, France. Over the next two decades some 100 million more CARE Packages reached people in need, from Europe and Asia and later other parts of the developing world
"Every CARE Package is a personal contribution to the world peace our nation seeks. It expresses America's concern and friendship in a language all peoples understand."
— President John F. Kennedy, 1962
The first CARE Packages were U.S. Army surplus "10-in-1" food parcels intended to provide one meal for 10 soldiers during the planned invasion of Japan. They were obtained at the end of World War II and a service began that let Americans send the packages to friends and families in Europe, where millions were in danger of starvation. Ten dollars bought a CARE Package and guaranteed that its addressee would receive it within four months.
What was in the first CARE Packages?
• one pound of beef in broth
• one pound of steak and kidneys
• 8 ounces of liver loaf
• 8 ounces of corned beef
• 12 ounces of luncheon loaf (like Spam®)
• 8 ounces of bacon
• 2 pounds of margarine
• one pound of lard
• one pound of fruit preserves
• one pound of honey
• one pound of raisins
• one pound of chocolate
• 2 pounds of sugar
• 8 ounces of egg powder
• 2 pounds of whole-milk powder
• 2 pounds of coffee
Later CARE Packages included food for different cultural diets and non-food items such as carpentry tools, blankets, school supplies and medicine.
Since those first CARE packages were assembled and delivered, hundreds of individuals, families, civic groups and organizations have accepted the call to continue this worthy cause. Operation Gratitude was founded in 2003, by one mother, Carolyn Blashek. Carolyn has no children in the military. She doesn't come from a military family. She's not particularly political either. Shortly after 9/11, though, Carolyn got her patriotic calling.
Like many Americans, she wanted desperately to do something. At first, she even tried to join up and go fight. Too late; she was already past fighting age. So, she went with Plan B. She signed up for pre-deployment morale boosting at the USO lounge at the LA airport.
Enter an American soldier. What is this soldier's greatest fear? Not being killed in action. Not being seriously wounded or even maimed. He doesn't fear the enemy. He doesn't fear the stifling heat, the torrential sandstorms, nor fighting for his life in heavy body armor. No, this young soldier fears that he won't be remembered because there is no one who cares enough about him to remember that he lived and breathed, and was a unique human being.
He has no family, you see. He's alone in this world and he's about to embark on what may be his very last journey. There's no fanfare. There are no parades, no fireworks, no waving flags, nor even a mom or dad or brother or sister to say "good-bye." There is only this lonely soldier and a mom he doesn't even know.
"I care. I care, and I'm grateful and I'll always remember you," says the mom. "Thank you," says the soldier with a hug. And a moment later, this one goes off to war, perhaps never to come home again.
The very next month Carolyn founded Operation Gratitude in her own living room, collecting goodies, writing letters of support, and mailing her "I-Love-You!" packages to every soldier, whose name she could get.
That one encounter in the airport provided the stimulus for the Country's most consistent, most successful, most far-reaching troop support organization, perhaps in American history. So far, Operation Gratitude has sent over 350,000 packages to individually named soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen.
One of the ways YOU CAN show your support, help us reach $100,000. Sign up for a personal sponsor page to raise $1,000. NFTT only needs ONE HUNDRED PEOPLE to commit to raising $17 a day from now until May 31st. OR TWO HUNDRED PEOPLE to commit to raising $8.50 a day. Can you raise $8.50 a day? Can you raise $17 a day. If you get five people at your place of employment to give up one soda per day, and instead donate the money to NFTT, you’ll reach the goal of personally raising $1000 by May 31st. Are you up to the challenge? Can you step out of your comfort zone for 60 days to help those who have been asked to step out of theirs on the country's behalf for 12-15 months for 3, 4 or may be 5 times. Sign up today for a personal sponsor page.
Besides those already mentioned, here are a few more examples of how you can raise some funds.
Examples:
Ask your Pastor or Church Elders: one collection dedicated to this cause. Can your church raise $300 - $500 for NFTT?
Local Supermarkets and other stores: ask the general manager to help you raise $1,000 by asking his employees to donate $5 each. If he has 200 employees, that’s $1,000. (Ask this of any chain store, Department stores, hardware stores etc.
Approach your children's school; a school with an enrollment of 600 and a donation of $5 each gets NFTT $3000.
Be creative!
SIGN UP NOW!!!!
