#1 We need volunteers to plan this year's events and care packages. Calling, media, fundraising, making stockings, pillow cases, treats, coordinating schools making cards/banners/assemblies/pick ups. (Thank Ann Jensen and Shirleen Bess for coordinating Stocking Makers again this year, but Director's spinal chord injuries won't allow her to do as much as past 4 yrs, VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!). We need volunteers to help us call companies, state-wide events this year for booth, and prepare for Welcome HOme this Summer.
ATTN: Schools please get your 4th of July Cards and Banners in by June 5th. Please contact us to pick them up by June 5th or sooner from your School District offices.
WE need all the help to accomplish this and get all military and their families contacted:
WE are collecting 1000s of 4th of July cards and have over 50 10 foot banners of Welcome HOme and Thank YOU made by Utah schools by June 1st.
From our wonderful friend we love very much and wife of a soldier:
"Denise,
My goodness, what an amazing woman you are! I am floored at the things you can do, and I am so glad to be able to participate and help! I just feel bad that you probably have thought I dropped off the face of the planet since the homecoming. ... just getting back to "normal" life around here. But, I want you to know that I so appreciate all that you did to provide the banners for the homecoming. It really made a difference, and I can't imagine not having you there that day. The pictures were so beautiful too, and I can't thank you enough for taking them and emailing them to us.
What do you need my help with? What can I be doing to help you move your projects forward?
Please let me know, and thanks again for everything!!!!"
~KaSsiE
What do you think about contacting MIchelle Obama and Dr. Biden, and the "JOining Forces" Tour to Show support for Military families and bring them here to Utah with a Huge Concert, Celebration and donations to our military families I have been planning? Is this a good thing, or not? Some people have not been happy about his so I am not sure if we should get involved. Just let us know what you know. But any support for our US military and their families is a plus.
This is an amazing BAnd of Wonderful Hero Warriors:
"I would like to offer my bands services to this event. As you can see
We are the only All Wounded Warrior band currently touring the warrior transition
Units across the US in support of other wounded soldiers like us.
Our band also provides outreach for suicide prevention and using music as a healing tool among the many programs we offer.Check out our website and let me know what everyone thinks. Thank you for the support!
Sent from the desk of"
SSG(ret) Paul Delacerda
President / Drummer
On Point Photography / Warrior Spirit Music Inc.
Warrior Spirit is a Texas Non-Profit Corp.
"This sounds like a great idea. What kind of support are you looking for from the Red Cross and where would you be having this event so I know which office will be closest to the event? Please keep me updated on this!
Thank you,"
Taryn D.
Service to Armed Forces Coordinator
American Red Cross"FYI....thought this would be a great opportunity for the interfaith community to join together. Let me know what you think!
Go for it! I will support you in any way that I can."
Forever In
Him
Jo-Ellyn
We are so excited to announce a wonderful new member of our Sponsors Family STERIPEN Water Purification Systems that our military already use. But not all of them have one when serving in Afghanistan and so we hope to put some in their care packages this year. This water filtration system is so fast, less moving parts, and easier to use than any other filtration system. Eveyone should have one with them at all times in their survival pack. Go to http://www.steripen.com/outdoor to order one today.
"Hi Denise-
I received your email and would like to send out the SteriPEN Sidewinder and SteriPEN Emergency .......will let you know what we can send for the Letter to Soldiers.
I shipped a SteriPEN Sidewinder and an Emergency model to you yesterday to arrive on Monday—via UPS. I did not have the chance to include a cover letter, but please know that we appreciate your support and your assistance with letting folks know about our UV water purifiers.
I included some handouts as well. I included one catalog--Our product catalog is being revised.right now…I can send more if you think it would be useful…
For the Letters to Soldiers (packages), Hydro-Photon will donate 10 SteriPEN Emergency pens and one set of 4 lithium AA batteries for each unit. These items will ship by the end of April. I wish that we could do more…perhaps next year J
Regarding the Emergency unit, one of my favorite features is the tapered end that allows the purifier to mate with canteens or with commercial water bottles –this allows me to either reuse the bottle. See image attached. This tapered end also mates with our Pre-Filter (see 2nd image—shows Classic white model, but same principle). When using in a bottle, the 3 easy steps are:
1. Press button once for 1 L volume
2. Insert into bottle or Pre-Filter and Flip
3. Swirl water around UV lamp until green LED appears.
FYI, I’m out of the office next week at a tradeshow but back in on 4/18…let me know if you have any questions. I do expect to have access to email Monday night should you have questions on the Sidewinder and Emergency unit for the class. You can also call Kayla, our customer service manager, while I’m on the road….her direct line is 207-374-8956 or 1-888-SteriPEN.
