Thank You Note

This came from one of our Lubbock Marines who got some of our care packs that you helped us send this Christmas. We sent her a bunch of care packs for female Marines, but we forgot to mention that part to her. :)
She gave us permission to share this with you.

Wow! Thank you tremendously for all the care packages!!!
Everyone here loved all the Starbucks coffee. Sometimes I think that caffeine is all that gets me through my night shift :) (Midnight to noon every day). Oh and all the girls and I enjoyed getting stuff from Mary Kay :) ha ha It was the funniest thing watching some of the guys go through those boxes. They'd usually leave them alone because as soon as they saw tampons they were convinced it was the grossest thing ever(I'm talking about GROWN MARINE MEN, WITH WIVES BACK HOME!!!) None the less it was still hilarious...we all got a kick out of that. :)

We're pretty much counting the days here to leave and even though Christmas is the day after tomorrow we're eager for it to be over so we can go home already. This year long deployment has really made me appreciate the finer things in life. Ha
ha, which reminds me of what your son said about the shower facilities back on base...he is so right. I think the showers here are better because they're cleaned everyday by people from Turkey. :)

For Christmas all the Texas Tech fans and Virgina fans will be filming shout outs that will be filmed for the Gator bowl that's airing sometime in Jan. The shout outs are also going to be played throughout some of the commercials so be on the lookout for us :)

There's a Christmas run going on this morning. I'm thinking of participating in it at 7:15am and they're encouraging wearing Santa hats :) It's like 32 degrees out here but I might just run in a t-shirt and shorts for the fun of it. Bring on the holiday colds !!:)

Oh, and I didn't get any pictures but we just had our Christmas USO tour. It was pretty cool. Lance Armstrong, Miss USA, Kid Rock, Lewis Black, and Robin Williams came to cheer us all up. They were a hilarious group and gave a good show. I think the most memorable part was when I got to shake Robin Williams hand. He smiled big at me, said "Merry Christmas Kitten" and kissed me on the cheek. I don't think there's a nicer guy than him. Pretty cool Christmas memory...I wont forget that one! :)

Thanks again for everything sent. Everyone really appreciated everything, and some of those hygiene items will be going to kids who don't have toothbrushes and such because I have a couple more of those missions to knock out before I'm done with this tour. Let me just tell you EVERYTHING was put to good use. Thanks so much again!
Cpl Julia V

A Very Merry Christmas!

Christmas Lights On A Tiny Tree In The Forest
A very Merry Christmas to all our blog friends and family. Thank you all for your support and prayers through this past year. You all mean so much to us!!!

I'll be away from the computer for the next few days spending some time with my family and I'll see you later next week. Have a wonderful and blessed Christmas!

Love,
Semper Fi Mom

Vietnam War Memorial gets Christmas tree, hand-made decorations

By Rick Vasquez, Stars and Stripes
Stars and Stripes online edition, Thursday, December 20, 2007

View the photo gallery


Organizers for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund couldn’t ask for a more perfect winter morning for their annual Christmas Tree at the Wall ceremony.

The sun was shining bright, the skies were blue and the cold breeze was bearable on Thursday for the VVMF’s annual ceremony on the East Knoll of the National Mall.

A small crowd attended the ceremony to witness the decoration of the tree with greeting cards sent to VVMF from Americans of all ages. The tree was also decorated with handmade cards and ornaments made by school children and teenagers from as far as El Cajon Valley High School in El Cajon, Ca., and as close as White Oaks Elementary in Burke, Va. The ornaments and cards are dedicated to Veterans and active-duty military personnel. This year marks the 25th Anniversary of The Wall.

“It is definitely a nice day but it wouldn’t have made a difference whether it rained or snowed because this event is held regardless of the weather,” said Lisa Gough, VVMF Director of Communications. “And this year we received more than 6,000 messages.”

Brief remarks were made by Navy Capt. Eugene Smallwood Jr. who shared a touching story about his father, Lt. Col. Eugene Fenton Smallwood, who was killed in the Vietnam War and is remembered on memorial’s wall. Smallwood remembers getting up early to catch his father in the act of putting him and his siblings’ toys together on Christmas morning.

“He always had a great explanation,” he said, “that Santa Claus was in such a hurry because of all the houses that he had to get to that he had come up, woke my dad up and had asked him to help put the toys together. And when we would glance over at the table, we would see that half of the glass of milk and most of the cookies were gone, we knew that Santa had been there and we had no reason not to believe my dad.”

