The Mother Of A Soldier
The mother of a soldier
-- hats off to her, I say!
The mother of a soldier
who has gone to face the fray;
She gave him to her country
with a blessing on his head --
She found his name this morning
in the long list of the dead:
"Killed -- Sergeant Thomas Watkins,
while leading on the rest,
A Bible in his pocket
and a portrait on his breast!"
The mother of a soldier
-- she gave him to her land;
She saw him on the transport
as he waved his sun-browned hand;
She kissed him through the teardrops
and she told him to be brave;
Her prayers went night and morning
with her boy upon the wave.
The mother of a soldier --
her comfort and her joy,
She gave her dearest treasure
when she gave her only boy;
She saw the banners waving,
she heard the people cheer;
She clasped her hands and bravely
looked away to hide a tear.
The mother of a soldier --
ah! cheer the hero deed,
And cheer the brave who battle
'neath the banner of their creed;
But don't forget the mothers,
through all the lonely years
That fight the bravest battles
on the sunless field of tears.
Nay, don't forget the mothers --
the mothers of our men,
Who see them go and never know
that they'll come back again;
That give them to their country,
to battle and to die,
Because the bugles call them
and the starry banners fly.
The mother of a soldier --
hats off to her, I say!
Whose head is bowed in sorrow
with its tender locks of gray.
She gave without regretting,
though her old heart sorely bled
When she found his name this morning
in the long list of the dead:
"Killed -- Sergeant Thomas Watkins,
while leading on the rest,
His dear old mother's portrait
clasped upon his hero breast!"
~by Folger McKinsey~
Our goal for Netroots For The Troops 2010 is $100,000.00 (cash or in-kind donations). Donate here!
We realize that you would like to donate something tangible to go inside the packages that will be mailed to the troops. Unfortunately, accepting in-kind donations from individuals is not practical in terms of storage and handling of the items. Instead, we will only be accepting corporate donations or cash from YOU to purchase items for the care packages this year.
Here’s how YOU can help:
- Please contact TexDem or VeloVixen if you know someone who might be helpful in securing the corporate in-kind donations. To help you think of companies who could donate products, see below* for a list of potential items. Put your thinking caps on and let us hear from you. It takes time to get through the corporate processes so we need to hear from you ASAP!
- We are accepting cash from individuals and
beg ask that you donate here to contribute to this worthy cause. Your donation will enable us to purchase the things that we are unable to obtain through corporate donations, and will help to pay the costs of shipping them to our troops.
- Netroots For The Troops is introducing NFTT 2010 Personal/Team Fundraising Pages.. It will 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.
- Sign up for a diary! Our goal is to post two diaries per day until NN10. That’s a lot of diaries! Don’t worry---we’ve made it easy for you. We’ve got a template set up, and all you need to do is add a small introduction telling us why you are donating, sharing a story of someone you know who has served or is serving, or any other thing you want to share that might help motivate others to donate. Please contact Khloemi if you are interested in posting a diary.
- Do you know a service member who would like to receive a care package? Email your request to: info@netrootsforthetroops.com before June 25, 2010.
Please include all of the following information. Unfortunately we will not be able to process any incomplete requests:
Rank:
Last name:
First name:
APO Address Line 1:
APO Address Line 2:
APO Address Zip:
- Help us assemble the packages in Vegas. It's fun! More information will be forthcoming for those of you who are going to be in Vegas and would like to help there.
- Please consider joining the NFTT FaceBook Group. Invite your FaceBook and non-FaceBook friends.
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The following list contains some of the things we would like to include in the packages. Please let us know if you know someone who might be helpful in securing these corporate in-kind donations. (Please DO NOT send these items yourself! We have no way to accept them. Instead, your cash donation is the very best way to help make this happen on the ground in Vegas.)
* Baby wipes
* Mechanix gloves
* LED flashlights
* Gel shoe insoles
* Goop Cleaning Gel
* Powdered energy drinks
* Gel energy food packets
* DVDs and CDs
* Letters to the soldiers
* More suggestions coming soon
Books for Soldiers
Soldiers love to receive books, but due once again to the logistics of collecting and storing them prior to NN10, books will not be included in the packages that NFTT will put together this year. Other organizations are more specialized in the collection and distribution of books to Iraq and Afghanistan. If you are interested in sending books, please consider checking out the Books For Soldiers website. It is run by DKos's very own StormBearand is a great resource for giving.
As of March 1, 2010, Monthly donations are no longer being deducted. Please consider donating the difference here.