Homefront Help is SIGNAL Connections’ effort to support U.S. service members, veterans and their families. The column highlights programs that offer resources and assistance to the military community ranging from care packages to benefits and everything in between.

In that same spirit, Homefront Help presents opportunities for readers to donate time and offer resources as well as to send words of thanks to those who sacrifice for freedom. Programs that provide services to the troops are listed in red. Opportunities for the public to reach out to service members are listed in blue. Each program description includes a link to the organization’s Web site, when available.
 
Operation Gratitude Holiday Drive
Operation Gratitude officially kicked off its “Holiday Drive 2007” with a packing party over Veterans Day weekend. Additional parties are scheduled for November 23-24 and December 15-16 and 29-30. The group expects to fill 60,000 care packages over the holiday season, including its 300,000th package, which will be assembled on December 15. The milestone package will feature an extra-special gift the group is keeping secret—but recipients of the 200,000th and 250,000th packages each received a new car. Normal care packages include food, T-shirts, toiletries, greeting cards and entertainment items such as DVDs and CDs.

The goal of Operation Gratitude all year long is to lift troop morale by sending care packages to service members stationed overseas. Standard care packages contain most of the same items as the holiday packages. The organization offers civilians a means to express their respect and support to the military in an active, hands-on manner through collection drives, letter-writing campaigns and donations of requested items or funds.

Information on how individuals, businesses or organizations can become involved is available on the Web site. Operation Gratitude now is especially trying to raise funds to ship all its holiday packages. The Web page also includes letters of thanks from service members who have received packages, a wish list, a link to request packages and information on creative fundraisers by others who have made donations.
 
Postcards From Home
This organization asks the general public to fill out postcards with messages of support and remembrance for military members who will be stationed overseas away from their families during the holiday season. WFUS 103.5, a country radio station in Tampa, Florida, distributes preprinted postcards from its headquarters and then collects them at various locations to ship to deployed troops. The program also accepts homemade postcards. Lists of card drop-off locations and frequently asked questions are available on the Web site. Site visitors can submit APO addresses through a link on the site. Postcards will be accepted through November 16.
 
2008 SemperComm Awards
The SemperComm Foundation is accepting nominations for its 2008 SemperComm Awards. The prizes recognize troops who go the extra mile to cheer up their fellow service members while stationed at remote locations. The competition is open to personnel from all branches of the U.S. military. Nominees will be judged on three criteria: efforts to boost the morale of fellow service members; remoteness and size of duty station; and desire to go above and beyond the call of duty.

Winners will be invited to receive their awards at the SemperComm Gala on April 10, 2008, in Arlington, Virginia. Complimentary travel and lodging for the award recipients and one guest each will be provided by the SemperComm Foundation. Nominations will be accepted until January 28, 2008. Nomination forms are available on the SemperComm Web site, under Contributions, Nominate A Hero.

Operation Kindness Ministry
A service of the McLean Bible Church, Operation Kindness Ministry aims to provide spiritual and material comfort to service members deployed in support of the Global War on Terrorism as well as military families in the Washington, D.C., area. The church originally supplied support on a case-by-case basis but now focuses on two main areas: sending monthly care packages to troops on the front lines and assisting troops wounded in action and their families in D.C.-area hospitals. The care packages include physical comfort items, Christian literature and personal letters. The boxes weigh about 25 pounds each and contain supplies for 20 to 40 soldiers. The church funds the care packages with in-kind and cash donations from its congregation and other sources. Support to wounded service members includes giving wish lists items defined by hospital contacts to the soldiers. Support to family members encompasses providing services to visiting families in the form of transportation, meals and tickets of various types. For more information, contact operationkindness@mcleanbible.org or call (703) 790-5590 x1002.

 
The SIGNAL Connections staff encourages readers to take advantage of the programs mentioned in this column and to pass along the information. In addition, if you know of a program that is helping service personnel, please let us know about it. Submit that information to SIGNAL's news editor.

The SIGNAL Connections staff has made every effort to verify the legitimacy of these programs and to include information accurate at the time of publication. Inclusion in this column does not constitute an endorsement by AFCEA International or SIGNAL Connections.