Smallwood’s father was career Army Officer who served in WWII and the Korean War. Smallwood last he saw his father from the window of the Greyhound bus as it drove away, taking him to a summer scout camp in New Mexico.

“He was very proud of me because I had just achieved a rather distinguished honor as being one of the youngest Eagle Scouts in Northern Virginia,” he said. “I waved to my father on the way out. What I did not realize at the time was that it was the last time I would ever see him.”

With the ambition of moving up in rank, Smallwood’s father, 42, volunteered to accept an assignment with the military advisory team in Vietnam. He was killed two months after arriving in Vietnam.

“I can still vividly remember those two Army officers standing in our front door,” Smallwood said. “I can also remember my mom huddling up all the children, taking us down to the basement and telling us, ‘your daddy is not coming home.’ ”

VVMF founder and president Jan Scruggs reminded the crowd to take time this holiday season to remember friends whose name are on the memorial’s walls and those serving currently in the middle east.

“They are in great deal of danger,” he said, “and they are serving to keep us free and we just appreciate their efforts on our behalf.”
Source

American people help spruce up Marines’ Christmas

AL TAQADDUM, Iraq (Dec. 14, 2007) – Lance Cpl. Mark Sheldon decorates his work section’s Christmas tree. It is a live tree and was provided by the National Christmas Tree Association’s Trees for Troops program. Sheldon is a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear specialist with 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward).

Dec. 15, 2007; Submitted on: 12/15/2007 12:51:16 AM ; Story ID#: 2007121505116

By Cpl. Andrew Kalwitz, 2nd Marine Logistics Group


AL TAQADDUM, Iraq (Dec. 15, 2007) -- Instead of seeing the brightly colored decorations and twinkling lights found on America’s streets during the holiday season, troops often have to settle for a monochromatic view of the desert.

This year, however, troops have received a boost to their Christmas spirit thanks to Earl and Esther Worthington, as well as many other participants who donated live trees to service members around the world in the National Christmas Tree Association’s Trees for Troops program.

“We hope that some military personnel will, in receiving a tree, be able to experience the real meaning of Christmas,” Esther said.

The Worthingtons donate from their tree farm outside of Atlanta as part of a larger effort to provide Trees for Troops. Modeled after an Ohio organization’s program named Operation Evergreen, the National Christmas Tree Association’s program provides 17,000 trees to more than 38 military bases, stateside and overseas.

For a few years now, Esther and her husband, both retired, have tended to 12 acres of trees on their property just to give some away. However, after losing their 19-year-old grandson, Adrian, to a roadside blast in Iraq this past May, they said their efforts have a very special meaning this holiday season.

“This year, of course it has a real personal touch and we are even more sensitive to the sacrifices made by so many,” Esther said. “We will sense the loss intensely, but we are so thankful that we were all able to be together with Adrian last year at Christmas and we treasure that memory.”

Unfortunately, loss and separation are all too familiar to the Worthington’s as well as to service members stationed around the world. For Marines here with the 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward), which is nearing the 12-month mark of its current Iraq deployment, the upcoming season brings with it another holiday that will come and go without the company of loved ones. But instead of just recalling cherished memories, programs like the ones the Worthington’s support help troops create new ones.

Cpl. Jeremy D. Spencer, a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear specialist with 2nd MLG (Fwd), has received one of the program’s trees for his work section.

He said the tree serves as a reminder that the holiday spirit is wherever anyone wants it to be. Whether it be his hometown of Fordland, Mo., or the sand-swept landscape of Al Anbar Province, Christmas is Christmas.

“If it wasn’t for people in the states, we would have nothing. The holiday season would just be spent like every other month out here,” said Spencer. “It really gives the troops a little taste of home for the holidays.”
Source

Christmas Light Show

Here's video of a really cool light show right here in town! This is only one of eight songs. See it for yourself at 7509 & 7511 84th St. from 6-11 p.m. every night. They are supposed to be featured on Fox 34 News tonight at 9:00pm.

Christmas Tree Program Brings Troops Cheer

Associated Press December 10, 2007

WESTMINSTER, Md. - Sprawled in his recliner, tired and achy after three days of nearly nonstop work, James Ward hardly looks like Santa Claus.
But this laid-off truck driver has just made Christmas brighter for thousands of U.S. service members overseas by mailing them miniature, live spruce trees with all the holiday trimmings.

