Saturday, May 25, 2013

Adopt A Soldier

    
It has been almost a month since I have posted on the blog...wow, horrible! Like everyone else I am  busy, pulled in many directions with work, parenting, and the dribs and drabs of daily life. But I love the Blend, and return to it today in order to give readers a worthwhile organization to look into, and potentially get involved with.

In honor of Memorial Day, I decided to share a link and info about a group I have become involved, with, called Adopt-A-Soldier. Getting involved is easy, and exactly what it sounds like: I adopted a U.S. soldier currently serving overseas. I am not allowed to know his exact location - only that he is in a remote region of Afghanistan. He hikes for miles daily, and sometimes does not have access to a computer for long periods of time to check in with friends and family, and keep up with life back home. He signed up to "be adopted," and I was more than happy to do so. His simple first request? Snacks that he and his fellow soldiers can store in their pockets while hiking long distances.

Snacks? That's it? No problem! I then reached out to ten friends (friends with teens and older kids - asking a parent to add anything to their May/June calendar is painful enough), and asked them to supply snacks. They came in in torrents - bags hanging from my front door handle, bags on the front steps, and one friend unloaded the back of his SUV with loads of goodies (thanks, Troy!) I will handle the packaging and mailing. We have hopefully gathered together enough snacks for my soldier (now our soldier), and many of his unit to enjoy. Most importantly: some soldiers serve with minimal support to no support from back home - no letters or packages ever come their way while they serve. There is something we can do about that, from the comfort of our homes.

You can learn more by clicking here. I am going to try to send out a box a month. Maybe you have a group of friends or family that can participate in this worthwhile project? The freedoms you have are defended by young men and women you will never meet, at great cost.  Surely we can help with snacks, socks, letters, and love. To our solider, Tony - wherever you are, you are an honorary Reilly. Thank you.

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