12 Days of Giving for American Troops

WASHINGTON — There are only 12 days until Christmas, but it's not too late to spread holiday cheer and show support for the more than 170,000 U.S. troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

With a credit card and a Web address, Americans can donate anything from space heaters to Gatorade, frequent flyer miles, prepaid phone cards and special care packages to help bolster the morale of Americans in harm's way.

Donors don't need to know a soldier or have an address. There are organizations that work through the military to identify recipients.

"Those who are away from their families right now appreciate anything that anyone can do for them," said U.S. Army Lt. Col. William Thurmond, spokesman for the Army & Air Force Exchange Service, based in Dallas, Texas. Through a program called "Gifts from the Homefront," Americans can send gift certificates troops can use like cash at 114 stores and fast food locations at AAFES operations in Iraq.

"I have tons of soldiers that would like to hear from folks," said Frankie Mayo. Her organization, Operation AC, has sent 10,000 air conditioners to U.S. fighting troops abroad. She's now sending space heaters: a $38 donation gets one to a serviceman or woman.

Don't send packages, letters or holiday cards to military installations addressed to "Any Soldier." In the post-Sept. 11 world, the U.S. Postal Service won't deliver the parcels; most medical facilities aren't equipped to process them.

Supporters can send holiday greetings to wounded soldiers, however, through the American Red Cross.

"It's heart-warming to read them," said Amy Slemmer, executive officer with the American Red Cross. "There is still time and they will make a difference."

In the days remaining until Christmas, here are 12 ways Americans can help remember the troops over the holidays.

On the 12th day 'til Christmas I ...

Wrote a Holiday Card to a Wounded Soldier

Send a card or note with a holiday greeting and words of encouragement to:

We Support You During Your Recovery!

c/o American Red Cross

P.O. Box 419

Savage, Md., 20763-0419

Note: For security and handling reasons, packages are NOT accepted. Cards received after Dec. 27 will be returned to sender.

Contact:

www.redcross.org

800-RED-CROSS

On the 11th day 'til Christmas I ...

Gave the Gift of Warmth

A $38 donation to Operation AC, a non-profit organization, gets a new space heater delivered to a U.S. soldier in Iraq or Afghanistan. It's winter. It's cold. The troops need these heaters.

Contact:

www.operationac.com

560 Peoples Plaza

Box 121

Newark, DE., 19702

302 836-1008

On the 10th day 'til Christmas I ...

Donated Frequent Flyer Miles

Wounded soldiers often need medical treatment far from home. The Fisher House Foundation, a non-profit charity, operates a program called Hero Miles, through which travelers may donate frequent flyer points that can be used for transportation to help families reunite.

Go to www.fisherhouse.org, click on the Hero Miles logo and follow the prompts to donate frequent flyer miles.

Contact:

www.fisherhouse.org

Toll Free 888-294-8560

1401 Rockville Pike

Suite 600

Rockville, Md., 20852

On the 9th day 'til Christmas I ...

Sent a Care Package

A $10 donation pays to send a care package to a serviceman or woman in Iraq or Afghanistan through Operation Gratitude. The contents - music, computer flash drives, snacks, coffee, tee-shirts, lip balm and personal toiletries - are donated. Workers volunteer their time. The money is needed for shipping and handling. This outfit has sent 300,000 care packages over the past four years. Founder Carolyn Blashek says they're pushing to get the last of their holiday packages out by early next week. To do it, she said, "We really need that money."

Donations can be made in someone's honor or memory, and Operation Gratitude will acknowledge that in a tribute letter to the donor or person of their choosing.

Contact:

www.opgratitude.com

818 909-0039

Operation Gratitude

16444 Refugio Rd.

Encino, Ca., 91436

818 909-0039

On the 8th day 'til Christmas I ...

Sent the Troops Some Gatorade

Move America Forward, a non-profit charity dedicated to supporting U.S. forces engaged in global anti-terrorism efforts, is working in conjunction with The Campaign Store, a commercial advocacy group, to make it easy for donors to send Gatorade, beef jerky and coffee to the troops.

