Books for Soldiers

National wants us to know about:

Care Packages for the Mind

Have books to donate?

Send them to military personnel stationed overseas.

At Books for Soldiers, soldiers post requests and supply their addresses

so that you can mail packages directly to them.

Submitted by Lou Thompson, Unit Member

 

December Birthdays!

Happy Birthday to our members who have a birthday this month!

Nicole and Marissa.

Count your life by smiles, not tears.
Count your age by friends, not years.

It's NOT too late!

Operation Gratitude is still looking for many donated items.

Our Unit has been very good about making and sending scarves.

All items and letters can be shipped or delivered between

September 13--December 4 and from March 1 to May 5 to: 

 

Operation Gratitude/California Army National Guard

17330 Victory Boulevard

Van Nuys, California 91406

ATTN:  Charlie Othold

 

 

Saying Thank You to our Troops

It's so easy to say Thank You to our troops.  You can spot them everywhere, but especially in airports.  When you're traveling during the holidays, carry a few $5 Starbuck's gift cards with you.  (I choose Starbuck's because you can find one in almost every airport and on many posts.)

Every time I see a person in military uniform, I approach, get eye contact, extend my right hand to shake theirs, and say, "Thank you for your service."  Then I give them a gift card and ask them to have a cup of coffee on me.

It's incredible how this small gesture can make such a difference.  I feel good and they feel respected.  Sometimes, I visit for a few minutes if they are alone.

Submitted by Lou Thompson, Unit Member

November Birthdays

Happy Birthday to our members who have a birthday this month!

McCall, Elissa, Linda, Becky (Rebecca), Lou, and Bonnie.

Count your life by smiles, not tears.
Count your age by friends, not years.

 

Operation Gratitude NEEDS YOU!

Hi Friends!

It's time!  Operation Homefront and Operation Gratitude need your vote this month in the
Pepsi Refresh Challenge. If you vote for us, we could win up to $300,000 to get our troops
and their families through the holidays. In the $250,000 category, we have to rank first or
second to win the grant. In the $50,000 category, we have to make it into the top 10.

There are three ways every day to vote through the month of October:
1.     Sign Up For a Pepsi Refresh Account and sign in using your e-mail to vote.
2.     Text #103268 ($250K) and #103144 ($50K) to PEPSI (73774).
3.     Log on to Pepsi Refresh with your Facebook account and vote.
Please vote all three ways daily to help us fund holiday care packages and food for our
military and their families. We have some handy voting tips available at our blog.

We'd love to share a friendly daily reminder* to vote. If we are winners at the end of October, members
of the daily vote reminder list will be entered to win an iPad and other great prizes.

Pass the word to your friends, and stay updated on our challenge by visiting
www.OperationHomefront.net and www.OperationGratitude.com.

This unique partnership sends a strong message to our Military that our nation is united in support of our brave men and women in uniform and their loved ones. Help us thank them. VOTE DAILY!
Thank you for your dedication to our troops and their families!

Love,
Carolyn

Submitted by Mary Martin, Blog Editor

Check it out!

Please make sure that you visit the links on the right hand side of this blog.

• To get more information about our Unit ~ go to Become a Member
• The information under Pages are updated at least once a week
• Be sure to support the Businesses Supporting Veterans
• Become a Follower and stay current with our unit

Don't forget to go to our awesome Unit web site  www.alaunit472.org

Announcement ~ Oh NO!

One of our very own members, Michele Miller is now Michele Wood!!!! Congratulations Michele! Her new husband is James Wood and just happens to be in the Army National Guard. They are currently living in MN.

Michele has been an ALA Member for 13 years and James will be signing up with a Post as soon as he gets back from Guard Training ~ way to go.

Submitted by Mary Martin (Mom to Michele!), Unit 472 Member

United We Serve

The President has said that the challenges American faces are unprecedented, and that we need to build a new foundation for economic growth in America. The Administration has begun this work with dramatic new investments in education, health care and clean energy, but we cannot do this alone here in Washington. Economic recovery is as much about what you're doing in your communities as what we're doing in Washington ~ and it's going to take all of us, working together. Serve.gov is your online resource for not only finding volunteer opportunities in your community, but also creating your own. Use Serve.gov to help you do your part. America's foundation will be built one community at a time ~ and it starts with you. Serve.gov is managed by the Corporation for National and Community Service.

