With the hoiliday season fast approching please remember our troops! Christi Dunn Hamill is doing fundraisers for Keystone Soliders who are sending Christmas stockings to our troops. If you purchase products from either Avon or Tupperware a % of the earnings will go to Keystone Soldiers! You can either start the holiday shopping early or you can send products to keystone solders for their care packages.

  All items for the Stockings for Soldiers drive must arrive in our office no later than Dec 1st in order to make it to their destination by Christmas. Our current care package list on the front page of our website has the list of most needed items, including the stockings. We have already started packing the stockings and have run out of a few items. We are out of Slim Jims, cookies, nuts & sunflower seeds and travel sizes deodorants.

  Donations for shipping are our biggest concern during the holiday season. This year has been tough and funds are tight but we want to make sure that every soldier, sailor, marine and airman on our list gets a holiday stocking from home. We need everyone's help to accomplish this. Even $5.00 helps get a stocking to one of the troops serving our country. Please help with whatever you can.

  Don't forget...we are still selling the Bon Ton Community Day coupon books! The book costs $5.00 and gives you $10.00 off on any purchase of $10.00 or more on November 14th. How can you possibly beat that deal? Spend 5, get 10 AND support our troops at the same time. We will be at the Bon Ton store in Berkshire Mall, Wyomissing, PA on Wednesday November 11th from 10 AM to 6 PM and Saturday November 14th from 10 AM to 8 PM selling the coupon books or you can call our office if you would like to have them mailed to you. Thank you to everyone who purchased their coupon books last Saturday! We sold over 300 books!! Our volunteer team deserves a huge pat on the back for the terriffic sales job done by each and every one of them.

  If you have any questions about holiday shipping or donations please call us or send us an email. We will get back to you as soon as possible. This time of year gets a little hectic so please keep in mind that we are a 100% volunteer organization so it may take a day or two for someone to get back to you.

  Thanks to all of those who support our troops and their families!
  ~Lordzmom

  It is with a heavy heart that I share the news of the passing of Little Josh Wright. Several of you met Josh when he was in PA a few years ago and understand what a loving and giving young man he was.

  Josh and I met online in 2003 or 2004. It is hard to remember the exact date, I just know we both had the same mindset about supporting our troops. He was short on money and needed to get some packages to his marines. We had money and items to take care of them till Josh could raise some more money. We became fast friends and talked about once a week via email. When Josh had some vacation time and a marine friend (who had received some of our packages) stationed at Aberdeen, MD he flew across the country from Downey, CA to Md to see G-Lo. They proceeded to rent a car and drive all the way to Fleetwood, PA to have dinner with my family and say "thanks" for all the help and support. We even did a tv interview with WFMZ that night to get the word out to the local community about how important and far reaching their support can be. Meeting Josh and G-Lo was an honor I will never forget.

 

  Josh's greatest dream was to be a marine, but health issues throughout his life kept that from becoming a reality. He did the next best thing and became a marine without a uniform. No one has ever spent the time and focus that Josh has to make sure that every marine  he could reach had exactly what they needed from home. He made trips all over southern Ca to pick up donations and deliver them to the bases. He tirelessly packed boxes for shipping as often as he could. He was a true marine at heart.

 Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. His marines will need all of us to pull together and take over the support following the same high standards Josh set for us. Josh will be sorely missed and forever remembered.

 Semper Fi Josh! Semper Fi!

  ~Lordzmom

 We here at Keystone Soldiers are working very hard to keep the packages and letters going to our troops. We have some great events and fundraisers coming up. This will be a short overview to give you some ideas on how you can help and support our troops.

