2010 - Messages from soldiers
Thank you again so much for sending us so many goodies! The people here love everything that has been sent. Every time a package comes I set out the goodies so people can grab whatever they want or need as they are exiting the dining facility. It has worked out very well!
The hand warmers have come in pretty handy here, there are nights when it drops into the 40's and we have people standing guard outside 24/7 so I'm sure they really appreciate it. I think it will start warming up again around March so if you do have more hand warmers I'm sure they will get used!
Thank you again for the time and energy you have been putting toward taking care of us ... I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your doing. It really means a lot for us to know there are people back home thinking of us! Oh yes, and by the way, Happy New Year!
Sincerely, Jerry
-------
I would like to thank you for all of your support and help throughout our deployment it has really meant a lot and I know the packages have meant a lot as well to all of us. Just to think sending out one email got everyone phone cards and food and stuff for the whole time we were here its been awesome I will have to get yalls address so whenever I come through I will stop and meet everyone.
John W
-------
Thank you for what your organization is doing! Every Soldier who has received something has a huge smile on their face! They are just amazing ... when we go out to an orphanage I will take some pictures of the kids getting the items that you sent. I am then going to take the other items out to another more isolated FOB that doesn't have a PX and set them up with some of the stuff you sent.
Just know that everything will have a happy home and we can not thank you enough for your support and what you do. Your organization is wonderful, you are doing great things for the Soldiers.
Jacklyn
-------
THANK YOU SO MUCH! The soldiers out here received some packages from your organization and I have to pass down about 10-15 thanks your way from other soldiers. How can we help you guys!! You truly are making it easier and more relaxing for us out here! We use to have a trailor
store (USO) out here and they took it away because our fob has been taken over by the Iraqi forces so we have nothing except mail to get us by.
Samantha F.
-------
I was able to drop off a bunch of boxes that we repacked and sent out to some of the various bases around our area. I'll have you know that the voices of the guys on the ground as they talked to us on the radio was a cheerful and appreciative one. They were so very excited to see what you gave them.
Thank you so much for sending the coffee. All the items sent were very appreciated. We had a fun time sorting through everything and passing them on to the outlying bases.
You're doing a great job! Keep it up!
Princeton
-------
We received your packages. WOW!!! Thank you. Apparently the things that I asked for (which was on the top of my mind) everyone in our section were really out off. The body wash, toothpaste, deodorant, those small air fresheners, and medicated foot powder went fast. I think that all the soldiers received some.
I try to be around to make sure everyone gets whatever they need. They were fighting over the "XL" flannel pajama pants because it was only one pair (those were pretty nice). If you can get more of those, it would well appreciated. If not, don't worry about it. The above items that was mentioned earlier were the ones needed the most.
Thank you for the snacks, food ,candy and the coffee (especially) that you sent. In fact, thank you all for what you do. We are trying to think of some things that we can do to show you how much we appreciate you. At times I feel like that sending you thank you letters is not enough. You give us so much, yet it seems like we respond back so little. I don't want you all to think that we really don't care, because we do care and we appreciate you all and all that you all do for us. Thank you all again and "Happy early Valentine's Day".
Ricky
-------
Nancy, I got thebatteries and charger thank you so very much, and yes we enjoyed the rest of the goodies too.
It is organizations like yours and people like you that make me so proud to be an American, we are often chastised in the news for being and arrogant and wealthy nation but yet our nation is the most giving nation in the world. Deployments such as these are difficult anyway and then there are people like yourself and the Airborne Angel Cadets that come to our rescue and create a support network that is so very important, and treasured by all of us.
I cannot thank you all enough. If you need assistance in ensuring that care packages get out to the FOBS I would be glad to do so for you...I will be here for three years ... yes you heard correctly three years. Let me know if you need assistance.
Kevin
-------
Nancy
OMG ... You all are sooooo AWESOME.. Since mail was screwed up for soooo long I got the last two boxes today.. Our fire department guys and our cops and I REALLY REALLY appreciate all you have done already.. I can't believe you sent more.. How can we ever repay you?? I wish we had something here to buy or something we could get for you .. But I WILL figure something out
before I get out of here.
