April 8, 2008

Bear hug a U.S. Soldier

Operation: Care and Comfort prepares to ship 140,000 ‘Bear Hugs’ to U.S. Troops on April 5

On Saturday Apr. 5, Operation: Care and Comfort, an all-volunteer military care package program, will be packing and mailing 140,000 special “Bear Hug” gifts to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, to arrive before Memorial Day.

All over the Bay Area and beyond, schools, organizations and churches have partnered with Operation: Care and Comfort to take part in this one-of-a-kind shipment. This national online campaign, dubbed “Bear Hug a U.S. Soldier,” kicked off in January, asking the general public to contribute $1 to sponsor a specially-packaged bear for our troops.

An additional 90,000 “Bear Hugs” will be distributed to patients in Veterans’ hospitals throughout the United States, and 70,000 will be shipped to our troops through Operation Gratitude. David Hamblett, a retired East Coast businessman, developed and financed this campaign. Dave’s goal is two-fold - to get a “Bear Hug” into the hands of every service member in Iraq and Afghanistan, and to raise operating funds for Operation: Care and Comfort and Operation Gratitude.

Operation: Care and Comfort's unique program invites members of the community to use their time, talents and treasure to show our troops serving in harm’s way that they are not forgotten.

"Our program's strength is in the fantastic volunteers, and our supportive community. We are a member of the Department of Defense America Supports You program, so folks all over the country contact us with questions regarding supporting our troops," said Julie DeMaria, co-founder of Operation: Care and Comfort. “Through the efforts of so many caring citizens like Dave, we have sent care and comfort to tens of thousands troops who volunteer to serve our country. Sending this special “Bear Hug” is just another way folks can say THANK YOU for your service!”

With the help of the U.S. Navy, U.S. Post Office and volunteers, Operation: Care and Comfort will package 140,000 “Bear Hugs” on Saturday, Apr. 5 at the Navy Operational Support Center in San Jose. This shipment will be processed through the Franklin Post Office in Santa Clara, Calif. Dave Hamblett will be on-hand to see his idea become a reality - 140,000 “Bear Hugs” packaged, labeled and mailed in one day.

Information including campaign details, product specifications and donation information is available at www.bearhugaussoldier.com.

About Operation: Care and Comfort
Since April 2003, the all-volunteer Operation: Care and Comfort program, unique to the Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross, has shipped 375,000 pounds of care packages for distribution to Marine, Army, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard personnel deployed in conflict regions. Adopted military units receive care packages monthly until they return home. Operation: Care and Comfort is a member of the Department of Defense “America Supports You” program. For more information on how you can support this worthy program, please visit: www.operationcareandcomfort.org.