Denise, thank you again for sharing information about the SteriPEN with your community…"
Pam
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Sidewinder (No
batteries required)
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Adventurer Opti | Classic |
Thank you as always Sheresse for collecting from Cache and Logan School Districts:
"Denise, what deadline for the letters. I am sending out notices to our districts tomorrow so we should expect to see plenty, I hope, as usual. Sherese"
Scout doing EAgle Project:
"I have looked at the web site and have been thinking about sending thank you letter to the soldiers around the 4th of July what do you think. I though that i could collect letters form the school around the valley by the end of this school year."
Todd
"Hi my name is Heather B., I am a military wife. I think that this is a great program and was wondering if you have every thought of expanding the program to other states besides Utah? I would love it if this could be spread to my husbands unit because He was deployed last Christmas and very few people got care packages. I always hear from the men and women in the unit about how they love to get letters from schools and other people besides family, but with this last deployment they said that there was hardly any. I would just love it if other states and other units could share this too.
HAVE A GREAT DAY! XOXOXOXOXOXOXO"
03/21/11 The 25 Banners made by Utah Middle and High Schools Welcomed HOme Utah Soldiers with their families: Welcome Home Soldiers:
Thank you Kassie and Eagle Mountain Mayor for inviting us to join the Eagle Mountain Welcome HOme Parade for 3 soldiers. The Mayor invited us to Memorial Day Event with Letters to Soldiers table.
03/19/11 "Would you like to bring the banners with you ....? Tell them you are with ....s family ...not sure how much they will let us put up, but we'll try! Great Thank you so much for your help. ....Me too! You're wonderful!" From an ARMY FRG leader we are bringing Thank You banners to help Welcome Home soldiers. Their families enjoyed the free tickets Donated by Odyssey Dance Theatre production of "Romeo and Juliet" last night.
"My name is Tamara. I am .... I come from a family who has had many members serve our country in the Army, Air Force and Navy. It is with the utmost respect and admiration that I am humbled by the selflessness displayed by our troops. Last February, I lost my 21 year-old cousin who was on active-duty in the Air Force. The Air Force treated my family with such respect and kindness that I vowed to someday give back in any way that I can. As part of that promise, I am reaching out to you to see if there is a way that I can offer my services to help your organization and support your cause. I have had experience with organizing and sending letters to the troops on a smaller scale through the company I work for. I am highly organized and feel confident I can handle whatever tasks or support that is needed by Letterstosoldiers.org.
Thank you for all your efforts to support our troops. Please let me know if there is any current opportunities available to volunteer for your organization."
Sincerely, Tamara J.
03/18/11 Re: More Hand Made Stockings, Red White and Blue Pillow Cases and other items needed:
" I am helping gathering home
made Christmas Stockings for this organization the past 2 years and I am doing
it again this Christmas also. They are due this October, by the first of the
month. I also go and help them package these and other gifts for our deployed
vets. Any one who can sew is welcome to help. Let me know okay?" Re:
tickets to Odyssey Dance Theatre "I
will ask her today when we have lunch with our National Auxiliary Commander
visiting Utah.
How would we get the tickets for tonight at Kingsbury?"
03/09/11 We need a company that makes single use packets of laundry detergent to help our soldiers do their wash in AFghanistan please:
"Our Brothers at .. are in need of
laundry detergent. I will be finding out who the POC at .. is so ya'all
can address the pakages acordingly. Thank you very much.
The platoon that resides.... could use a lot of laundry
detergent; single load pkts, if the people are sending more care
packages.
They do not have a PX at ... and we are having a hard time getting it
thru the supply system.
The guys have to wash their own clothes; no laundry system at the ....
If they can help until we get the supply system working would be great."
"Hi Denise
Sorry to hear about your struggles with the injury. Hang in there. Your selfless
service to the military and families is amazing.
All the best,"
JP (milblogging.com)
Annual 4th of July Cards/Banners School Contest is underway. GET YOUR CARDS IN BY JUNE. School Assembly with gifts presented by soldiers for winning school with most cards. Come watch last year's winner of the MOst 4th of July Cards Assembly Video:
Utah's Cache Valley and Logan School Districts honored for most 4th of July Cards and visited by soldiers. Read more
27 Welcome HOme "Thank You"
Banners were made Martin Luther King Jr. Service Day by NO UT High School
Students at Weber University Davis Campus. Thank you Red Cross for inviting us.
click pic
to see more pics. Look under Press to see Standard Examiner article)
SUPPORT THE FAMILIES OF THE DEPLOYED:
01/14/11 The Utah Red Cross has invited us to come help high school students make WElcome Home Banners. They will be painting ones like Excelsior Preporatory School made last year that we took to airport welcome homes, Welcome HOme Parties and family events for military. Want to come help Monday Martin Luther King Day at WEber State 9am.