Again..I can't believe you sent more..Our guys REALLY REALLY appreciate it .. For real .. I know I said it already but THANK YOU..THANK YOU... THANK YOU for everything..
Jason
-------
The people here are taking everything with a grain of salt, but it's hard to go from hot showers and port a potties to cold showers if they have water, (baby wipes if they don't), and toilets that you are not allowed to flush any paper or wipes in. Their MWR here consists solely of internet and phones, but I have a feeling it won't be long before they have books, games, and other things to do for free time as they are bringing in more people from another FOB. It is improving though, they are working on these things and more ...
I just want to say thank you again for all of your support, it really makes a huge difference over here. Especially when soldiers are at locations like this one, mail call is a huge morale booster!
But they really could use anything, games, dvds, baby wipes, laundry soap (right now we do our own laundry, but we are supposed to get a service here I just don't know when), books, magazines, I'm sure anything would be well appreciated including the golf clubs and balls if you still have them.
Oh yeah, there are roughly 800 personnel here of which there are about 25 females. Everybody has a bed as far as I know and there is not a PX here, although they do have a couple of stores run by local nationals that sell most of the necessities for personal hygiene. Thank you again for your continued support, it is very much appreciated!
Sincerely, Jerry
-------
"I must say the boxes are such a hit over (here)! I was approached by one of the units that received the last bunch of boxes, and they are in the process of adopting schools and wanted to know if we could get school supplies, simple items such as pencils, crayons, notebooks and chalk. Anyway, thank you all and for all that you do."
Kevin
-------
We decided to have a Cinco de Mayo celebration tomorrow! The chips, cheese, salsa, pinata and all the other accoutrements will make it a good one. I will send some pictures in the next couple days. The pre-packaged boxes are a great idea. That helps us out a lot over here and they will get out to the remote bases much faster. Your organization is a great one and we appreciate all you do for us over here.
Thanks, Tom
-------
Thank you guys so much for the cool ties they were gone before I could even open the box! ... I hope all is well with you and you family and ALL the cadets families. Take care and thank you again.
Mike
-------
Ms. Carter and the members of Airborne Angel Cadets of Texas,
I am writing to express and convey the heartfelt gratitude that each and every one of the over 600 Sailors at NMCB-5 experienced when we received your package of Girl Scout cookies. Many of our Sailors are on their very first deployment, and most of the rest are on their second consecutive tour in Afghanistan. It means so much to them to receive these packages from home. They are learning quickly that many of little things from the United States that they took for granted are the very things that make our country the best place in the world to live and work.
Please know that each and every day, your important work is touching and improving the lives of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines as they put themselves in harm's way at the call of their country.
God Bless all of you.
Sincerely, LTJG Nathan
-------
... stationed here in Afghan. First of all I would like to thank all of you back home for the support and care packages you send, and God Bless you all. My command is one of a kind.
We are known as SeaBees or CB (Latin Construimus Batuimus) or otherwise Construction Battalion. Our community is one of the smallest, we are associated with the navy and are building a large chunk of the support and defensive structures throughout this area, we've also been to other places in support of aiding natural disaster victims like the most recent in Haiti and war torn countries.
But this is not about us but rather you and your supporters I'm pretty sure you receive many messages of thanks so please treat this the same on behalf of myself, my staff, and others THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ... Like your prayers to us we pray for you to all Please be safe and take care.
Perry
-------
Thank you very much. We have just received the last of the 53 boxes that you have so graciously provided us. I cannot tell you how much they help the morale of the hundreds of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines here. Once again thank you for all that you and your team do for us. It has been my honor to help such a great organization make such a great impact.
Thank You, JD
-------
I wanted to thank your organization for the care package we recently recievd here at FOB Shindand Afghanistan. We do not have a BX/PX a shopette, we do not even have a place to get our haircut here.
Here at FOB Shindand we rely on packages like the one you sent for the essentials like toothpaste, shaving cream and soap because we have no where to buy these items ourselves. The girl scout cookies were deffinately an added bonus that everyone enjoyed. Thank you again, and we hope to be home soon.