 First and foremost we are getting the prep work done for our annual Stockings for Soldiers campaign. We had to cut back last year on the number of stockings we mailed out due to the failing economy. This year has been tough and donations for postage are still well below last year at this time. Our goal for this year will be to ship 7500 holiday stockings to troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait and several other areas where we have units that have asked to participate. If you have troops that would like to receive the stockings to pass out please make sure we have correct contact information for mailing the boxes and the approximate number of male and female stockings requested. We will do our best to get the stockings to them in time for the holiday. Our shipping deadline to accomplish this task is Dec 5th, 2009. We must have all the donated items and money for shipping no later than Dec 1st. I will be updating the care package request list in the next few days to reflect the items we need for the stockings.

 In order to raise some of the money for shipping we will be working on a fundraiser with the Bon Ton store in Wyomissing as part of their annual Community Day event. I will be posting a separate article with all the details but the important part of this fundraiser is selling coupon books. By purchasing a coupon book for $5.00 you will get a coupon for $10.00 off any purchase of $10.00 or more AND you will be sponsoring the cost of one Christmas stocking for a soldier! How cool is that? Donate $5.00 and get $10.00 back! Keep watching the website for the full details and the dates & times we will be in the store selling the coupon books. There will also be information on purchasing the books online.

 Sunday October 4th from 3 PM to 6 PM will be a cruise and car show sponsored by Cocalico Cruisers. This show is to benefit Keystone Soldiers and we will have a table there to accept donations for care packages. The event will take place at Dave's Diner in Adamstown, PA. As soon as we have a copy of the flyer we will post it here on the website. We hope to see some of you there! Details and directions will be posted on the calender.

 We will be offering a limited number of Thanksgiving Dinner boxes for the troops again this year. The boxes will contain a semi-traditional dinner for individuals or units and MUST be shipped by November 5th. I am still working on the pricing and should have the details posted on the website by early next week.

  There will be a new website coming in the next few weeks. It will have a new look and be even easier to navigate. There will be new features and an expanded profile section so you can interact more easily. It is our hope that some of the troops receiving care packages will post their thank you notes on the website. We will have new photo galleries and an all new chat section. We would like to have some scheduled chats and family members will also be able to chat privately with their soldiers. The safety and security of the troops and their families are always our primary concern. We do not share any of their information without their permission and that will never change. There are sections of the website that are only available to registered users and that will be the same on the new website. The new site will make it easier for readers and volunteers to post content that will be useful and informative for both the military and the public who want to support our troops.

 That is just a few of the upcoming events! If you are interested in helping with any of these events or volunteering at our packing office please send us an email and let us know when you are available. We have a great group and always welcome new volunteers no matter if they are there once or every week! There will be lots of opportunities for scouting and school or church groups to help this year so be sure to get your dates scheduled early!

 As always.....thanks for your continued support for our troops and for Keystone Soldiers!

  Lordzmom

 

 

When: SAT Aug 22, 2009 from 10 AM to 3 PM

 Where: Schoolside Plaza, 5 S. Centre Ave (Route 61), Leesport, PA 19533

 What: Flea Market to raise money for shipping care packages to our troops. Open House to increase awareness in our community of the need to support our troops. Care package sponsorships are available. For $20.00 (the average shipping cost of a package) you can put a personal message of support in a package that is being shipped to Iraq or Afghanistan.

 Items available:

• New in box air conditioners (4)
• New in box 13" tv (only 1)
• Golf clubs - gently used (full sets of irons, mixed sets of irons, individual irons, woods, putters...etc)
• Golf bags
• Golf balls - practice balls
• Board games - new & used
• Video game systems - gently used ( PS2, PS, Game Cube...etc)
• Video games - new & used
• Dining table and 4 chairs - gently used
• Books, books and more books - hard bound and paperbacks
• Toys - new & used
• DVDs & CDs - new & used
• Assorted household goods - new & used
• Lots more!!!!!!!

 All the money raised at our table will be used to ship care packages. Please come out and show your support! We hope to raise enough money to ship 400 care packages this month!!

 *****Update***** It looks like we will be setting up inside the building tomorrow. The weather is calling for 90% chance of rain.

 Thanks for your continued support for our troops and for Keystone Soldiers!

