November is Service to the Armed Forces Month. For the third year in a row, the American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes are working together to send holiday cards to service members, veterans, and their families. Give back this holiday season by sharing your kind words and thanks with those who have given a great deal to their country.
Cards are being accepted between November 2 - December 7, 2009. After reading the guidelines (below), create and send your card(s) to the following address:Holiday Mail For Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456
Guidelines to ensure your card is mailed successfully:
DO...- Postmark your cards by Monday, December 7th. Cards submitted after the deadline will be returned to sender.
- Ensure that all cards are signed.
- Make cards more meaningful to a wide variety of recipients by using “Dear Service Member, Family or Veteran”
- You are encouraged to send holiday-neutral cards rather than religious-themed cards.
- Cards addressed to specific individuals cannot be delivered through this program.
- Limit the number of cards to 15 from any one person or 50 from any one school class, business or group. If you are mailing a large quantity, please bundle the cards and place them in large mailing envelopes. Each card does not need its own envelope, as envelopes will be removed from all cards before distribution.
Do NOT...
- Send letters. Only cards are being accepted.
- Include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
- Include cards with excessive amounts of glitter. Because cards may be received by wounded service members and veterans in hospitals, large quantities of glitter could aggravate existing health problems.
- Include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process.
After December 7, the P.O. box will close. All cards will be screened for hazardous materials by Pitney Bowes and then reviewed by Red Cross volunteers working around the country. Then, the cards are sent out to recipients in time for the holidays.
More information:
For the second year in a row, the American Red Cross of Northeast Indiana is offering FREE First Aid and CPR training sessions to residents of DeKalb, Noble, and Steuben counties. This opportunity is made possible by the generosity of the Olive B. Cole Foundation.