Christopher
-------
Thank you for the boxes that you sent. I bet it was a fun packing party :) ... The boxes all arrived just in time for Labor Day and we distributed them at the cook out we had here to celebrate. The water balloons from the previous shipment came in handy for entertainment (we soaked our fears leader COL C) in good fun :)
Thanks! Sarah
-------
I appreciate all you have done for me, the Warlords, and Task Force Shadow. The Airborne Angel Cadets of Texas are a great organization and I am glad I had the opportunity to interact with you.
God Bless, Tom
-------
Ma'am,
I wanted to thank you and your organization personally for the items we recently received. Especially the shower heads and shower curtains.
Soldiers have a tendency get a little rough with delicate equipment. I have attached a photo of our flag poles here on Camp. Again thanks so much for all the support. I have been in the Army for more than 29 years and the support from home continues to grow and get stronger.
V/R SGM H
-------
My apologies for the late note.
The troops of the 838 Air Expeditionary Advisory Group received all seven of the care packages two weeks ago. We all appreciate the snacks, toiletries, toys and especially the coffee! Thank you and all of the Airborne Angel Cadets for all you do. It is great to know Americans like yourself give your time and effort to send us reminders of home...thank you!!!
Sincerely, Mario
-------
I wish you could see the excitement of the faces of my co-workers as they are told that boxes from the Airborne Angel Cadets have arrived. Smiles turn into mischievous grins as the competition to position themselves around the boxes begins as each person wants the best position to see what is in the box first. Once the boxes are open is when the real fun starts as the bartering and trading and racing from box to box looking for the elusive sleeve of Oreo Cookies, drink mix, packaged snack, blow-pops or favorite toothpaste causes mayhem.
With the sincerest of appreciation I thank you for your thoughtfulness, concern and never ending support.
Colonel Paul
-------
Yes, twin sheets sets and mattress pads are welcomed. I recently conducted a health and welfare and some of the Soldiers sleep on mattresses without sheets. When I asked why the young Soldiers they said that supply ran out. I feel badly for the younger Soldiers because they depend on the Army to provide everything.... just like their parents did.
I have come to realize that many Soldiers don't have anyone at home to send them items they require, that's where you and I come in. These young kids are our sons and daughters. They need my tough attitude and your kind grace.
Thank you, J. - Afghanistan
-------
To our Airborne Angel Cadets supports,
I would like to personally extend my thanks for making our deployment that much more bearable. The 4th ... is at this moment deployed on an Expeditionary Mission. This means when our unit arrived to the current location we planted our flag and said this is where we will make a Camp.
In the case of an Expeditionary Mission the unit must bring every possible thing they need. Each Soldiers is allotted a limited amount of weight for use of personal items. The senior Soldiers pack care items, while our younger Soldiers pack items for entertainment. Since our camp does not have a PX (store) for US Soldiers to acquire personal items they attempt to order what they need from on-line stores. The items you provide help with the urgent need between delivery times and those items that are hard to acquire anytime.
J.A.
-------
As one of the Brigade Planners, I have sent many of these boxes to ... the outlying Checkpoints where Soldiers have very little of anything because they are conducting 24/7 operations with Iraqi Security Forces. We marked them as Halloween gifts for Soldiers because they arrived here in time for Halloween. Soldiers were very happy to receive goodies out at these Check Points.
We, at the Brigade are ensuring that we are taking care of the Soldiers with the least because it helps to keep their spirits and morale up. I greatly appreciate all that you have done with sending care packages through "Airbone Angel Cadets of Texas." I personnally was surprised to see a lot of the Soldiers quickly grab up any reading material that came in these packages. It is impressive to see Soldiers reading to gain as much knowledge as they can, as well as reading for enjoyment. Again, thank You! The Soldiers are enjoying the goodies. I will send pictures to all of you of Soldiers with goodies from the care packages as soon as I can. Your time, effort and donations have not gone unnoticed, and they are greatly appreciated.
Respectfully, Harold
-------
Hello Angels,
I am currently working with the ... MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation program) and would like to know if it would be possible to receive some care packages for the troops. We are looking for hygiene items, snacks, Holiday cards, white socks, blankets. Some of our troops do not receive care packages and this would really help them with items that they need. Right now we currently have about 25% female and 75% male on base. We really appreciate everything that Airborne Angel Cadets have done for the troops! Thank you very much.
