Hi, my name is Kimberly and I am new to this site.  I found it about 3 weeks ago and have sent out several letters.  I will be sending out my first care package this Friday.

About myself, I am 41, divorced for a long time now and a parent of an adult son which I have raised on my own.  I work as an office manager for a small company and since I have found this site it seems that is all I talk about.  I am going to college to get a certificate in American Sign Language and hope to one day be an interperter for the deaf.  I have several friends who either are serving in the military currently or are now out and it always amazes me how much they give up.  When I first logged on to this site I read the disclaimer that reading this can be addictive and cause tears and or great pride in those that are serving.  Boy where they right!  I check this site everyday either before I go to work or on my breaks.  All I can say is I enjoy this site and reading what everyone has to say.

Kimber

 

Hi,Kimberly i also am new to this sight.
              I just want to say welcome and hope that all is well.
     I am Bobette from Carrollton Mo. i am 40yrs old and i am married for 7 yrs now and i have 4 kids and 3 step kids and 4 grand babies.I have sent out alot of letters and have  had no response,i keep writing though as i do know they are having a rough time there and they worry more about staying alive.Hopefully soon one will reply.I read everything on here and try not to miss nothing,I have gotten no response from no one so hopefully soon i will.I keep my head up and know that people are busy and the men and woman over there are fighting for our lives so i keep praying for them and wait till i get a response.If there is anything i can help with i will try.God Bless you and welcome .It is nice to meet ones who love and care for the soldiers so much who help them and pray for them.I also check this sight daily as i like to raed what others have to say and keep up with soldier news and to see whats new. I have family and friends other now so i pray for them everyday as i know it is hard for them all.
                                            Newby From Carrollton Mo.
p.s. do you happen to know how i can change my name to something else besides my real name?

Bobette and Kimber:

Welcome aboard!  Bobette, I am kind of in the same boat as you.  I have sent letters and packages out, but so far no response.  It does get a little disheartening when you see all the other responses that evrybody else is getting.  But you do have the right attitude, just keep writing.  Someone will respond. Best thing going in to this is never expect an answer. They just have a lot on their minds right now.  Just keep throwing things up at the wall.  Something is bound to stick.

If you have questions on waht to send, how to send it, this is the place to be.  There are a lot of great ideas and fantastic people that inhabit this site.

Dave

Hello my name is Gin and am new as of today. I also want to learn Sign Language, Kimberly. I am 43, single mother of 2 teens and 2 young adults. I am a executive assistant in a office but taking Paralegal studies part-time and eventually the Sign Language. I love to leave smiles and sense of worth. You know that saying, I can't remember it all but ends with ... 'to that one person you may be the World.' I have taught my sons to pass the word to sad teens that 'they won't be kids forever' which has brought smiles & new friends for my sons. Leaving words of kindness like candy can leave prints on a Soul for life, I think. hope I am not sounding corny. I have this site bookmarked and hope I can have a chance to send a smile. Great to meet you!

 Welcome Kimber, Bobette, and Gin and others I may have missed.  Glad to have you join us.  It is a great site to learn a lot from both Junkies and military personnel by reading their posts. 

Bobette - someone will answer your question of how to change your name.  There have been other people that ask that same question, and it has been answered, I believe in the "Introduce yourself" forum. 

Kimber - don't give up hope.  There are lots of contacts, and some of them have time to connect with the people who write or send care packages.  They are all grateful for the support they receive.  It's hard to put ourselves into their boots, being away from family, in a foreign place, with not many comforts of home that we have at our fingertips. 

Keep up the good work.   

Good afternoon - My name is Georg-Ann, I'm new here too. I'm from Houston, TX and my brother is a Marine currently stationed in California. He's scheduled to deploy in August to Afghanistan. Most of our family is enlisted, or law enforcement. I spent a few days lurning around here, reading stories and posts, then finally found a couple folks that I just felt like i had to try and help. I've got a couple letters and some magazines going out today, and two large shopping bags to pack up this weekend...