 ~Lordzmom

Home Depot: 10% Military Discount- SAVE up to $200 in-store on single receipt purchases July 2 - July 8, 2009.

www.homedepot.com - Valid 07/02/2009 through 07/08/2009 and redeemable for a 10% discount on a single receipt in-store purchase at The Home Depot® U.S. stores only. Maximum discount $200. This offer cannot be combined with any other discount, offer, promotion or special incentive program and is not valid on: (a) labor or Self-Furnish and Install (“SF&I”) and Furnish and Install (“F&I”) program products, including without limitation roofing, windows, siding, HVAC products, custom closets or storage solutions; (b) the purchase of The Home Depot Gift Cards or Certificates; (c) prior purchases; (d) Consumer Electronics (including, but not limited to, televisions, DVD players, speakers, home theaters, cellular phones, etc.), Little Giant Ladder Systems®, Thermador® in select markets, Gaggenau®, Miele®, Dacor®, Viking®, Fisher&Paykel®, Alfresco Grills®, Weber-Stephen Grills®, Sharp Insight™, Delonghi®, Casablanca® and Hunter Prestige® products; or (e) purchase from any The Home Depot affiliate store. Present valid Military ID to cashier at time of purchase to receive your discount. Offer is not valid for payment on any The Home Depot credit account. No credit if offer refused. Cash value 1/20th of 1 cent. Void if sold, copied or transferred and where prohibited. See store for further details and a full listing of SF&I and F&I products and complete details. ©2007, Homer TLC Inc. all rights reserved.

 

 

   Thanks to a security flaw in our Media Gallery software we have had to disable the gallery and forum until some new patches can be instaloled. Since I am actually on vacation it will be about 10 days until these features are available again. Thanks for your patience!

  ***I am still working on the fix for this issue. The software developers are assisting so we should have a solution soon.****

  Lordzmom

 

 First I would like to apologize for the lack of updates. There has been a lot going on at Keystone Soldiers and on the home front since Christmas. We have finally moved into our new quarters in our building (Suite A1) so we no longer have steps to negotiate for donation drop off AND it will be much easier for trucks with pallets to make deliveries. We have more space in the new rooms and believe me....it is packed full at the moment!

  I need to say a special Thank You to John, Jackie, Bill, Linda, Stacey, John W. and Dianne for all their hard work to get our space ready and accomplish the move. In December I was involved in a car accident. I have not recovered as fast as I think I should have and for the last 5 weeks have been undergoing treatments and spinal injections to try and get the pain under control. That is why it has been taking me longer to return emails and phone calls and I have not been able to get any updates done here. The volunteers listed have really stepped up and made sure that things at the Keystone Soldiers office have been under control. They painted, shampooed carpets, packed boxes and moved tons of items from the old office to the new space. We also had the help of the members of the Hamburg Moose Lodge to get the bulk of the office moved and in place. Thanks Eric, Merv and Bruce!

 We are still struggling with the peanut butter recall issue. I have contacted several retail stores and warehouse clubs to see if we could exchange some of the donations we received that are on the recall list but we keep getting the same answer, no returns without a receipt. We have several hundred pounds of donations that have shown up on the FDA recall list and it seems such a waste to throw them away when most of the stores can get credit for them if they would only replace them for us. We are still looking for a solution to this issue. Mailing them to the manufacturer is out of the question when we barely have any money for shipping care packages.

  We had a fundraiser at the 3 Reading Boscov's stores on Feb 7th to help raise some money for shipping Valentines to the troops. We raised almost $500.00 for the day and had several hundred valentines signed by well-wishers. As a comparison we raised $2,100.00 last year at the same 3 locations, so you can see how the economy has affected small non profits like ours this year. Cash donations are down about 75% and it is making it difficult to keep the care packages flowing to the troops that truly need our help and support. This is coupled with a huge increase in PA National Guard troops from PA (about 7,000) that were deployed in January. They deserve to know that we are thinking of them and want them all to get home safe. There are also families left behind that are struggling to get by and need some help. We cannot accomplish our mission without the entire community pulling together. Please consider making a donation for care packages! We have plenty of items ready to ship and we could have about 500 care packages in the mail this week BUT we do not have enough money to make it happen. We have been shipping packages as money comes in but it means that we have to make some very tough decisions about who needs them most. I hate making those decisions when we have plenty of items to ship!