Amy, Afghanistan
Thank you again so much for sending us so many goodies! The people here love everything that has been sent. Every time a package comes I set out the goodies so people can grab whatever they want or need as they are exiting the dining facility. It has worked out very well!
The hand warmers have come in pretty handy here, there are nights when it drops into the 40's and we have people standing guard outside 24/7 so I'm sure they really appreciate it. I think it will start warming up again around March so if you do have more hand warmers I'm sure they will get used!
Thank you again for the time and energy you have been putting toward taking care of us ... I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your doing. It really means a lot for us to know there are people back home thinking of us! Oh yes, and by the way, Happy New Year!
Sincerely, Jerry
-------
I would like to thank you for all of your support and help throughout our deployment it has really meant a lot and I know the packages have meant a lot as well to all of us. Just to think sending out one email got everyone phone cards and food and stuff for the whole time we were here its been awesome I will have to get yalls address so whenever I come through I will stop and meet everyone.
John W
-------
Thank you for what your organization is doing! Every Soldier who has received something has a huge smile on their face! They are just amazing ... when we go out to an orphanage I will take some pictures of the kids getting the items that you sent. I am then going to take the other items out to another more isolated FOB that doesn't have a PX and set them up with some of the stuff you sent.
Just know that everything will have a happy home and we can not thank you enough for your support and what you do. Your organization is wonderful, you are doing great things for the Soldiers.
Jacklyn
-------
THANK YOU SO MUCH! The soldiers out here received some packages from your organization and I have to pass down about 10-15 thanks your way from other soldiers. How can we help you guys!! You truly are making it easier and more relaxing for us out here! We use to have a trailor
store (USO) out here and they took it away because our fob has been taken over by the Iraqi forces so we have nothing except mail to get us by.
Samantha F.
-------
I was able to drop off a bunch of boxes that we repacked and sent out to some of the various bases around our area. I'll have you know that the voices of the guys on the ground as they talked to us on the radio was a cheerful and appreciative one. They were so very excited to see what you gave them.
Thank you so much for sending the coffee. All the items sent were very appreciated. We had a fun time sorting through everything and passing them on to the outlying bases.
You're doing a great job! Keep it up!
Princeton
-------
We received your packages. WOW!!! Thank you. Apparently the things that I asked for (which was on the top of my mind) everyone in our section were really out off. The body wash, toothpaste, deodorant, those small air fresheners, and medicated foot powder went fast. I think that all the soldiers received some.
I try to be around to make sure everyone gets whatever they need. They were fighting over the "XL" flannel pajama pants because it was only one pair (those were pretty nice). If you can get more of those, it would well appreciated. If not, don't worry about it. The above items that was mentioned earlier were the ones needed the most.
Thank you for the snacks, food ,candy and the coffee (especially) that you sent. In fact, thank you all for what you do. We are trying to think of some things that we can do to show you how much we appreciate you. At times I feel like that sending you thank you letters is not enough. You give us so much, yet it seems like we respond back so little. I don't want you all to think that we really don't care, because we do care and we appreciate you all and all that you all do for us. Thank you all again and "Happy early Valentine's Day".
Ricky
-------
Nancy, I got thebatteries and charger thank you so very much, and yes we enjoyed the rest of the goodies too.
It is organizations like yours and people like you that make me so proud to be an American, we are often chastised in the news for being and arrogant and wealthy nation but yet our nation is the most giving nation in the world. Deployments such as these are difficult anyway and then there are people like yourself and the Airborne Angel Cadets that come to our rescue and create a support network that is so very important, and treasured by all of us.
I cannot thank you all enough. If you need assistance in ensuring that care packages get out to the FOBS I would be glad to do so for you...I will be here for three years ... yes you heard correctly three years. Let me know if you need assistance.
Kevin
-------
Nancy
OMG ... You all are sooooo AWESOME.. Since mail was screwed up for soooo long I got the last two boxes today.. Our fire department guys and our cops and I REALLY REALLY appreciate all you have done already.. I can't believe you sent more.. How can we ever repay you?? I wish we had something here to buy or something we could get for you .. But I WILL figure something out
before I get out of here.