Nice to meet y'all...

gflores

Welcome, Georg-Ann!  With all the military connections within your family you will be a great resource for the rest of us supporters as well as a wonderful supporter yourself.  Tell your brother a big thank you for me. 

HI!  I have bee reading some of the information here during the past couple of weeks, and have even sent off a few small packages.  I guess it is time to join up!

 We are full time motor homers, ready to head for Colorado for the summer.  One of my favorite hobbies is to make hand stamped greeting cards, and over the past couple of years I have probably sent 230-300 to various places in Afghanistan and Iraq, so now will do this through AnySoldier.  (I send them out so they can be used for our military men and women can have special cards to mail home.)

 

Now I do have a couple of questions about this site.  First of all, I am not sure I figured out how to make a new post - this might be in reply to some one else, which is not quite what this is.

 Next question - what is the meaning of items in blue type in the request letters?

 And lastly - I recently requested an address.  Though it is worthy, what I have to send fits better with a different request.  What happens if I request an address and do not actually send anything?

 
Thanks for any help you can give.

 

Dorothy


 

I started replying to you, Dorothy and it disappeared.  I'll try again!

If you want to begin a new thread within one of our categories, click on new post at the top, just under the heading, I think.

Items in blue type within the contacts' posts are links to sites where we can order those particular items. 

We have had several discussion on here about requesting an address and then not using it.  Personally, I send at least a letter if I request an address.  Requesting and not sending shows an inflated number of requests, but we all figure those numbers aren't totally accurate, anyway. 

 Thanks for such a speedy reply.  That is a good idea, to send at least a letter.  I need to find the new post button.  And I certainly would not have figured out the items in blue.  Maybe there is an explanation around some place. There is lots to read!

I am so happy to find all of these caring people here on this site. 

Hi Everyone :)

My name is Michelle.  I live in the Tampa Bay area of Florida.  I am a newbie here... posting and sending wise anyway.. I have to admit I've been a lurker for quite some time now.. and I finally just figured why not join and make some new friends along the way. 

I have not yet corresponded with anyone via anysoldier.com but, I have a few friends already on or getting ready for deployment.  One is already in Afghanistan and two are leaving for Iraq within a month or so...  With my friend in AE, I have become pretty fluent in flat rate boxes, customs forms, and packing techniques.. and I haven't hand written so much since I was in college...

 I am hoping to find comfort here... to find friends... to help out where I can & most of all just virtually be in the presence of so many good people who make a difference in this world.

 I am sincerely honored....

 Shell...

Hi all! I'm Sue, from the Cincinnati area, very new to the site but I have to say I haven't been able to get off my computer since finding it, I love reading all the information and posts. This site gives me that little lump you get in your throat the way you do when your hear God Bless America and everyone stands up at the same time. I'm looking forward to sending my first package later today, I've been scouring my house for the best package boxes (thank goodness for shoe boxes!) I've really enjoyed reading everything y'all have written and look forward to conversing and hearing more! Sues

 My name is Tracy; I go by Ms Tracy, but I have been called "Mz T," "Deployment Mom," "Our Angel," and other handles by our adopted troops. I am not new to AnySoldier.com; I've been adopting troops from this site for about three years. I don't know how many care packages I've sent since that first one, but the stack of customer copies of the Customs Forms I have on file is about an inch and a half thick, and I couldn't even begin to tell you how many letters I've written. When I don't have the funds available for "stuff," I write lots of letters, send guardian angel cards that I've designed especially for our heroes serving this great country, e-mail back and forth with troops who prefer to e-mail, and I've got a great greeting card program on my computer that allows me to design custom cards for our guys and gals, so I can even include photos of who's supporting them as a component of the "Thank You for All You Do" cards I create. However, I AM new to the Forum aspect of the site.

Shell, Sue, and Ms Tracy - Welocome to the forum!  I agree it is totally addictive.  I have a long list of other things I need to be doing and keep promising myself I will read just one more post and then go do some work...Ha!  It's great having all of you join us here.  Looking forward to sharing and helping alongside you!