Service Opportunity! Non Profit that keeps troops spirits lifted! Hugs For Our Soldiers.

 

Have you heard of Hugs for Our Soldiers?  It is a volunteer based non-profit that has been supporting our troops since 2003.  I read about them the other day and was really impressed with what they do. I wanted to share the information, especially with the holidays coming up and many soldiers will be overseas and could use your love! Directly from their About Us: HUGS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to support our troops serving overseas.  We provide a touch of home to our troops by sending care packages, letters and cards and offer to the American people the opportunity to adopt and care for a deployed Soldier, Marine, Sailor or Airman.We are a 100% volunteer-based organization, so your entire donation goes to supporting our troops!We have been blessed to have touched the lives of over three-quarter million Soldiers, Marines, Sailors and Airmen through our many programs over the past 17 years. Thank you to everyone who has participated in making this possible.  We couldn't do it without YOU!

HUGS supports all branches of service and All donations are tax deductible 

To donate to any of these programs, your monetary donations can be made online HERE or you can send  checks  payable to Hugs For Our Soldiers to:

                                                                           HUGS FOR OUR SOLDIERS

                                                                    PO BOX 532   VONORE, TN 37885

Here are the various programs they offer. Click on photos or links to be taken directly to website.

Deadline is November 27th.  every Year HUGS makes Christmas stockings to send to the men and women overseas. They have a team of volunteers waiting to stuff the stockings, but just need the ingredients!!   You can make an online donation or send a check directly (payable to Hugs For Our Soldiers) 

Support your troops AND the local girl scout troops by buying an extra box to send to the troops.  You can send boxes of cookies, or make an online donation . As one soldier wrote "Back home, Girl Scout cookies are a once-a-year event that one might miss if they didn't go to Walmart or Target on the right weekend.  Here though, in a world that has none of the comforts of home, your simple box becomes so much more than just cookies.  They become a way for the battle-hardened and battle-weary soldiers to not be completely disconnected from the homes they can't wait to see again." 

THIS IS THE CURRENT MOST NEEDED
Transition from deployment to home can be a tough challenge for a soldier, and many single soldiers dont have anyone to return home to, and they arrive to barracks that are completely empty of EVERYTHING.

 A 15$ donation can provide the following:

Snacks for their room to hold them over the first 24 hours

 

Place shampoo, soap, toothbrush and toothpaste at their sink

 

Hang a fresh bath towel on their shower door

 

And provide them with a set of twin sheets and pillow for their bed

You can make donation online or mail a check.

This is the easiest one to do!!  When you shop at smile.amazon.com,  Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to Hugs for Our Soldiers. No hidden fees or charges, it is the same as regular Amazon, except a portion of every purchase goes towards the non profit of your choice.

You use the same account on Amazon.com and  smile.amazon.com, . Your shopping cart, Wish List, wedding or baby registry, and other account settings are the same.

On your first visit to AmazonSmile, you need to select Hugs for Our Soldiers as your charitable organization before you begin shopping. Amazon will remember your selection, and then every eligible purchase you make on AmazonSmile will result in a donation to HUGS! 

Anything you purchase for their care packages (see below) can be shipped directly from Amazon to the HUGS address!!

Care Packages are something that everyone loves!  here is a list of items they need. 

Food Items

• Individual size snacks or cans of Pringles, pretzels, cookies, crackers, nuts, trail mix, peanut butter or cheese crackers, sunflower seeds
• Hard Candy (Lifesavers, Jolly Ranchers, Tootsie Pops) and Mints
• Gummy bears, chewing gum
• Individual servings of powdered drinks for water bottles such as Lemonade, Gatorade, Kool-Aid, Tang, Lipton To Go Tea, Crystal Light On The Go, energy drinks, Propel
• Individual coffee, tea bags
• Beef Jerky, Slim Jims
• Pop Tarts, Nutri-Grain, Granola, Cereal Bars, trail mix
• Small flip top canned fruit
• Pudding cup
• Tuna & crackers
• Peanut Butter (small plastic container)  
• Chocolate between the months of October and March only

Other Items

• Twin set of sheets
• Powdered laundry detergent (single load)
• White socks (calf or boot height)
• Hand/Toe warmers during cold months
  
• Footballs, baseballs, gloves
• Crossword Puzzles, Word Search, Sudoku 
• Playing Cards, board games, card games 
• Stationery & Envelopes
• Pens/Pencils
• Assorted greeting cards for Soldiers to use to write their families & friends
• Batteries (AA)
• Glade Stick-ups or room deodorizers
• Bug Repellent in lotions & pump-spray bottles-- NO AEROSOL
   

 Mail Your Items to: 

              Hugs for Our Soldiers

              P.O. Box 532

              Vonore, TN 37885

General Instructions for care packages are HERE (IMPORTANT)

When mailing a box to Hugs for Our Soldiers, please mail Parcel Post and not Priority Mail.  This saves you about 30% and the box still gets here in a reasonable time. 

 

If you're contemplating using the Flat Rate box, ask your postal worker to weigh it at the Parcel Post price to determine which mailing method is better for you economically.

So if you are looking for something you can do or contribute, or a non profit to support, Hugs For Our Soldiers seems like an amazing option. it is 100% volunteer based, so 100% of your donation goes where it is supposed to go, it helps raise the spirits of the brave men and women in the military, and it provides a small bit of home to those who are away from their families!