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MarineParents.com Newsletter
a Place to Connect & Share 
In This Issue
Deployment Learning Center
Good News for Marine Parents
Remembering the Raising of the Flag at Iwo Jima
Thank You for Your Support!
Letter from a Deployed Marine
Spring Care Package Campaign
Your Marine's Unit Information Page
EGA Store Featured Items
Support for You:
a Place to
Connect & Share™
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Marine Parents EGA Store
Text and Image
Learning Center:
Operational Security
Operational Security

NOTE: When communicating online, your Marine's privacy is as important as Operational Security. Please respect YOUR Marine's privacy!

Learning Center:
About Deployment
 
 
 
 
 
 
Learning Center:
About Homecoming
 
 
 
 
 
 
Tip: While in our store, check in your Marine's unit store for more homecoming shirts!
Unit Chat Nights
Unit Chat Night Schedule:
 
Monday: 3rd LAR, 3/5, 3/9 
Tuesday: 1st LAR, 26th MEU
Wednesday: 1/8, 2/8, 2/3
Thursday: 2/9
Sunday: 2/1
 
For additional information about the Chat Room and Unit Chat Nights for your Marine's Unit, please see:
 
           MarineParents.com Chat Gif 
Local Support Groups in Your Area
For a list of all support groups in our database or to find one in your area, see:
  
If you are interested in starting a local support group in your area, please visit the "Support Groups" section of our website:
Support Our Marines!
Show your support of our Marines and their families! Participate in one of the Marine Parents outreach programs today! Our Marines need YOU! 
 
The Care Package Project, and Outreach Program of Marine Parents.com
 
 
 
 
 
 
Purple Heart Family Support an Outreach Program of Marine Parents.com
 
 
 
Team Marine Parents, an Outreach Program of Marine Parents.com
 
Visit Our Sponsors
Sign Up for the Newsletter 
Join Our Mailing List
February 24, 2011
Greetings Marine Families!
 
If this is the first edition of the MarineParents.com Newsletter you have received, WELCOME! If you are a returning reader we are glad you have joined us.
 
In this issue you will find a long thank you letter from a deployed Marine that is a real-life testiment to the importance of troop support and the difference each and every contribution to the Marine Parents cause makes in the lives of our Marines. 
 
You helped us tremendously when we requested contributions for our wounded warriors, and we can't thank  you enough for going above and beyond with your donations (See article below for the amount we collected). Now we're asking folks to help us collect 1200 baby wipes and toothbrushes to ship to the Marines on our next pack day, April 30. Click here to contribute, or see article below.
 
Don't forget to support our outreach programs by shopping at the Marine Parents EGA Store! 100% of proceeds go back to benefit the Marines, so if you haven't taken at look at our huge selection of Marine Corps gear yet, click here!
 
Thank you for continuing to show your support for our dedicated troops! 
For Parents of Deployed Marines
New Mass Communication System in Place
 
A new system called the Marine Online Mass Communication Solution was recently put in place for parent and family contact information to be conveniently accessed and utilized. This solution will increase efficiency of communication between commanders and Family Readiness Officers (FRO) and their Marines, spouses and families.
 
Previously, Marines were required to fill out a handwritten form with their parent or spouse's contact information to be given to their FRO.
 
That system was replaced with an online tool that allows Marines to enter their personal contact information to the system and update it easily as needed. Your Marine's FRO will now be able to access this important information without having to ask your Marine to fill out a contact sheet.
 
Click here to keep reading... 
66 Years Ago...
The Raising of the Flag at Iwo Jima 
 
The Raising of the Flag at Iwo Jima66 years ago yesterday, on February 23, 1945, five Marines and one Navy corpsman were photographed during one of the most infamous displays of American patriotism. The raising of the flag at Iwo Jima not only marked the Marines' capture of Mount Suribachi, but also symbolized the resiliance of the United States Marine Corps.
 
We recognize and honor those men and all of the men who sacrificed their lives during World War II. The photograph allows the moment to live on and allows us to remember what the Marines did for our country that day.
 
Thank you to ALL past and present members of the Marine Corps for their dedication to preserving American pride and unity. 
Thank You for Your PHFS Donations
You Raised Over $7,000! 
 
Click here to donate to our wounded warriors!We asked for your help in raising funds to support our wounded Marines and their families through our outreach program Purple Heart Family Support, and you exceeded our request! 
 
Our goal was to raise $5,000 to help cover the costs of the in-home services our volunteers provide for the wounded warriors, and you went above and beyond that goal! You raised a total of $7,200, and we cannot THANK YOU enough for your incredible dedication to helping these Marines. We're so excited to be able to provide more of our wounded with their basic needs.
 
If you didn't get a chance to donate, you can still help out!
 
