Walter Reed Halts "To Any Wounded Warrior" Mail Shipments

[CorpGovActivist]

http://www.wramc.amedd.army.mil/AnyWoundedWarriorNews%20Release.pdf

What a sad, sad sign of the times in which we live:

*************************************************************************
Walter Reed Army Medical Center
Public Affairs Office
Washington, D.C. 20307-5001
[phone]

Release No. _____
Date ____________
For Immediate Release

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Walter Reed Army Medical Center continues to be overwhelmed from the tens of thousands of Americans showing their support to our Wounded Warriors here in the form of cards, letters, care packages and more. However, this patriotic level of support has not only heightened security concerns but has also increased administrative burden, drained resources and limited other functions. Therefore, the medical center is phasing out its ‘To Any Wounded Soldier’ mail program. It is instituting a more effective alternative for such American generosity.

Whether individuals or groups want to send a care package to a soldier, donate airline miles to help reunite returning military men and women with their families, support scholarship funds or send support to wounded service members, the organizations listed below that are dedicated to helping soldiers and their families.

http://www.americasupportsyou.mil
http://www.defendamerica.mil/support_troops.html
http://www.usocares.org/src/uso_donate.htm
http://www4.army.mil/ocpa/tooursoldiers/
http://www.redcross.org

For individuals without computer access, the local National Guard or military reserve unit may offer the best alternative to mailing packages to Walter Reed. In order to phase out the ‘To Any Wounded Soldier’ mail program and promote this more effective alternative, notifications are being sent to civic groups, news media outlets and community leaders.

“Our patients, military and civilian staff members and hospital leaders appreciate everything the general public has done to support our Soldiers,” said Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, commanding general of Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the North Atlantic Regional Medical Command. “This generosity is truly the embodiment of the American spirit.”

Walter Reed has treated 5,400 patients from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom since the Global War on Terror began, 1,730 of whom have been battle casualties.

# # #
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FYI...

- Dave

[donsu]

1. 'overwhelmed' seems to be the word of the day

this crime of occupation of Iraq has overwhelmed everybody, from Iraqis all the way to Walter Reed.

I bet there would be plenty of volunteers to turn the overwhelmed to underwhelmed, if they were asked.

[CorpGovActivist]

3. In WWII, Civilian Help Was Welcomed...

... now, they want to keep everyone away from the sight of the wounded.

- Dave

[donsu]

5. true - during WWII almost everybody volunteered for something

the paper drive, the metal drive, reading to the wounded, night time neighborhood patrol, child care, on and on and on

(and the media showed and talked about everything whether it was gory or not.)

[CorpGovActivist]

11. And Soldiers/Sailors Knew Who to Thank...

... instead of having the donations funneled through pre-approved orgs.

- Dave

P.S. For instance, if DU held a big screen TV donation drive for the wounded warriors at Walter Reed, the patients wouldn't have a clue who donated it.

[maggiegault]

21. Here's The Thing About Donating Privately...

...it can actually be better.

The morons didn't suggest the very best of the sites, www.anysoldier.com

Go to that site and read the letters section, if you need a good cry.

There are many of our troops who have NO ONE, and they get no mail, no letters, nothing. Now, our troops all do share with one another, and if they receive treats from home, I guarantee that everyone gets a taste. Still, imagine how that must feel, getting nothing and being all alone in a situation like that?

A lot of our troops also come from very poor families who cannot afford to spoil their soldier.

Our soldiers LIVE for mail. It is like lifeblood to them, a connection to those who love them and miss them back in the States. If you choose to donate through www.anysoldier.com, you are encouraged to include your name, your address, your email address, etc. I guarantee that you will hear back from your adopted soldier, and I guarantee that you will be doing something righteous in this universe of ours. Good karma.

Here is another thought for all of you: many of the Army bases here in the States and abroad have their own medical facilities. It isn't just Walter Reed. I would suggest to you that you contact the base itself and say, Hey, I'd Like To Send A Package, How Do I Do That? Don't be surprised if what you are told at the local level is quite different from the "official" decree. I know for a fact that we have a lot of hurt men and women at Fort Hood right now who need our love and support.

[CorpGovActivist]

22. 1264 VA Medical Facilities in the US and Territories

http://www1.va.gov/directory/guide/home.asp?isFlash=1

You make an EXCELLENT appeal to act locally.

Thank you!

