In Honor of Memorial Day, a Big Thank You to Our Military!

I will pass on your Thank YOU to my husband, that was very kind ML B.

My husband served during the 1st Gulf War, My Father served during the Vietnam War and my Grandfather on my Dad's side served his country as well...all US ARMY and I too, am thankful for each and everyone of our wonderfully brave servicemen!

~Does your city have a veterans hospital? You could always go down and volunteer to be a modern day 'Candy Strip-er' ----(I know that is not the correct spelling but I still can not figure out the spell check on my Mac, sorry)!

I would like to say thank you, as well. And not just to our soldiers, but to their families, that they leave behind for extended periods of time. Myself, and my family, thank you and pray for you!

I just saw a Veteran today at the post office, he was wearing a Korean War Veteran hat that's how I knew. I specifically stopped him and thanked him for his service. I used to work with a WWII veteran a few years ago and I would thank him every Memorial Day & Veteran's Day. I couldn't believe he was still working in his 80s! Sharp as a tack. He always said that was the highlight of his day as many people forgot that he had served.
I also just cleaned out all my closets and donated everything to Purple Heart. They sell it and then use the money for veterans.

Teach your children to love and respect our flag. Teach them the Star Spangled Banner, all 4 verses. (I don't mean memorize all four, but they should know the first verse by heart.)

Make it a point to show them by your actions you love our country and the soldiers that served. (When you see a soldier in uniform, tell them thanks for serving. Encourage your kids to do so too!)

Thanks for asking the question. All of us who serve or served thank you.
USAF: my father and my son. Army: Me (paratrooper, 82nd Airborne Division), My grandfather, my great grandfather, my great great grand father, my great great, great grandfather (Civil War) and so on to my 9th great grandfather who fought in the Revolutionary War

Freedom isn't free. The price was paid for by our veterans and their families. Good Luck to you and yours.

Thanks for posting this!

And, a big thank you to those of you here who have served selflessly in the military to ensure our rights, freedom, and safety.

Also, thank you to the families (moms, dads, kids, parents, etc.) who allow us to 'borrow' your loved ones when they are deployed or doing relevant tasks to keep our country safe.

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3756061&...

this is a magazine article that has several charities including ...

Pizzas for Patritos
Hugs for Soldiers
Homes for our Troops
Cell Phones for Soldiers
Project Valour

I too thank all those that are serving or have served our great nation. Freedom isn't free and so many times, people forget what Memorial day is all about, honoring those that have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom, and instead, it's only about the holiday. I think there needs to be more patriotism and honoring those that have served and have died in service. There should be no homeless vets, for one!

There are plenty of ways to show our appreciation! And kudos to you for helping.

http://www.soldiersangels.org/
http://www.greenbeanscoffee.com/coj/
http://www.nchv.org/get_involved.cfm
http://www.helpingahero.org/
http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/
http://www.military.com/benefits/resources/support-our-tr...
http://www.anysoldier.com/
http://www.amillionthanks.org/

There are so many ways to show our gratitude!

I think you have a National Military cemetery near you - if you do - go help lay wreaths on our fallen soldiers graves. We got to Arlington and pay respects to those we knew and lost....Kobar Towers was a bad day for us....

Go to your local Veterans Office or support group with cookies and something like banana bread...have your kids make pictures....

I send "care" packages to our friends who are currently deployed....brownies, chocolate chip cookies, silly string and the like....pictures from my boys!! Always makes 'em smile!

i personally call all of my military friends on Memorial Day and Veterans day - if i can't get a hold of them via the phone - I e-mail them.

One of my closest friends is a recipient of THREE purple hearts from Vietnam. My Dad is a Korea and Vietnam vet....

Any chance I get - I say THANK YOU....being a military wife - I know what it's like....never easy!!

GO YOU!!

Thanks, ML B. I'll pass on your thank you to my brother. He's in the VA National Guard, and has done one tour of duty in Iraq. He's been told he might be going to Afghanistan next year. I know that on Veteran's Day and Memorial Day (or any time he's in his uniform) he feels a sense of pride for his country when he gets "thank yous" from people he doesn't even know. I believe we, as a country, should uphold our troops and support them in every way we can!

Hi.

I belong to a group called Soldiers' Angels. (www.soldiersangels.org) we have several military support groups.

- Operation Top Knot, (soldiersangels.org/top-knot.html)
I participate with this one. We provide virtual/mailbox baby showers to Military moms-to-be. We just hosted a physical shower for 170 moms-to-be at Ft. Hood on April 30! I just LOVE packing up a box of baby stuff and sending it off. Sometimes I get emotional thank-you cards, sometimes I don't. That's okay.

- Adopt a Soldier or group - you agree to send a letter every week and at least one package a month to a soldier from the time of 'adoption' through the end of their deployment. I currently have one adoptee that is coming home soon (yea!). There are several ladies that have 5+. I think the rule is you can only adopt one every 30 days...

- Any soldier - through the store site, you can send a care package to 'any soldier'. I've done this. Its pretty cool to have a package of coffee show up 'just because!'

- One Time Care Packages: this is an 'as needed' request group for those who want to help but not the commitment of Adopting a soldier or group.

- There are 18 others sub-groups: letter writing, Wounded Warriors, Blankets of Hope.

You can also just send donation items to the SA Warehouse in San Antonio. There is a list of items, ideas on the website under 'Donate'. These items ARE tax-deductible.

The thing to keep in mind is that you may or may not get a response to your packages, and your adoptee may or may not respond to your letters. They mention that up front and its okay! My adoptee won't tell me anything personal beyond that he's married with kids from Nebraska. That's okay. I don't know exactly where he's stationed, just the APO area, so I know he's in the Middle East, but that's it. He sometimes responds to email, and sometimes its 2 months. That's okay. He's a bit busy!!

I did send him an email on May 2 to thank him and his group, and if he knew any SEALS, for my birthday present, (bday is May 1) and he responded with 'You're welcome!'... that was only the 3rd or 4th time he's responded since August.

Another local group is Operation Home Front
(http://www.operationhomefront.net/)

M.

Thank you for your post. If there is one good thing about this stupid ongoing war, it is the raised awareness in the public and the heightened appreciation for what they are going though.

My hubby is "lifer" AGR in the CONG. (Full time in the Colo National Guard = ) and the things that have meant the most to us are the little things that the local community has done for us. We have had people offer us personal thank you's and offer to buy our dinner or cover our movie rental, just because he was in uniform. It was great to feel appreciated on a more personal scale and it lets our kids see how important Daddy's job is which in turn makes it easier to accept when he has to leave for extended periods of time.

Thank you to all the soldiers out there both past and present. Thank you to all the families behind the scenes fighting the every day battles to provide these people with all the love and support they need. I think your job is equally hard and not always as appreciated.

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