DENVER (ANS) -- Online care package provider Treats for Troops has teamed up with chaplains and officers from deployed units serving our country to get packages and messages of support into the hands of soldiers who seldom receive mail from home.

Chaplain Michael Tomlinson, who serves with the 1st Battalion, Second Marines Regiment in Iraq, said in a news release, “Nothing lifts the spirits like receiving something from the home front. The people who send packages through Treats for Troops help me see that no one is forgotten. Words cannot express how much this means.”

With over a thousand Marines on the front lines under his care, Tomlinson is responsible for one of the largest groups Treats for Troops represents.

“We have groups and units of all sizes registered for support,” said Unit Support Program Head Lisa Baron in a news release. “The chaplains and officers registered with us make sure the packages people send go to the soldiers most in need.”

The company said its Denver warehouse is filled with holiday packages designed to be shared, including six-packs of phone cards and filled Christmas stockings, holiday feasts for four, eight or more, collections of electronic games and much more. There's even a Christmas tree that arrives ready to decorate with ornaments, battery powered lights and instant “snow.”

The slumping economy has taken its toll on troop support programs. According to Treats for Troops Founder Deborah Crane speaking in a news release, the number of packages being sent to the troops has fallen to an all-time low, while the number of homesick soldiers hoping to receive a package is at an all-time high.

A link on Treats for Troops' Web site allows those interested to have a package sent to one of several different unit representatives.

Individual soldiers can also be sponsored through Treats for Troops. Soldiers may be selected by home state, branch of service, gender or area of deployment. Many soldiers have created online profiles to help make shopping for them easier.

Whichever method of support they choose, participants can create a personal message to go with your package, and get a personal thank you back from the soldier they sponsor.

For more information on how to send a holiday support package to troops, visit www.treatsfortroops.com
 

Jeremy Reynalds is a freelance writer and the founder and CEO of Joy Junction, New Mexico's largest emergency homeless shelter, http://www.joyjunction.org He has a master's degree in communication from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in intercultural education from Biola University in Los Angeles. His newest book is "The Face of Homelessness." Additional details are available at http://www.HomelessBook.com. Reynalds' upcoming book is "We All Need a Little Help." It will be released on October 3 2008. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. For more information contact: Jeremy Reynalds at jeremyreynalds@comcast.net. Tel: (505) 400-7145. Note: A higher resolution JPEG picture of Jeremy Reynalds is available on request from Dan Wooding at danjuma1@aol.com.