From one of the FRG leaders of a deployed unit we started to support: (We need a restaurant to cater a lunch, we need baby items, gift items, and we are having one school project with Red Cross at WEber State to have 100 kids make 10 WElcome HOme Banners but need more cards of Thank you made by other schools. Volunteers to do calling needed please info@letterstosoldiers.org
"Dear Denise,
I just wanted to let you know that the leftover gift bags that you donated to our FRG's Christmas party were very much appreciated. It was a treat to come by your home and see all of the wonderful things that you are doing to support the soldiers and their families. My daughter and I were very touched and hope to be able to help you do more good things for other military families. Thankfully, my husband's deployment is winding down very quickly, and they will be home before we know it!
When you and I spoke last month, you asked me to remind you about some of the things that you might be able to help our FRG with. I am not sure if you remember the details or not, so I will recap.
We also discusses the upcoming deployment of the huge other unit leaving sometime in the spring or summer. I told you that I know the Orthodontist in Richfield that rallied the support of the community to raise thousands of dollars and throw an incredible Christmas party for the soldier's families. He is a really nice man, and I know he would be a great person for you to coordinate with in support of that effort. I am sure he is gearing up as we speak. His name and contact information is below.
Thank you again! I look forward to hearing from you, and I hope you'll let us know if we can ever help with your cause in any way!"
K
We ask everyone to look for all your old cell phones and send them to us so we can send them to our dear friends of 4 yrs Cell Phones for Soldiers who has sent us 1000s of calling cards to put in the soldiers' care packages:
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"I'm really hoping your heath has improved and I know you need to be there
helping your dad more and more. I'm sorry it's been so rough on you!
Last I heard you were looking for someone to step up and help with all the
year-long planning and soliciting of donations -- and while I am unable to offer
that myself, my brother who works at The Christmas Box House in Ogden said they
have 200 Christmas stockings left over and wondered if you -- or whoever is
helping you -- would want them.
I'm sorry I can't be of more help. I hope you have had some support from some
of your past volunteers.
Let me know if you'd like the stockings."
- Fran
"Letters to Soldiers is a non-profit organization here in Utah that gathers letters from elementary, junior high and high school students to send to Soldiers that are deployed from the state in Iraq and Afghanistan. They also send Christmas Care Packages to all the Soldiers deployed from local military units. I can let their Chairperson tell you more and talk to you about how you can work an Eagle Scout project under the umbrella of her organization. Your point of contact would be D.... I have CCed her on this email, so she can touch base with you as well. Her email address is: info@letterstosoldiers.net
I hope this is helpful. I spoke to Denise last week and she is excited to assist or provide an avenue for you to conduct your Eagle project.
Good luck and let me know if you need any further assistance from me."
V/R
MAJ Andrew W. Jones
405th Civil Affairs Battalion
Chief of Operations
We always
want
to let
you know
about
the
great
productions
by our
friends
at Odyssey
Dance
Theatre
that
gives
us tickets
for
our
military
families
since
2008
and this
next month's production is really cool:
SHUT UP AND DANCE 2011! | March 10-19 | Kingsbury Hall Thank you Annie and everyone for donating 30 $25 tickets for families of Deployed Utah Soldiers this year.
ROMEO+JULIET:
March 10, 11, 12, 14, 17, 18, 19: all Romeo+Juliet performances are at 7:30 p.m.
Back by popular demand, see what the Deseret News said was, "..to die for!" A full-length work, based on the Shakespearean tale about star-crossed lovers, but in the Odyssey tradition: a hip-hop version! Choreographed by Odyssey Principal Eldon Johnson, along with sections by Ashleigh and Ryan Di Lello from "So You Think You Can Dance," Derryl Yeager and others, this is a unique and powerful tour de force! Truly a highly charged and time honored story!
DANCESCAPES:
March 12 (2:00 p.m.), 15 (7:30 p.m.), 16 (7:30 p.m.), 19 (2:00 p.m.)
Odyssey's Spring Repertory Season, where the dancers stretch their artistic muscle and create new, exciting works. Deseret News said, "Odyssey Dance Theatre's Shut-Up and Dance season only proves that it is a company to be taken seriously. Bravo!" This year's Dancescapes will include 4 world premiere works! Artistic Director Derryl Yeager will be using the instrumental music of Imogen Heap to create a new 40- minute abstract work called: Heap! Travis Wall and Mandy Moore from "So You Think You Can Dance" are scheduled to create new works as is long-time Odyssey Principal Dancer and Associate Director - Christina Bluth! Truly a dance lover's buffet of cutting edge choreography - this program will most assuredly have something for everyone!
