Yesterday I got an email from one of my guys I supported when he was in Afghanistan.  This is a portion of it:

I saw where you wrote about the founder of Any Soldier being nominated for an award. That's pretty cool. He's done a good thing with that site. I know when I was over there, we got a lot of response from people--like you--and a bunch of others. Do you know of other good sites, similar to Any Soldier, that help the troops like that? I need to check it out and start doing stuff from this end. Maybe next Christmas I can send some packages out--just have to plan ahead as it takes a while.

This is a portion of my response:

There are other sites besides AnySoldier.com that support our military but I doubt you will find one anywhere that is better.  There is a forum on there now and we “support junkies” can talk to each other and compare notes.  There are a good number who have visited or volunteered through other sites but they say they prefer AnySoldier for a number of reasons.  The main one is that they like being able to choose who their support goes to and being able to connect directly.  I have made so many good friends through AnySoldier!  I told Richard [hubby] that we could travel across the country visiting all my military pals and stay with someone different each night.  J 

As has been stated, there are as many different types of contacts to support as there are junkies to support them.  They remind me of my students at school.  Some read all the directions and follow them, others just dive right in and read them hit or miss or barely at all.  Some are writers, some are not.  As far as any checklist goes, I like the idea of it being offered but not being mandatory.  If a contact finds it useful, hurray for that.  If he finds it burdensome, he will most likely ignore it.  Like Marty says, this site works because of experience and the desire to make it work on a variety of levels.  Like Rosemary said, the mutual good feelings created when we "connect" for many of us fuels the success of what happens through Any Soldier. 

Hi all, (sorry for more hijack, I just want to clarify my suggestion)
Apparently I touched some nerves. But Mom from SF got it. The P.S./last thought is sometimes the most important.
I love this website. I love the soldiers. I love the people who had/have the forethought and persistence and time and money to create and maintain it. I love the free exchange of ideas and opinions. I'll admit, I was a bit hurt at Marty's response, but I wrote this in an e-mail to someone that told me they were upset over the post...

 "Thanks for your un-requested feedback on this. I was feeling a little hurt at the tone of his post. I think that he has a right to always stand up for his website and the reasons it works--I guess I was bummed he didn't notice that my soldier acknowledged "I understand why they took my name off.""
Long story short on this soldier to quell curiosity: In this-his sixth deployment, he had the first loss of a man under his command, so the tone of that letter explaining the drop from Any Soldier wasn't exactly positive.

I digress. Here's the point of my first post, in different language... Communication and expectations can be easily misunderstood. My concern is that a lengthy checklist might add more mud than clarity for some contacts.What is lengthy? I don't know. So, my suggestion is a 'time disclaimer sort of note' at the top of the checklist. 

I feel confident that Marty and Chrissy and team will do a great job of overhauling the checklist. And I second the comment of 'Thank you for letting us give input on this.' 

Bardea (p.s. I haven't checked out any of the other organizations other than Patriot Guard Riders and our local Mothers of the Military, because I like AnySoldier soooo much.)
 

"Bardea (p.s. I haven't checked out any of the other organizations other than Patriot Guard Riders and our local Mothers of the Military, because I like AnySoldier soooo much.)"
 

 

I'm with you, Bardea.  Why look anywhere else when we have such a wonderful site as this?  It has been fun watching it evolve over the years.  And that is actually what this thread is about - looking for improvement even of a good thing can be a really positive undertaking. 

Hello to Everyone,

 Just to let you know, I have looked at the entire thread of suggestions and am beginning to build a checklist for our contacts.  It will be very generic and simple, but will give our supporters the information they need to send what is needed.  I greatly appreciate all your samples, suggestions and thoughts and hope you are happy with the results.  Now...I am getting to work, thanks again.

 Christina

Hi Christina,

Thanks for the update.  I look forward to seeing the results.

Rosemary

 If it isn't too late I would add that some of my contacts have really appreciated the plastic bowls, forks, spoon, cups, and other kitchen items that I have sent to them.  A lot of the microwaveable foods don't come in containers that can be used in the microwave (Easy Mac for example).  Those plastic bowls with lids made by Glad, Ziplock, etc. can be used in a number of ways including just general storage. 

