Support for servicemen

Support for servicemen

It seemed like a good idea, but there was a hitch.

A friend recently sent me this note: “When you are making out your Christmas card list this year, please include the following: A recovering American soldier, c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center.”

Terrific idea – send a holiday greeting to one of the many soldiers who are recovering from battle wounds. Let’s face it, that’s the very least we can do when it comes to supporting the men and women who have sacrificed so much on our behalf.

But just a few minutes after receiving that e-mail, my friend forwarded an additional note from Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The officials at WRAMC will not accept letters, cards, or packages addressed to “any soldier” or “a recovering soldier.” Apparently, this is a post-9/11 safety measure.

But the Walter Reed note contained this link to a web site called America Supports you: http://www.americasupportsyou.mil

This is a wonderful site where civilians can go to find organizations that offer a wide variety of support for servicemen. In addition, military personnel and their families can use the site to access different forms of assistance available to them.

I know that many HSI members recall the spirit of national sacrifice that pulled U.S. citizens together during WW II. In that spirit, I have a friend who tells me he’s planning something special for the holiday season. He’s going to forgo gift-giving this year, and instead will make individual donations on behalf of his friends and family to organizations that support servicemen.

Now there’s an idea whose time is overdue.