Again..I can't believe you sent more..Our guys REALLY REALLY appreciate it .. For real .. I know I said it already but THANK YOU..THANK YOU... THANK YOU for everything..
Jason
-------
The people here are taking everything with a grain of salt, but it's hard to go from hot showers and port a potties to cold showers if they have water, (baby wipes if they don't), and toilets that you are not allowed to flush any paper or wipes in. Their MWR here consists solely of internet and phones, but I have a feeling it won't be long before they have books, games, and other things to do for free time as they are bringing in more people from another FOB. It is improving though, they are working on these things and more ...
I just want to say thank you again for all of your support, it really makes a huge difference over here. Especially when soldiers are at locations like this one, mail call is a huge morale booster!
But they really could use anything, games, dvds, baby wipes, laundry soap (right now we do our own laundry, but we are supposed to get a service here I just don't know when), books, magazines, I'm sure anything would be well appreciated including the golf clubs and balls if you still have them.
Oh yeah, there are roughly 800 personnel here of which there are about 25 females. Everybody has a bed as far as I know and there is not a PX here, although they do have a couple of stores run by local nationals that sell most of the necessities for personal hygiene. Thank you again for your continued support, it is very much appreciated!
Sincerely, Jerry
-------
"I must say the boxes are such a hit over (here)! I was approached by one of the units that received the last bunch of boxes, and they are in the process of adopting schools and wanted to know if we could get school supplies, simple items such as pencils, crayons, notebooks and chalk. Anyway, thank you all and for all that you do."
Kevin
-------
We decided to have a Cinco de Mayo celebration tomorrow! The chips, cheese, salsa, pinata and all the other accoutrements will make it a good one. I will send some pictures in the next couple days. The pre-packaged boxes are a great idea. That helps us out a lot over here and they will get out to the remote bases much faster. Your organization is a great one and we appreciate all you do for us over here.
Thanks, Tom
-------
Thank you guys so much for the cool ties they were gone before I could even open the box! ... I hope all is well with you and you family and ALL the cadets families. Take care and thank you again.
Mike
-------
Ms. Carter and the members of Airborne Angel Cadets of Texas,
I am writing to express and convey the heartfelt gratitude that each and every one of the over 600 Sailors at NMCB-5 experienced when we received your package of Girl Scout cookies. Many of our Sailors are on their very first deployment, and most of the rest are on their second consecutive tour in Afghanistan. It means so much to them to receive these packages from home. They are learning quickly that many of little things from the United States that they took for granted are the very things that make our country the best place in the world to live and work.
Please know that each and every day, your important work is touching and improving the lives of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines as they put themselves in harm's way at the call of their country.
God Bless all of you.
Sincerely, LTJG Nathan
-------
... stationed here in Afghan. First of all I would like to thank all of you back home for the support and care packages you send, and God Bless you all. My command is one of a kind.
We are known as SeaBees or CB (Latin Construimus Batuimus) or otherwise Construction Battalion. Our community is one of the smallest, we are associated with the navy and are building a large chunk of the support and defensive structures throughout this area, we've also been to other places in support of aiding natural disaster victims like the most recent in Haiti and war torn countries.
But this is not about us but rather you and your supporters I'm pretty sure you receive many messages of thanks so please treat this the same on behalf of myself, my staff, and others THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ... Like your prayers to us we pray for you to all Please be safe and take care.
Perry
-------
Thank you very much. We have just received the last of the 53 boxes that you have so graciously provided us. I cannot tell you how much they help the morale of the hundreds of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines here. Once again thank you for all that you and your team do for us. It has been my honor to help such a great organization make such a great impact.
Thank You, JD
-------
I wanted to thank your organization for the care package we recently recievd here at FOB Shindand Afghanistan. We do not have a BX/PX a shopette, we do not even have a place to get our haircut here.
Here at FOB Shindand we rely on packages like the one you sent for the essentials like toothpaste, shaving cream and soap because we have no where to buy these items ourselves. The girl scout cookies were deffinately an added bonus that everyone enjoyed. Thank you again, and we hope to be home soon.
