Hi Maggie,

I have sent a bunch of the small travel sized hygiene supplies, including the small kleenex pacs and chap stick.  How exciting they are about to come home!  You probably will need to find a replacement unit because you will probably really miss sending to them!!  

Anne 

maggie99501:

I want to do a themed "un-deployment" package

Hi Maggie! What a great idea!! Officially, they call that redeploy Maybe if a contact has said where home is, you could send something from there to get them pumped up for home? Like a Cardinals penant for a St Louis soldier or something?

Let us know what you come up with, this is a good one! Shelly

Great idea, Maggie! What about one of those blow-up neck pillows for the plane?  Also maybe a good book and some nice magazines.....if any of these are for girls....I always take a pair of cushy slipper socks in my carry on because my feet get cold on the plane.  What a nice package to be able to send!!  take care, Laura

Re-deployment care packages.

I am currently sending care packages to 4 contacts.  But, yes once this unit comes home I will be joyful and then add a new contact to my "rotation".

I think what I will do is put together several care packages in zipper baggies that include the travel size tissues, chapstick, hometown postcard, slipper socks and travel size toiletries.  I will have to check out the inflateable pillows. 

If anyone has anything to add let me know!  I so very much appreciate the ideas. 

 

Maggie,

I am getting some redeployment boxes ready to send my group of marines due home in a couple of months.  I am including hard candies, chewing gum, earplugs and sleep masks for anyone who wants to sleep on the flight, will add new magazines right before I seal the boxes.   I also plan to throw in a couple decks of cards and some handheld electronic games like Texas Hold'em and Blackjack.

I am also toying with the idea of getting some personalized M&Ms that say something like 'Thank you Marine' and 'You Rock!'   A friend of mine sent some Hershey Kisses to one of her groups, you can get Kisses with personalized messages on the little strip of paper sticking out of the Kiss.  Hers said 'Thank you!'  They were a big hit.  Have to do Kisses during the COOL, safe-chocolate shipping season!

 

 

I am getting together some "I've got all night duty" boxes:  with some Red Bull, Coffee Singles, Snickers, granola bar, propel drink packets, and a little pack of cheez its...all in a ziplock to grab and go...they've been a hit in the past...

Wow.....after reading about the themed packages.....I felt like an IDIOT that I never thought of it before.   Such wonderful ideas..........my next batch of boxes will certainly be a theme!!!   Thanks for all the great suggestions and themes.   God Bless our "adopted" children and families and all of us for what we do for them. 

Anne Marie

Anne Marie,

Don't feel bad, I didn't consider a "theme" care package either until I read this forum!  Make sure you go all the back in this thread to the very first posting by "Las Vegas Angel" for some amazing ideas!  Making up these packages adds A LOT of fun to shopping for them.  I found some 11" square easter baskets at the 99 Cents Store yesterday that should just fit into the new flat rate box.  Enjoy!

Anne 

I'm still chuckling about "road kill s'mores"....marshmellow peeps, hershey bars, and graham cracker package!

Try the "road kill s'mores" with gummy worms sticking out.  Grandkids did that...jz

I am simply amazed at the the number of themed care packages that are here.  Like someone said earlier, you won't run out of ideas!  This is so cool.  Thanks for all the ideas!!!

Dave

Re-deployment theme care packages.  I had thought.  would soldiers appreciates a couple of brush up?   those single use, finger tip, tooth brush things? 

I think anyone who's on an airplane or in an airport for a long time would love having Brush-Ups as a backup. In any group, one person will always either forget their toothbrush or have it packed somewhere inaccessible.  It's also good for at least one person in a group on a plane to have a small thing of Benedryl and some Pepto chewables.

If you're doing travel packs for several people, you might want to consider having basic items that everyone gets and then one add-on that's different for each person

Thanks for the great ideas.  I am going to do a movie night box for one of my units.  Along with the movies I am planing popcorn, movie theater type candy, and maybe whole dill pickles (that is probably dating me but that used to be a big thing when I was a kid).  And I found some movie posters on line that I printed out on standard 8 1/2 X 11 paper and will put on stiff cardboard so they can pin them up in their movie area. 

Jon

Thats a great idea! I am in the planning stage for sending one of my groups a Pasta night, or Italian night. I have sauce (in plastic bottles) 2 kinds of pasta, spices, pepper and salt grinders, and I still have to get some of those hard bread sticks, a red and white checked table cloth and napkins, some biscotti, oilve oil, and a cd of Italian music...if I can find something. I was hoping for something like cheezy cafe music or the like. If I can fit it in, I would like to get some plastic plates/bowls and a spagetti claw (I don't remember what it is called...but you know what I mean!)

 

Heidi