Programs that allowed people to send mail addressed to “any service member” were suspended after the Sept. 11, 2001, and anthrax attacks. But people have been circumventing that ban by obtaining the names of individual service members and sending them dozens of items to hand off to others. That clogs up the mail system and delays delivery of materials to other service members, said Lomax, a spokesman for the Pentagon’s military mail program.
The Defense Department urged people to support service members by helping their families at home, through local programs; by visiting the Defense Department’s Support Our Troops Web page or the Veterans of Foreign Wars’ Operation Uplink site; or by calling the Military Postal Service Agency’s toll-free number, (800) 810-6098, to ask about other programs.
With the holidays approaching, thousands of Americans are again asking what they can do to show their support for service members, especially those serving overseas in this time of war. Below are Web sites for several organizations that are sponsoring programs for members of the Armed Forces overseas. While it would be inappropriate for the Department to endorse any site specifically, service members do value and appreciate such expressions of support:
http://www.uso.org/pubs/93_325_1391.cfm (USO's Operation Care Package)
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Dec2002/b12122002_bt632-02.html (Links provided are still good for the 2003 Holidays)
http://www.defendamerica.mil/support_troops.html
http://www.operationuplink.org
If you are so inclined, visit the Department of Defense web page below and sign a brief message thanking the men and women of the U.S. Military Services for defending our freedom. The compiled list of names will be sent out to our service members at the end of the month.
http://www.defendamerica.mil/nmam.html
The military mail system receives materials from the U.S. Postal Service for delivery to service members.
Recommended mailing dates for holiday delivery - mail five days earlier for Hanukkah delivery - are:
The Defense Department urged that mailers use the service member’s full name, with or without rank or rating; unit; APO/FPO address, with the nine-digit ZIP Code if one is assigned; and a return address. For packages, place addresses on one side only.
Certain mail is prohibited in Middle Eastern countries, including obscene articles; pork or pork byproducts; any matter depicting nude or seminude persons; pornographic or sexual items; or non-authorized political materials.
Mail officials urge senders to wrap parcels securely in cushioned, strong boxes, include an address card inside that lists the contents and remember it gets hot in the desert.