Christopher
-------
Thank you for the boxes that you sent. I bet it was a fun packing party :) ... The boxes all arrived just in time for Labor Day and we distributed them at the cook out we had here to celebrate. The water balloons from the previous shipment came in handy for entertainment (we soaked our fears leader COL C) in good fun :)
Thanks! Sarah
-------
I appreciate all you have done for me, the Warlords, and Task Force Shadow. The Airborne Angel Cadets of Texas are a great organization and I am glad I had the opportunity to interact with you.
God Bless, Tom
-------
Ma'am,
I wanted to thank you and your organization personally for the items we recently received. Especially the shower heads and shower curtains.
Soldiers have a tendency get a little rough with delicate equipment. I have attached a photo of our flag poles here on Camp. Again thanks so much for all the support. I have been in the Army for more than 29 years and the support from home continues to grow and get stronger.
V/R SGM H
-------
My apologies for the late note.
The troops of the 838 Air Expeditionary Advisory Group received all seven of the care packages two weeks ago. We all appreciate the snacks, toiletries, toys and especially the coffee! Thank you and all of the Airborne Angel Cadets for all you do. It is great to know Americans like yourself give your time and effort to send us reminders of home...thank you!!!
Sincerely, Mario
-------
I wish you could see the excitement of the faces of my co-workers as they are told that boxes from the Airborne Angel Cadets have arrived. Smiles turn into mischievous grins as the competition to position themselves around the boxes begins as each person wants the best position to see what is in the box first. Once the boxes are open is when the real fun starts as the bartering and trading and racing from box to box looking for the elusive sleeve of Oreo Cookies, drink mix, packaged snack, blow-pops or favorite toothpaste causes mayhem.
With the sincerest of appreciation I thank you for your thoughtfulness, concern and never ending support.
Colonel Paul
-------
Yes, twin sheets sets and mattress pads are welcomed. I recently conducted a health and welfare and some of the Soldiers sleep on mattresses without sheets. When I asked why the young Soldiers they said that supply ran out. I feel badly for the younger Soldiers because they depend on the Army to provide everything.... just like their parents did.
I have come to realize that many Soldiers don't have anyone at home to send them items they require, that's where you and I come in. These young kids are our sons and daughters. They need my tough attitude and your kind grace.
Thank you, J. - Afghanistan
-------
To our Airborne Angel Cadets supports,
I would like to personally extend my thanks for making our deployment that much more bearable. The 4th ... is at this moment deployed on an Expeditionary Mission. This means when our unit arrived to the current location we planted our flag and said this is where we will make a Camp.
In the case of an Expeditionary Mission the unit must bring every possible thing they need. Each Soldiers is allotted a limited amount of weight for use of personal items. The senior Soldiers pack care items, while our younger Soldiers pack items for entertainment. Since our camp does not have a PX (store) for US Soldiers to acquire personal items they attempt to order what they need from on-line stores. The items you provide help with the urgent need between delivery times and those items that are hard to acquire anytime.
J.A.
-------
As one of the Brigade Planners, I have sent many of these boxes to ... the outlying Checkpoints where Soldiers have very little of anything because they are conducting 24/7 operations with Iraqi Security Forces. We marked them as Halloween gifts for Soldiers because they arrived here in time for Halloween. Soldiers were very happy to receive goodies out at these Check Points.
We, at the Brigade are ensuring that we are taking care of the Soldiers with the least because it helps to keep their spirits and morale up. I greatly appreciate all that you have done with sending care packages through "Airbone Angel Cadets of Texas." I personnally was surprised to see a lot of the Soldiers quickly grab up any reading material that came in these packages. It is impressive to see Soldiers reading to gain as much knowledge as they can, as well as reading for enjoyment. Again, thank You! The Soldiers are enjoying the goodies. I will send pictures to all of you of Soldiers with goodies from the care packages as soon as I can. Your time, effort and donations have not gone unnoticed, and they are greatly appreciated.
Respectfully, Harold
-------
Hello Angels,
I am currently working with the ... MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation program) and would like to know if it would be possible to receive some care packages for the troops. We are looking for hygiene items, snacks, Holiday cards, white socks, blankets. Some of our troops do not receive care packages and this would really help them with items that they need. Right now we currently have about 25% female and 75% male on base. We really appreciate everything that Airborne Angel Cadets have done for the troops! Thank you very much.
Amy, Afghanistan