Find a Volunteer Opportunity in Your Community ~ http://www.serve.gov.

Auxiliary-recognized National Days of Service for 2010-2011

• 9/11 National Day of Service (September 11, 2010)
• Make a Difference Day (October 23, 2010)
• National Family Volunteer Day (November 20, 2010)
• Veterans Day (November 19, 2010)
• Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Service (January 17, 2011)
• National and Global Youth Service Day (April 15-17, 2011)
• National Volunteer Week (April 10-26, 2011)
• Any other day where you can gather a group of volunteers

Submitted by Lou Thompson, Unit 472 Member

Patriotic Drink

From FamilyFun Magazine

With a steady hand and some colorful rinks, you can create a tasty, multilayered concoction. The secret is in selecting liquids with varying amounts of sugar, since those that contain more (such as soda) are denser than those with less (such as diet drinks). And that makes it possible to actually stack one on top of another (for a while, anyway ~ then they'll start to blend). Here's how to serve up a thirst quencher with two, three, or even more layers.

Our recipe is for red, white and blue version for your Patriot Celebrations (Fourth of July). See how your favorite beverages literally stack up!

Ingredients

  Ice cubes
  Cranberry juice
  Wild Berry flavor Gatorade Fierce
  Diet 7-Up

Instructions

1. Fill a clear glass with ice cubes. Pour the drink with the most sugar (check the nutrition label) into the glass. For our red, white and blue recipe, start with cranberry juice.

2. Very slowly add a beverage that contains less sugar ~ in this case, Wild Berry flavor Gatorade Fierce. Be careful to pour it onto an ice cube ~ not directly into the other drink ~ to keep them from mixing.

3. Use the same technique to add a layer of Diet 7-UP

Submitted by Lou Thompson, Unit 472 Member

Operation Gratitude needs YOU!!!!

Hi everyone!

This is an excerpt from the Operation Gratitude Newsletter sent to me:

SUMMER KNITTERS NEWSLETTER: “Sharon Howard Scarves for Troops Project”
Dear Knitters, Crocheters and Crafters,
I hope you are enjoying a wonderful and restful summer!
Although it’s HOT out there, it is time to give some thought and action to warm scarves and caps for the 2010 Operation Gratitude Holiday Drive! In touching base with faithful workers now, perhaps you will be inspired to pick up those needles to ensure that our upcoming drive is the most successful yet!


We are motivated by the overwhelming thanks we get from all who receive one of these “made-with-love” items! Let us also be inspired by Sharon Howard’s support for our Military and her dedication and passion for her Scarves for Troops Project. (Please click here to see entire blog entry.)


2010 Holiday Drive
We want to include a scarf or cap inside each one of the care packages we send this winter to our heroic Service Members deployed overseas. Our goal this year is 60,000 scarves and caps! As we strive towards this tremendous goal we will need everyone’s help–not just in knitting and crocheting, but in spreading the good word as well.

Our Unit was awesome this last year, so many of us jumped right in and started making scarves ~ WE MADE A DIFFERENCE!

So, if you knit or crochet, please start making the scarves now. Once you've made several :o) please ship them to:
Operation Gratitude/California Army National Guard
17330 Victory Boulevard
Van Nuys, CA 91406 

Those who do not knit or crochet can participate by sending a financial donation payable to "ALA EPA Unit 472" noting "Scarves" on the memo of the check ~ that's very important or your donation may not go towards our project. Please mail your check to our Unit Treasurer:

ALA Unit 472
2121 Crosspoint Avenue
Santa Rosa, CA 95403

See Support the Troops and Veterans Page for an easy crocheted scarf pattern.  

Submitted by Mary Martin, Unit Member

Please Contact Congress Now

The American Legion is calling upon Congress to join with Representative Moore in support of H.R. 4745 which honors the achievements of the GI Bill and Commander Colmery with a Congressional Gold Medal. Members of The American Legion family are asked to contact their representative (Capitol Hill switchboard: 202-224-3121) and ask them to become cosponsors of H.R. 4745; if they are already cosponsors, thank them for their support.

Submitted by Lou Thompson, Unit Member

Welcome!

This is the new format for the Unit's newsletter.
Watch for more to come.