A year after Ward started Operation Christmas Tree to cheer up his deployed stepdaughter and a few dozen of her fellow soldiers in Iraq, the project has blossomed into a national campaign that shipped 5,000 potted trees this season.

About 2,200 of the 2-foot trees - packed along with bags of colorful ornaments and battery-powered lights - were mailed Dec. 3 to individual service members, mostly in Afghanistan and Iraq, whose families paid $20 to Ward's nonprofit organization.

Some of those service members also received a batch of 50 or 60 extra trees to share with others. Other batches were sent to chaplains in the war zone to hand out to anyone in uniform who wants one.

The $80,000 balance not paid by donations was covered by the Armed Forces Foundation, a Washington-based nonprofit that helps the families of deployed troops. Local businesses also collected donations.

For Ward, 34, Operation Christmas Tree is an expression of the code he was taught by a firefighter uncle: "I was always brought up that if somebody's in need of something, you help them."

The same principle prompted Ward to lead a convoy of donated goods to Gulf Coast hurricane victims in 2005. "If you can get seven tractor-trailer loads down to Katrina with all that going on, you can ship 5,000 trees," he said.

But not without a lot of help. About 350 volunteers from as far away as Phoenix helped the Ward family pack the trees for shipment Dec. 1, working close together in a 40-by-60-foot rented tent at the nearby Carroll County Agriculture Center. Donated barbecued beef fed the volunteers. The trees, purchased from a North Carolina grower, had been parked there for a month, kept alive with regular waterings by the Westminster Fire Department.

The president of the Armed Forces Foundation, Patricia Driscoll, said Operation Christmas Tree is a joy for her staff members, who spend most of their time arranging housing, counseling and other services for families of injured warriors.

"When you're dealing with the sick and wounded all the time, it can get depressing. This was really fun," she said.

This year's 5,000 trees were a huge increase over the 75 that Operation Christmas Tree shipped last year - half to Ward's Army medic stepdaughter, Spc. Luisa Gonzalez, and members of her unit. Gonzalez, 23, now stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, while awaiting discharge early next year, came home to help with the tree packing.

"I've been that person on the other end and it just meant a lot to be there to see the next wave," she said. "In Iraq, every day's the same - no holiday - so that little piece of home gives that holiday season something special."

Ward's wife, Betty; stepdaughter Elizabeth, 20, and daughter, Marie, 2, also worked on Operation Christmas Tree.

Photographs of Ward and his wife meeting first lady Laura Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are displayed on the living room wall, and a scrapbook is filled with thank-you notes from service members and their families.

But Ward said there's one reward he's missing: seeing the trees as they're received by the troops.

"I'd love to be a fly on the wall to watch them open them," he said. "Trust me, it's satisfying doing it, but it would be so cool to see these guys open some of them."

Toys for Tots

Holiday Greetings for Wounded Warriors

As many of you are aware, Walter Reed Medical Center and other medical centers could not accept any card or letter addressed to “Any Wounded Soldier” or “Any Soldier” because of security reasons.

But because of the outpouring of support for our service members, the Department of Defense, the American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes have teamed up to make it possible to send Christmas greetings to our wounded and recovering service members.

"It is an honor to provide this small measure of comfort at holiday time to those who have sacrificed so much," said Pitney Bowes President and CEO Murray Martin. "We want to make it as easy as possible for all Americans to show their appreciation to the men and women who serve this nation so proudly and selflessly."

The American Red Cross will only be able to accept holiday cards. No packages please. Red Cross volunteers will sort the cards for appropriate content and bundle the cards which will be shipped by Pitney Bowes. Red Cross volunteers at each of the medical centers will then distribute the cards/letters to service members and their families.

Cards and letters must be received no later than December 27. Cards received after this date will be returned to sender. Cards and notes only - and please refrain from using glitter or any other inserts that would not be appropriate in a hospital environment.

Holiday cards should be addressed to:

We Support You During Your Recovery!
c/o American Red Cross
PO Box 419
Savage, MD 20763-0419

Let’s show our heroes that we know what the meaning of giving is this holiday season because they certainly have. When you’re sending your holiday cards to family and friends, please include another 2, 20 or even 200 to our wounded warriors. They, most of all, deserve to have a Merry Christmas!!

Honoring Heroes at the Holidays Tour

This morning, Move America Forward brought their Honoring Heroes at the Holidays Tour through Lubbock. It was so nice to meet gold star mom Debbie Lee, Lt. Col. "Buzz" Patterson, and all the rest of the MAF gang. Debbie, hope you and Mary enjoy the cookbooks!

