General

[Hawkeye20]

I've been thinking about putting together a care package to send overseas, after reading about others sending them. So here's my question.

When you were overseas, what would you have wanted in a care package, or better yet, if you happened to receive one, what was your favorite thing inside?

The list so far:

The list so far: Some good sunscreen, some ramen, pudding cup pack, assorted batteries, gum, a deck of cards, koolaid packets, Gold Bond extra strength body powder, trail mix, chap stick, a gun magazine or two, some sunburn gel (that amazing green gel stuff), and maybe some Idaho Spud Bars (local candy bar, pretty damn good).

It's going to a member of A Company, 1-168th GSAB, local Blackhawk pilots, chiefs, and mechanics that went over to Afghanistan last month.

Anything else?


Also, since I'm planning on doing this multiple times, I am taking donations via paypal of a max of $15. I'm not saying everyone needs to send me money, but it is greatly accepted. PM me for my paypal if you feel like donating to the cause.

[freedom]

send me your paypal addy. i'll add $10 for your efforts...

[russc]

Yeah I think the candy would be DOA...

[Hawkeye20]

Originally Posted by russc

Yeah I think the candy would be DOA...

Well I could line the inside of the box with saran wrap (and wrap the chocolate) and then make it 39.5 pounds of chocolate and throw in a box of plastic spoons with a sticky note that says "just in case..."

[TippmannFireman]

I'm not a vet, but I did this (well, my family did this) for a friend of ours that was over there. He seemed to like fruits (canned and the ones in the little cups). Pudding cups, beef jerky, flavor packets for water (from what I've heard, water over there is so full of chemicals to kill all the bacteria it tastes HORRIBLE [someone correct me if I'm wrong, there]), sunscreen, etc. We even sent some batteries and a battery powered fan, and he loved it. Just think about some of the small things we use here that they don't have. Like you said, clean socks, a fan, canned fruits, water flavor packets, a deck of cards, even.

[Seymour]

My dad said Kool Aid packets were prized during the First Gulf War because the water tasted like piss.

[Deuce]

Sunscreen, socks, etc are usually issued or can be had at the PX fairly easily.

I'd send things like wet wipes(can never have enough), reading materials (shooting and other sports mags are great morale boosters) lickeys and cheweys (hard candies, jerky, etc)also good is koolaid powder, Mio, power aid powder and other things of that nature.

If you don't have someone in particular to send to its kinda hard to tailor the contents to the receiver. Basically what a grunt on a distant FOB will appreciate versus a guy in a support position in the rear will appreciate are different monsters. The person in the rear generally has greater access to things that are generally taken for granted.


Think of things that could be used to improve hygiene in an austere environment or help to kill boredom and you generally can't go wrong. We always appreciated that stuff. A church back home once sent my squad a package stuffed with toothbrushes, paste, scope, etc as well as candy and jerky. It ended up being enough for the whole platoon. We took pictures and wrote thank you letters to let them know it was appreciated.

(Firearm cleaning items that are safe for shipping aren't a bad idea either, we sometimes had shortages)

Hope that helps some.

[Hawkeye20]

Probably sending it to someone in the 1-183d AVN BN. Local guys out of Gowen Field. Black Hawk pilots. 40-something of our guys just went over in eight black hawks last month. 16 pilots, 16 crew chiefs, and various mechanics. I got to watch them leave for their long flight from Boise, Idaho to somewhere in Texas, before heading to Afghanistan.

Eight birds silhouetted in the morning sky.....

[Marauder_Pilot]

Dip, Ripped Fuel, porn mags, batteries, hash chunks and dirty-***, jerk-off letters from Suzie Rottencrotch.

And a mail-order turret.

[Seymour]

^Fantastic reference.