Operation Gift Cards Donates $4,000 At Walter Reed

Connecticut veterans presented $4,000 in Gift Certificates to wounded and injured troops in the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on behalf of four cosponsors (over $10,600 total for December).

Since October 2005, the Operation Gift Cards’ 89 monthly/bimonthly visits have presented 15,245 thank you kits which contained $304,900 in post exchange (military department store) gift certificates to our wounded troops.

An additional $274,700 in other gift certificates and special group product donations (Girl Scout cookies, corporate gift certificates etc.) have been delivered to the Soldier Family Assistance Center, the Fisher Houses, Building 62, the Navy Lodge, the Red Cross, and the Casualty Affairs Office, along with over $50,000 worth items on the wish list” (listed below) for both the wounded troops and their families — for a total of approximately $629,600.

On the last visit, representatives from the AMVETS (American Veterans), Fairfield Firefighters, Teamsters Local 1150, and the employees from the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation visited wounded troops and personally thanked them for their service to their country and for their sacrifice for freedom. Each patient was presented with 3 “Thank You” kits containing a custom-designed thank you card with a picture of the cosponsor’s members, a $20 gift certificate for the military store ($60 total in gift certificates), and, if appropriate, flyers about benefit programs the cosponsor has developed that may be of interest to the patients.

Sixty-five groups and individuals have cosponsored Operation Gift Cards. The program goal is to have 3 to 5 cosponsors collectively purchase, between $4,000 and $5,000 in gift certificates in order to present all visited wounded patients in Walter Reed with at least three “Thank You” kits containing between $60-$120 in gift certificates.

For more information contact Al Meadows (203) 929-3357 (e-mail: al.meadows@snet.net. Or, read the Operation Gift Cards summary page or the Operation Gift Cards press releases (all can be downloaded from the Web site: ctveterans.org).

AMVETS POST 43Operation Gift Cards will be an ongoing project; check our Web site for future events and our progress reports.

Sponsored by VETERANS and their supporters in 65 chapters, posts, detachments and units of the:

  • American Legion: Fairfield Post 74, Shelton Post 16, Fairfield Post 143, Derby Post 24, Milford Post 196, Seymour Post 10, Wallingford Post 187, Orange Post 127
  • AMVETS (American Veterans): Dannialson Post 45, Derby/Shelton Post 43
    Disabled American Veterans: Stamford Ch. 13, Fairfield Ch.19, Enfield Ch. 52, Greater New Haven Ch. 2, Derby Ch. 4, Milford Ch. 15, Manchester Ch. 17, Bristol Ch. 5, West Haven Ch.18, Middletown Ch. 7
  • Marine Corps League: Stamford Detachment 910
  • Military Order of the Purple Heart: Shelton/Derby Ch. 1, Greater New Haven Ch. 103, New Britain Ch. 51, Darien Ch. 1932, Enfield Ch. 552
    Veterans of Foreign Wars: Fairfield Post 9427, Derby Post 10585, Ansonia Post 597, Huntington Post 10466, Yalesville Post 9965

Also sponsored by:

  • State HQ of CT: American Legion, AMVETS, DAV, MOPH, & VVA,

And: Vietnam Combat Vets Mon. & Tues. Evening Groups from the New Haven Vet Center, Employees of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Gary Plassman (Vietnam veteran), Actress Ellen Muth, the Order of Sons and Daughters of Italy in America West Haven Lodge 2832, the Affinion Group, the Vets Who Care Committee, Naugatuck Valley and Derby Boy Scout Troop 3, the Westport Fire Department, No Vet Left Behind, Milford Knights of Columbus, Ken Bundy (Vietnam veteran), Family and Tues. morning Group of the West Haven V. A. Hospital, the Union Memorial Church, Adam Leapley family, Massachusetts AMVETS, Veterans of Korea, Vietnam and Saudi Wars, the Connecticut GTO Club, the Fairfield Fire Department, District 1 AMVETS, the Beau Keen Family, the St. Joseph High School Boys Lacrosse Team, the Laborer’s Union Bridgeport Local 665, and the Treamsters Union Stratford Local 1150, Always Brothers, Charley With A Y Foundation, Daughters of the American Revolution and Commissioner Schwartz and the Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs.

Each Sponsor (has the option of sending a representative to hand deliver their thank you kits) has purchased a minimum of $500.00 in post exchange gift certificates for the wounded. Several sponsors have purchased over $20,000 in gift certificates during the duration of Operation Gift Cards.

OPERATION GIFT CARDS ALSO DELIVERS THE FOLLOWING WISH LIST ITEMS:

All items must be NEW & UNUSED for health & safety reasons. They DO NOT accept homemade items for health and safety reasons.

ELECTRONICS: Ipod Touches, Gaming systems such as DS Nintendos or the Portable play station, Portable DVD players (preferably ones that also play CDs), DVDs, Digital alarm clocks, Digital watches, Electric toothbrushes, Electronic games for the Xbox, Wii, DS Nintendo, Portable play station, Lap tops, iPads, Prepaid cell phones and recharge cards.

CLOTHING ITEMS: Bleach markers or Shout sticks, Tennis shoes in a variety of sizes, Clothing in various sizes (but mostly larger) – plain t-shirts, socks, boxers and boxer briefs, pajama pants, slippers, hoodies, rain jackets, winter coats, stocking caps, flip-flops (shower shoes) etc, Breakaway pants and shirts in a variety of sizes, Sports bras in a variety of sizes.

CANTEEN/WELCOME ITEMS: Individually bottled water and soda, Individually packaged chips, cookies, crackers, etc, Candy (they seem to like chocolate and suckers).

GIFT CARDS: International Phone Cards. Recommend major brand (AT&T/Sprint/Verizon) of 300+ min., Gift cards for the NEX, Commissary and any other stores in the area (not Wal-Mart/Kmart as they are very hard to get to), Movie passes, Itunes Cards, Variety of restaurant gift certificates ($40+ each so they can feed more than 1 person).

TOILETRIES: Chap stick, q-tips, Nail clippers, Band aids, etc, Full sized body wash, Shampoo, Conditioner, Lotion in a variety of brands, Boxes of tissues like Kleenex or something else soft, Feminine hygiene products.

OTHER: One golf cart with a top so occupants protected from sun, Sheet Sets – A variety of twin, twin extra long, full and queen sized, Subscriptions to a variety of magazines (suggested: People, Readers Digest, Motorcycles, Smithsonian, outdoor magazines, something for kids/teens, general magazines that won’t offend easily – avoid those about war or guns), small amounts of babyfood, diapers, wipes, etc, Rolling duffel bags, Plain black backpacks, Crossword puzzle and sudoku books.

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