Our mayor, David Miller was in attendance along with Russell Thomasson, special assistant to the Chancellor of Texas Tech University, a representative from Congressman Randy Neugebauer's (TX-19) office (I'm sorry I didn't catch his name), and city councilman John Leonard. I was also happy to see Raider Red , the Saddle Tramps and all the blue star and gold star parents and veterans who made it out. We even met one young man who is leaving tonight for Navy boot camp. God bless him!

The local news coverage is here and here.

Move America Forward is collecting Christmas and holiday cards all along the tour to take to the troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. I know they collected quite a few today. If you are anywhere along their route be sure to stop by, say hello and sign a few cards. They also have t-shirts , books, and lots of other goodies for sale. I finished up some of my Christmas shopping, but I don't want to give it away in case a certain someone happens to read this.

I didn't get any pictures but luckily one of our members, Cindy, did. She got some really good ones!

Packing Party

Please join us for our packing party TOMORROW at 1:00pm at the Elk's Lodge on 34th and Milwaukee. We started sorting through everything last night and I'm guessing we should be able to fill at least 200 boxes! Thank you all so much for your generosity!

Holiday Messages to the Troops

Friday, November 30th, is your last day to send print Holiday Messages to the troops in the print editions of Stars and Stripes. You can choose which edition you want your message (European edition, Middle East edition, Pacific edition, or online only). You can submit a message with or without an image. Submissions will be printed in a Holiday Messages section of the daily newspaper over the holiday season, unless designated as "online only."

Stars and Stripes is a daily newspaper published for the U.S. military, DoD civilians, contractors, and their families. Unique among the many military publications, Stars and Stripes operates as a First Amendment newspaper, free of control and censorship. We have published continuously in Europe since 1942, and since 1945 in the Pacific. In those two theaters, our readers number over 100,000.*

Today, Stars and Stripes maintains news bureaus in Europe, Pacific and the Middle East to provide first-hand reporting on events in those theaters. In addition to news and sports, our daily paper contains all the elements of the hometown paper our service members left behind, from "Dear Abby" to coupons, comics and crossword puzzles. In all, we publish five daily editions: Mideast, Europe, Japan, Korea and Okinawa.

In 2004, Stars and Stripes created a website where family and friends could post text messages and photos, addressing them to U.S. service members all over the world. The messages are available online, and printed in a supplement of the daily newspaper during the holiday season. Last year nearly 6,000 messages from friends, family members, and supporters were printed and delivered to Service members in Iraq, Afghanistan, Europe, and the Pacific.

Care Pack Donations

*This is a sticky post and will remain at the top for several days. Scroll down for new posts.*

Please help make Christmas a little brighter for our troops who are far from home. We are requesting that all items be donated ASAP so that we can start sorting and getting them ready to mail.

Drop off locations for care pack items:
All locations of Bodyworks
Elks Lodge (34th and Milwaukee)
Leathers N Lace Motorcycle Apparel 3806 50th St Ste 210 (across from Memphis Place Mall)
All recruiter's offices (not just the Marine recruiters)
Crestview Elementary School 6020 - 81st Street

Requested Items:
Food items:
Beef jerky
Canned chips (Pringles/Torengos)
Canned ready-to-eat meals (Ravioli, chili, soup, Easy Mac, Dinty Moore, Ramon cup)
Dried fruit
Granola/Breakfast/Protein bars
Gum
Gummy candy, Hard Candy
Individual size canned fruit
Jelly beans
Microwave popcorn
Nuts, Sunflower seeds, Trail mix
Poptarts
Tuna lunch kits
**Pork or pork by-products are NOT allowed to be shipped to Middle East combat locations.


Drink Items:
Coffee, coffee mixes
Gatorade mix (powdered only)
Hot cocoa mix
Lemonade/Koolade/Tang mix
Presweetened beverage mixes (“On the Go” flavor packets that can be added to 16-20 oz. water bottle)
Sweetener/creamer packets for coffee
Tea

Recreational Items:
Batteries (AA – most requested)
Board games/puzzles
DVDs (new or used; original only)
Hand held games
Magazines (current issues)
Music CDs (new or used; original only)
Nerf footballs/Frisbee/Hackey sack
Puzzle books
Stationary/small writing pads


Personal Care Items:
Advil/Tylenol (individual packs)
Baby wipes/Handi-wipes
Chap stick
Disposable instant hand warmers
Liquid hand sanitizers (pocket/travel size)
Medicated foot powder/swabs
Toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash (travel size)
Q-tips (individual packs)
Sunblock
Tissue (individual packs)

~ MOST VALUABLE ITEM ~
♥ Letters and cards of encouragement and support ♥

Thank you for your willingness to help support the troops who are away from home during Christmas time. Your love and support are greatly appreciated.