For $37, a box of three large packs of beef jerky and three packets of Gatorade mix - each packet makes one gallon - will be sent to an American fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan. For $150, a squad pack goes out with 15 Gatorade packets and 10 packs of jerky.

Contact:

www.moveamericaforward.org

916 441-6197

P.O. Box 1497

Sacramento, Ca., 95812

On the 7th day 'til Christmas I ...

Took a Soldier to the Mall. Or, as close to it as possible in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The Army and Air Force Exchange Service operates the stores and fast food outlets at most military bases - some 3,100 facilities worldwide, including 114 in Iraq. The stores are for U.S. forces and their dependents, who go to AAFES for everything from hamburgers to Harley-Davidsons.

Through the AAFES "Gifts from the Homefront" program, donors can visit the Web site and buy gift certificates for the troops.

Contact:

www.aafes.com

214 312-2011

P.O. Box 660202

Dallas, TX., 75266-0202

On the 6th day 'til Christmas I ...

Backed a Wounded Warrior

A $99 donation provides an injured serviceman or woman with a Wounded Warrior Backpack stuffed with toiletries, clothing essentials, CD player, prepaid phone cards and other personal items when they arrive at a military trauma center.

The backpacks are put together and distributed by the Wounded Warrior Project, a non-profit charitable organization that provides advocacy and support for the severely wounded, as well as outdoor activities and organized sports for disabled veterans.

Contact:

www.woundedwarriorproject.org

(toll free) 877-TEAM-WWP

7020 AC Skinner Pkwy

Suite 100

Jacksonville, Fl. 32256

On the 5th day 'til Christmas I ...

Helped a Soldier Call Home

Especially during the holidays, troops want to hear the voice of a loved one back home. The cost of overseas calls, though, takes a bite out of the pocket of a serviceman or woman. Through a program called Operation Uplink, donors can provide pre-paid calling cards to troops deployed abroad. The program is operated by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, a non-profit public charity that supports military men and women.

Contact:

www.operationuplink.org

816 756-3390

VFW Operation Uplink

VFW National Headquarters

406 W. 34th St.

Kansas City, Mo. 64111

On the 4th day 'til Christmas I ...

Entertained the Troops

Toby Keith, Carrie Underwood and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are just a few of those who have entertained U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, courtesy of the USO. The non-profit charity relies on donations to maintain its mission of boosting force morale by taking entertainment to the troops.

Contact:

www.uso.org

800 876-7469 (toll free)

USO World Headquarters

Department WS

P.O. Box 96860

Washington, D.C., 20090-6860

On the 3rd day 'til Christmas I ...

Helped a Wounded Soldier Log On

For a severely wounded veteran, a voice-activated laptop computer can be a Godsend. A $600 donation buys one and gets it delivered to a soldier, sailor, airman or Marine through Project Valour-IT, operated by the non-profit charity Soldiers' Angels. Donors needn't spring for the whole thing: contributions of all denominations are welcomed.

Contact:

www.soldiersangels.org

Soldiers' Angels

Project Valour-IT Fund

1792 E. Washington Blvd.

Pasadena, Ca., 91104

On the 2nd day 'til Christmas I ...

Remembered a Fallen American

Operation Remembrance is a non-profit charity run by four Army wives in Georgia and Texas. The organization provides small, hand made cherry memory boxes as a keepsake for the family of a soldier killed in Iraq or Afghanistan as a way to memorialize their life and aid grieving loved ones.

Contact:

www.operationremembrance.org

547-A Dickman Rd.

Fort Bliss, TX, 79906

On the last day 'til Christmas I ...

Thanked a Chaplain

A $20 donation to Adop-a-Chaplain Inc., a non-profit Christian ministry, provides a care package of toiletries, snack foods, CDs and other personal items to one of the roughly 100 chaplains deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Contact:

www.adopt-a-chaplain.org

408 600-8884

2433 Le Bain Drive

San Jose, Ca., 95130-2115