Making A Difference & A Special Request

There’s requests that are general in nature — and then there’s targeted requests.  The latter are often specific, meet an urgent need and require short turnaround.

This is a targeted request.

The details are over at Maggie’s Place, but here’s the thumbnail sketch.  Marines brought in from the field with serious injuries (usually traumatic brain injury (TBI) a growing phenomena with the advent of IEDs in this war as in Iraq) are placed in a temporary facility while they are treated locally prior to evacuation Stateside.  These Marines come straight in form the field, with but the clothes and not much else on their back.  The problem is, in the holding facility there is little for them in the way of amenities.

This is where it becomes a targeted request and where *you* can help.

Here is an initial list of desired articles:

• Twin bed sheets sets (new);
• In-expensive comforters;
• Pillows;
• Towels;
• Shower shoes;
• Socks;
• Underwear;
• DVDs;
• X-box games;
• Magazines and finally……IPods/Mp3 players.

(No toiletries please — those they have in plenty).  Imagine if you were taken to an emergency room following a terrible accident at a far away location, away from family and friends with none of your personal articles.  The clothes you wore had to be tossed and you were left post treatment, waiting (days/weeks) for transport to a long term facility with but your pj’s and a robe, sitting in an empty room.  You’d probably go stir crazy.  Ergo this request.

Maggie is working to stir the Navy milblogging crowd and I would urge you to pass this along to friends and acquaintances — soon as this is posted it’s going out on a number of my mailing lists.

These are our guys and here’s a chance where we can bring a bit of sunshine into their now jumbled lives.

Contact info:  when you are ready to send a package, email Maggie (BostonMaggie at Yahoo dot com) and she will give you an address.  It’s an unfortunate world we live in that we have to pre-screen, but there are the unscrupulous amongst us out here who would take advantage of the situation for their own agenda.

The need is urgent – the need is now.  My heartfelt thanks to you for your consideration in this matter.  — SJS