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Write To Troops But No Packages Please
NR 08.009
November 1, 2008
Ottawa (ON) – As the Holiday Season approaches, Canadian Forces Personnel and Family Support Services (CFPFSS) would like to remind the public that, while deployed Canadian Forces members appreciate the show of support from Canadians nationwide, the collection of gift boxes and packages for shipment overseas is not practical.
Many Canadians have called Canadian Forces bases asking what they can do to support soldiers and their families, said Jim Peverley, Director of Deployment Support at CFPFSS. It is great to see this level of concern and generosity on the part of Canadians, but we just do not have the ability to send individual donations overseas.
As the flights that re-supply Canadian Forces personnel in places like Afghanistan are full of priority items including combat supplies, vehicle parts, equipment, and mail from families, there is very limited space for any items that are not critical to the mission, such as donations from the public.
One way in which all Canadians can express their support is by e-mail messages on the Canadian Forces website at http://www.forces.gc.ca, where the Write to the troops message board is one of the preferred methods to show support.
Alternatively, postcards and letters addressed to Any CF member are acceptable. A list of mailing addresses as well as detailed postal information for CF operations is available on the Write to the troops website. Letters cannot have any type of enclosures.
Family and friends of deployed military personnel should be pleased to discover that Canada Post has again extended their postage-free mailings to deployed military members. The Write to the troops site has links to this announcement and also has information to assist families and friends to prepare their letters and parcels.
There are many other ways to show support to the troops and their families. To find out how, visit the Canadian Forces Personnel and Family Support Services website at http://www.cfpsa.com/supportourtroops.
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For more information contact:
Canadian Forces Personnel and Family Support Services Public Affairs Officer,
Lt John Dacombe, 613-996-4620 or dacombe.jc@forces.gc.ca