- Dave

[tanyev]

4. When the party that has been in charge of the country is hell-bent on dismantling

the government, "overwhelmed" is going to happen a lot.

[intheflow]

8. True dat. n/t

[LeftyMom]

2. I trust that means they'll be getting the wounded soldiers chapstick and socks themselves now?

Surely, the idea isn't just to have them do without because somebody's too lazy to hand out packages.

:sarcasm:

[ContraBass Black]

6. "donate airline miles to help reunite returning military men and women with their families,"

Returning soldiers have to buy their own plane tickets?

[I Have A Dream]

7. Maybe they mean so that family members can visit the wounded while...

they're in the hospital. :shrug:

Either way, it's sad.

[CorpGovActivist]

9. I Gave That Benefit of the Doubt, Too...

... but it is beyond me why the DoD hasn't created a program that gives a travel allowance to each wounded warrior, to be used either for travel home, or to permit a caregiver of choice to travel to the medical facility.

- Dave

[Lochloosa]

10. Short answer. Yes.

They have to buy their ticket from the base back home.

On Edit: I am not sure how the wounded are handled. But a returning soilder gets a ride from overseas to the base he is stationed at. Then he/she is on their own to get home.

[maggiegault]

20. Yes.

The government pays for the journey to whatever "major metropolitan airport" it deigns appropriate. If the solider has to make connections, change planes, etc., from the moment the soldier steps off the first plane, he or she is on their own, financially.

I hate to tell you guys this, but many many many many of our troops deployed over in Iraq skip taking their much-deserved leave because they cannot afford the airfare home, and neither can their families.

I will say one nice thing about American Airlines. If you have ever seen their facilities for traveling soldiers at DFW, it is very impressive. DFW is usually teeming with soldiers from Fort Hood getting ready to go overseas, and American really does treat them right, with good food, and soft drinks, television, comfy chairs in the lounge, Internet access. If a soldier is flying home on American and must go "standby" (as is usually the case), American makes the soldier the top priority on the waiting list, even bumping frequent fliers to give the soldier a seat.

[TexasLawyer]

12. AnySoldier

A couple years also they also phased out letters and packages to "Any Soldier". That's why there's www.anysoldier.com now. It's a site that allows one soldier, Marine, etc... to post on behalf of a platoon or other unit. Some of the postings are a real slice of life over there.

My family and I send a care package a week. Sending to APOs and FPOs is considered regular domestic postage, so it is not as expensive as it would seem. If you're on a budget, it just costs $.39 to send somebody a letter-- maybe throw in a couple of Sudokus you print off the internet.

The soldiers really appreciate it.

[CorpGovActivist]

13. 39 Cents Will Send a Gift Card, Too...

... which a unit can use to buy books, music, gadgets, etc.

- Dave

[Auntie Bush]

14. Well maybe it wouldn't be such a drain if bush* hadn't given so many tax breaks to the rich.

That's really supporting the troops! Rah, rah, rah!

[CorpGovActivist]

15. General Clark Could Really...

... blow this wide open, were he to visit.

- Dave

[Auntie Bush]

17. Now that's a happy thought.. He ought to go there and give the whole place

the white glove inspection treatment. I wish he'd do that...but not the white glove part.

[CorpGovActivist]

18. If His Veterans Group and Habitat for Humanity Teamed up...

... to repair veteran healthcare facilities nation-wide, that would be a dynamite combination.

- Dave

[CorpGovActivist]

16. Astounding Quote from Fired Army Secretary, 2005: "Soldiers can rest assured..."

Soldiers can rest assured that I’ll be getting the resources that are needed for quality of life for themselves and their families, their Well-Being … and to ensure that they have the right equipment, the right training to provide the force protection, to provide the lethality they need – that is so important to the future of our country as well as the rest of the world.
<1/5/2005>

Francis J. Harvey – Secretary of the Army

http://www.armyfamiliesonline.org/skins/WBLO/display.aspx?AllowSSL=true&Mode=user&ModuleID=fe0b2188-1fe6-4db9-bb9d-e5b6e438134e

[CorpGovActivist]

19. Washington Post Establishes Special Report Section on Walter Reed

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/linkset/2007/02/21/LI2007022100671.html

FYI...

- Dave

[MasonJar]

23. I am overwhelmed by their audacity and incompetence. So there!

[CorpGovActivist]

24. I Wonder How Many Calls the Public Affairs Office Got...

... about this press release?

- Dave