Click here to make a donation of any amount to these brave men and women.
Click here to track our success!
Letter from a Deployed Marine
Attention on Deck: From & About Our Marines 
 
We received this heartwarming email from a deployed Marine yesterday, and we thought we'd share it with all of you:
 
Dear [Marine Parents],

I would like to thank you, the volunteers at MarineParents.com, Inc. and the hundreds of private citizens and businesses that have contributed to the shipping fund and care package sponsorship.  You have no idea the impact your packages and the letters from the families of America have on us. 

Being thousands of miles apart from your family in a far away land in and of itself is trying.  Add to it the element that there are people over here that intend us harm and the stress level is that much more increased.  Receiving a package and a letter demonstrates in a measurable tangible way that there are people from our home nation that care enough to write a letter, gather the goodies, box them, and ship them. In this day and age it is so easy to get caught up in the business of life; we are all guilty of it.  Doing what you do is a manifestation of love and thoughtfulness.

You probably don't get too many thank you letters or responses to the letters sent in the packages.  Many of the Marines that receive the packages are at outlying sites and move around constantly.  The tempo can go from 0 to 100 quickly.  There are no days off and one is in a constant state of on.  Writing a thank you is right and appropriate but many just don't have the time or when they do it is used to catch up on sleep.

I want you to know that there are countless Marines that have received your packages and are touched by your kindness and generosity.  We are all sincerely grateful for what you do for us.  For me, receiving a package and letter from a stranger lets me know that there are people back home that are behind me and care about me regardless of the politics.  It is a potent expression and positively impacts the emotions.  It is easy to grow weary out here especially when you are out here for a year, your message is loud and clear and for that we are very grateful.
Please accept our sincere thanks and gratitude for your outrageous thoughtfulness.

Sincerely,

Kevin and the Marines of I MEF (FWD)
Spring Care Package Campaign
We Need Baby Wipes and Toothbrushes! 
 
Click to Donate!Let's stock up for our next Care Package Project Pack Day on April 30, 2011! Since we cleaned out our warehouse of goods on our last pack day, we need to fill it back up again! Help us by purchasing baby wipes and tooth brushes for the Marines overseas.
 
It's important to remember that the Marines are without the comforts of home that we often take for granted. They rarely have access to shower facilities, so it's cruicial that they receive these basic hygiene items. We would like 1200 packages of baby wipes and 1200 toothbrushes so that every Marine on our list will recieve one of each item.
 
Please help us get these Marines what they need. Visit our donation page here, and click on the item you wish to purchase to be included in the care packages we'll ship on April 30.
 
On behalf of all the Marines who look forward to these packages, we thank you for your help!
Unit Information Page Database
Learn More About Your Marine's Unit 
 
Our database of Unit Information Pages is an excellent resource for new Marine parents and parents needing specific information about their Marine's unit. Parents can search for the unit by unit name, base location, division and category.
 
Once on the Unit Information Page, parents will find general information about their Marine's unit, the official unit web site, their Family Readiness web site, the name and contact information for their Family Readiness Officer and a link to the Marine Parents message boards specific to their Marine's unit.
 
Visit this database here.
EGA Store Featured Items
Your Marine's Unit Crest On ANYTHING! 
 
 
Purchase any item with your Marines's unit crest on it!The Marine Parents EGA Store offers bumper stickers, garden flags, license plates, travel mugs and more with YOUR Marine's unit crest on it!
 
All you need to do is tell us which unit your Marine is with (on the order page) and we will get it on the item of your choice.
 
Click here to view the items you can choose from.
DONATE with every swipe of your card!

We hope this week's edition of our email newsletter has been useful for you and your family. If there are topics you would like us to address, or if you have other suggestions for the newsletter, please contact us.

The banner used at the top of this newsletter is a February 2011 USMC photo by LCpl. Garry Welch of Marines with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, board a landing craft utility Feb. 18, after the completion of exercise Cobra Gold 2011.  Click here to read additional credits. 
 
MarineParents.com, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity. MarineParents.com, Inc. was founded in January, 2003 in response to parents' needs to find information and to have a Place to Connect & Share™ with one another during deployments. Our free online services and connections have expanded to support and educate Marine moms & dads, spouses, families and friends. We've helped over 130,000 Marine and recruit families during bootcamp, training, active duty and deployments. We've shipped thousands of care packages overseas to our Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan, sent thousands of prayers and letters to injured Marines and served hundreds of meals to Wounded Warriors and their families on both the East and West coasts. You've found a Place to Connect & Share™. 
 

God Bless and Semper Fidelis,
 

Tracy Della Vecchia
Founder and Executive Director
MarineParents.com, Inc.
 
Neither the United States Marine Corps nor any other component of the Department of Defense has approved, endorsed, or authorized this service.