By Lt(N) Paul Pendergast

Messages, postcards and letters from home are very important to the morale of Army, Navy and Air Force personnel deployed on operations, especially as the holiday season approaches.

As ambassadors for the CF, we can provide helpful direction to family, friends or members of the public who want to show their support for our deployed troops.

There is a “Write to the Troops” electronic message board that provides Canadians with a simple, quick, and cost-effective way to send greetings to CF members. Since October 2001, more than 27 000 “Write to the Troops” messages have been posted, including those from well-known Canadians such as Prime Minister Paul Martin and astronaut Marc Garneau.

A “reply” capability has been added to the message board. All “Write to the Troops” users can now post replies to specific messages.

The CF Postal Service has recently changed its policy and will now accept sealed envelopes, post cards, letters, and parcels containing bundled letters, addressed to “Any CFMember”. Individuals, schools and organizations often conduct letter-writing campaigns to our deployed personnel and prefer to bundle the letters (or cards) in a parcel as a cost-saving measure.

Note that parcels addressed to “Any CF Member” cannot contain items other than cards and letters. If enclosures other than cards or letters are detected, the parcel will be returned to sender. This restriction does not apply to friends and family members, who can send parcels to individual CF members overseas by following guidelines available at local CF Base Postal Sections, Military Family Resource Centres, or through the “Write to the Troops” Web site at www.forces.gc.ca.

The Canadian public often want to demonstrate their generosity by donating items to the local population where CF members are deployed. This is especially prevalent during the holiday season. Security concerns and limited air cargo space preclude the CF Postal Service from transporting these items. They will be returned to sender.

Lt(N) Pendergast is a PAO at ADM(PA) in Ottawa.