  That should bring you up to date on the most important news right now. Please feel free to stop by the new digs and check things out on Wed or Sat mornings! We would be happy to show you around but I warn you....you will be hooked on soldier support by the time you leave!!

  ~Lordzmom

I had no Christmas spirit when I breathed a weary sigh,
And looked across the table where the bills were piled too high.
The laundry wasn't finished and the car I had to fix,
My stocks were down another point, the Dolphins lost by six.

And so with only minutes till my son got home from school,
I gave up on the drudgery and grabbed a wooden stool.
The burdens that I carried were about all I could take,
And so I flipped the TV on to catch a little break.

I came upon a desert scene in shades of tan and rust,
No snowflakes hung upon the wind, just clouds of swirling dust.
And where the reindeer should have stood before a laden sleigh,
Eight hummers ran a column right behind an M1A.

A group of boys walked past the tank, not one was past his teens,
Their eyes were hard as polished flint, their faces drawn and lean.
They walked the street in armor with their rifles shouldered tight,
Their dearest wish for Christmas, just to have a silent night.

Other soldiers gathered, hunkered down against the wind,
To share a scrap of mail and dreams of going home again.
There wasn't much at all to put their lonely hearts at ease,
They had no Christmas turkey, just a pack of MRE's.

They didn't have a garland or a stocking I could see,
They didn't need an ornament -- they lacked a Christmas Tree.
They didn't have a present even though it was tradition,
The only boxes I could see were labeled "ammunition."

I felt a little tug and found my son now by my side,
He asked me what it was I feared, and why it was I cried.
I swept him up into my arms and held him oh so near
And kissed him on the forehead as I whispered in his ear.

There's nothing wrong, my little son, for safe we sleep tonight,
Our heroes stand on foreign land to give us all the right,
To worry about the things in life that really mean nothing at all,
Instead of wondering each day if we will be the next to fall.

He looked at me as children do and said it's always right,
To thank the ones who help us and perhaps that we should write.
And so we pushed aside the bills and sat to draft a note,
To thank the many far from home, and this is what we wrote.

God bless you all and keep you safe, and speed your way back home.
Remember that we love you so, and that you're not alone.
The gift you give, you share with all, a present every day,
You give the gift of liberty and that we can't repay.

~~~~~~***~~~~~~***~~~~~~

Copyright 2003 Michael Marks with the following note added: "I freely submit this poem for reprint without reservation--this is an open and grateful tribute to the men and women who serve every day to keep our nation safe."

  Mark your calendars folks! Saturday December 6th from 10 AM to 4 PM you can stop by any Reading, PA Boscov's Department Store and sign a FREE card for our troops! Heck, you can even sign two if you want. Come out and meet the wonderful volunteers and show your support for those serving our country. Tables will be set up at Fairgrounds Mall, Berkshire Mall and Boscov's East. You can drop off cards at ANY Boscov's store until December 10th for mailing to the troops.

  You will also be able to sponsor a Christmas stocking for a soldier with a $5.00 donation! With every stocking you sponsor you get a very special card to add your personal message to someone far from home this holiday season. I know that times are tough this year and money is tight, but there are thousands of our local troops who will not get to spend the holidays with their loved ones. They deserve to know that we are thinking of them and wish them the best. Please help us raise the funds we need to ship all the Christmas stockings to those serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Phillipines, Korea and many other areas of the world.

  Thanks for your continued support for Keystone Soldiers and for our troops!