When they say they have a coffee maker, do they mean a 4 cup, 12 cup, 50 cup? That'd be nice to know.

 

 

I would like to know :

How many males are in your immediate sphere of influence? I dont' know hwo to word that, but I would hate to leave out one person if there is a small group that mgiht be around when my box is opened. I mean, I could as easily send 5 packs of notecards as four, but not 31. 

 

I have written my own questionnaire to get to know contacts better. I ask them anything from favorite colors to number of siblings and how I can best pray for them at the moment.  My purpose is to draw them out a little if they want to be, and to help me tailor my shopping in the event I get their list back.  I mean, if my dear soldier loves hot pink I wiill love finding everything from hot pink sheets to a hot pink journal or hot pink travel mug. 

I think soldiers should know we want to hear from them on the postings, something personal, and that doesn't always mean trying to sound upbeat or self-sufficient.  I persoanlly don't like just the posts that give a list of supplies wanted. Two sentences are plenty to say, "whatever you can send to guys who haven't gottem mail for months" or "thanks for reading this' just melts me.

I meant males/females.

I see the number of males and females in unit, but how big's the unit?

If it still isn't too late - I like it when contacts tell you what state their folks are from  (the info on top just says where they deploy from ) so i can look for things from their home states like postcards, mugs, foods popular in a particular state, news clipppings about a particular state,  etc.  I figure everyone likes a bit of home.  Don't know if there would be anyway to include a list of state abbrevs lke the PO thing for them to check or not.  Just an idea.

Ann

Any chance the checklist be made visible to us supporters.  I have some contacts that will not ask for anything and I'm looking for ideas on how to support them.

 

Thanks! 

Could I still make a suggestion?  How about 2 lists.

One list should be simple and for the contacts to fill out initially, with less than 25 things on it, and we all kind of know the top ones, hygiene, entertainment, food, drink mixes, etc. (no special order.  This would not only cut down on what they had to read (make it 20, or even 15 things).  Just something to get them started and thinking, with a little room to write if they want to.

Food	Clothes	Hygiene	Entertainment	Special
Snacks	T-Shirt, size	Soap	Books
Snack, healthy	Shorts, size	Shampoo	Mags
Meals, Micro	Socks	Razors	DvD/CD
Meals __________	Bed Linens	Feminine	Sports Eq
Drink Coffee       Tea         Mix	Towels	Deodorant	Inside Games
Additional Requests:

 And a second huge list, incorporating most of the stuff that has been mentioned, as a DOWNLOAD, that junkies could download and send/email to their people, and customize for what they are able to.send, like I really don't have access to tactical gear and I probably wouldn't choose to support someone with dogs, even though I love them.  This might also cut down on having a huge list coming in to the website and still let the Junkies be involved with their contacts.

Also I am going to stick with Rosemary and Marty.  I want to be in a global village, I want to be a camp follower.  I have skills that let me shop, pack and send, write and laugh, and not a body that would ever let me be in the military (besides being middle aged now, I've had cancer twice).  But I want to make FRIENDS.  I want to care about them, try to make their lives easier, and to give them as much happiness as I can.  But there are things I can't afford, and there are things I refuse to send, cigars for one...I've had cancer, I would never facilitate someone else heading down that road.

I love AS.com because of that feeling of community, and not like some other sites, where I had the sense I should keep my mouth shut.  Hugs to everyone and may we all find our own bridge to build a community. 

Just a thought.

 Lisa

 

 

 

I am SO late to this party... I think I missed a lot when I was down with a bad back a few months ago. In this post I originally made suggestions about coffee filters and civilian vs military issue clothing, then read back and saw that they were already made. Oops, sorry! But I can't seem to locate a "delete post" button, so now I'm editing with guilt. LOL FWIW, I think Rose's list is great, as well. If it's successful but seems to have room to grow, perhaps it can be considered down the line to add a "click here for a more detailed suggestion list" for soldiers who might have the time. I think the concise list is the best first step. Can't wait to see how it will end up! (Will we get to see the final list, from our end? Just curious...) Thanks!