A monetary donation of $35 will fill and send a stocking! There are 3 ways to make a monetary donation:
- Checks can be made out to Lubbock Marine Parents and mailed to:
Lubbock Marine Parents
PO Box 64192
Lubbock, TX 79464-4192
- Deposited to Lubbock Marine Parents at any American State Bank location
- Paypal donation here at the blog in our sidebar

Christmas Care Pack Drive Kick Off

*This post will remain at the top for a few days. Please scroll down for new posts.*

Christmas Wishes, Angel Lighting Candles

We are officially kicking off our 2008 “Stuff a Stocking” Donations Drive! You can start dropping off items today. We have set a deadline of November 19th so that we can get everything ready to pack up in time to mail off for Christmas. Please help make Christmas a little brighter for our troops who are far from home.

Drop off locations for care pack items:
All locations of Bodyworks
Elks Lodge (34th and Milwaukee)
Leathers N Lace Motorcycle Apparel 3806 50th St Ste 210 (across from Memphis Place Mall)
All recruiter's offices (not just the Marine recruiters)
Crestview Elementary School 6020 - 81st Street

Requested Items:
Food items:
Beef jerky
Canned chips (Pringles/Torengos)
Canned ready-to-eat meals (Ravioli, chili, soup, Easy Mac, Dinty Moore, Ramon cup)
Dried fruit
Granola/Breakfast/Protein bars
Gum
Gummy candy, Hard Candy
Individual size canned fruit
Jelly beans
Microwave popcorn
Nuts, Sunflower seeds, Trail mix
Poptarts
Tuna lunch kits
**Pork or pork by-products are NOT allowed to be shipped to Middle East combat locations.


Drink Items:
Coffee, coffee mixes
Gatorade mix (powdered only)
Hot cocoa mix
Lemonade/Koolade/Tang mix
Presweetened beverage mixes (“On the Go” flavor packets that can be added to 16-20 oz. water bottle)
Sweetener/creamer packets for coffee
Tea

Recreational Items:
Batteries (AA – most requested)
Board games/puzzles
DVDs (new or used; original only)
Hand held games
Magazines (current issues)
Music CDs (new or used; original only)
Nerf footballs/Frisbee/Hackey sack
Puzzle books
Stationary/small writing pads


Personal Care Items:
Advil/Tylenol (individual packs)
Baby wipes/Handi-wipes
Chap stick
Disposable instant hand warmers
Liquid hand sanitizers (pocket/travel size)
Medicated foot powder/swabs
Toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash (travel size)
Q-tips (individual packs)
Sunblock
Tissue (individual packs)

~ MOST VALUABLE ITEM ~
♥ Letters and cards of encouragement and support ♥

Thank you for your willingness to help support the troops who are away from home during Christmas time. Your love and support are greatly appreciated.

A monetary donation of $35 will fill and send a stocking! There are 3 ways to make a monetary donation:
- Checks can be made out to Lubbock Marine Parents
- Deposited to Lubbock Marine Parents at American State Bank
- Paypal donation here at the blog in our sidebar


As an added bonus LMP has added a CONTEST to our donation drive. For every $5 that you donate, your name will be put in the "hat" to win a cookbook and BBQ apron. You can donate through the Paypal link in the sidebar or you can email me and I will give you an address so that you can mail a check. If you stop by and leave a donation to our account at American State Bank, just email me with your name and donation amount. The deadline for the contest is 5:00p.m. November 9th. I will have one of the Marines at the Marine Corps Ball draw the name and I will announce it here on the blog Saturday November 10th. Good luck!

Soldier From Lubbock Interviewed in Iraq

A Soldier from Lubbock is Interviewed in Iraq

GIs Continue Missions on Christmas

Associated Press December 25, 2006

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Pfc. John Alonzo knew Christmas would be his toughest time in Iraq. "Ever since I volunteered, I haven't been looking forward to it," said the 27-year-old, from Lubbock, Texas. "My son wants to know why I can't be home for the holidays. He doesn't understand that I can't just quit."


Read the rest of the post from De'on at Gunz Up here