Although we started our fundraising several months ago, we're about to kick it into high gear. Netroots For The Troops is introducing NFTT 2010 Personal/Team Fundraising Pages. The idea is to empower each of you to multiply your personal donations by creating a Personal NFTT 2010 Fundraising Page. Through this page you will be able to approach your friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers and colleagues etc to donate to NFTT via your page. We're asking you to sign up to personally raise $1000.00. If you were a small donor last year but wanted to do more, this is a way for you to increase your donation via your contacts.
While we're encouraging this to be individual efforts we're not going to discourage teams. For example; we have a mother/daughter pair who's last name is Hobbs and they're going to call the pairing "The Hobbettes". It was that or the Hobbitts and they liked the "ettes" better than the "itts".
Getting Started
There are two ways you can help: 1)Make an individual donation by clicking on the Donate button and/or 2) Register to be a Personal Fundraiser by clicking the Register button to the left. We're ready to help you get started by creating your own personal fundraising page! Once you've signed up, we will email (within 36 to 48 hrs.)to you a Fundraising Kit that includes sample solicitation letters, how to order business cards, and tips for how to ask people to support your cause.
Use your imagination to raise funds. Last year we had a kossack and her daughters raise funds at a neighborhood event by selling lemonade. Ask your church, temple, synagogue etc. to assist you in your effort. Approach a small retailer about "putting up a jar". Have fun with it. Make up a flier to put on every car you see with a "Support Our Troups" magnet on it.
What Can I Do On Daily Kos?
We're asking you not to post a diary for your personal pages on Daily Kos. Daily Kos is NFTT's home base and we'll still be posting general diaries for fundraising on Daily Kos. We're also asking that you refrain from posting comments within the general NFTT diaries promoting your personal page.
What you can do, is post a comment in Open Thread and other open forums requesting someone to go through your personal page to make a donation.You can also make your sig. line your donation page link. Just be courteous and polite in whatever you do for NFTT. People love supporting the troops, so you don't need to be overly aggressive in soliciting for their benefit. Your actions reflect upon all of us.
Netroots For The Troops mission is two-fold: annual shipment of CARE packages to US soldiers and Marines serving in hostile regions of Iraq and Afghanistan for the duration of their deployment, and on-going financial assistance for veterans and their families upon their return to the states.
UPDATE
All recurring donations that were set up at the old link have been canceled. Those donations were for NFTT and NAEI has had suspended them for us. If you want to continue to support NAEI you will have have to go to their link to continue to do so.
On with the games!!
Mojo Friday Guidelines
- If you comment you have to recommend all comments. (in order to receive mojo you have to give mojo. It's only good mojo manners.)
- Everything you say may be taken as a joke (so if you ask a question, expect a silly answer)
- You must recommend the diary (and pimp it unapologetically)
- You don't have to comment to recommend.
- You can't steal my idea (right, like that ain't goin' to happen)
- Please, no pictures or YouTubes until after 300 comments. Now, after 300, use a little common courtesy and be responsible in the number.
- Mojo mojo mojo mojo, mojo mojo mojo.
- TexDem (that's me) is not bound by the guidelines. Heh
Mojo Friday Goals
A. At least 300 different commenters and 1000 comments by 1:30 PM EST and 1500 by 5:00 PM EST Friday Night that it's posted.
B. 100 recommends for each comment, at least.
C. Stay on Recommend List at least five hours (this requires some strategic planning by you guys, refer to guideline #3)
D. At least 200 diary recommends. 300 would be better, spread the word.
E. And always, fun fun fun.
F. Have at least 75% average participation rate as seen here in the Mojo Friday Postgame Show by Hedwig.
G. (New) Have at least 30 kossacks over 90% participation (see here for some tips).
H. Overload the servers with recommends, not to mention dominate Top Comments Mojo list. (we do tend to mess with the site with all of our recommends at one time)(also, to dominate the Top Comments Top Mojo we need at least 50 comments with over 200 recommends, see guideline B)
I. That's enough for now. (Have a suggestion? Post it.)
MKinTN posted a diary to help everyone achieve greater success called How to Succeed at Mojo Friday Without Really Trying.
For those of you new to MF (Mojo Friday) we have our own lingo about a few things. Thank's to MF'er Jez (the link will explain) go to this diary for a little more fun and explanation. Official Mojo Friday Snecktionary.