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MarineParents.com Newsletter
a Place to Connect & Share™ | |
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Support Our Marines! |
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Team Marine Parents™
Show your support of our Marines and their families at home! Participate in one of the MarineParents.com Outreach Programs today! Our Marines need YOU! |
| Support for You:
a Place to
Connect & Share™ |
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| Learning Center:
Operations Security |
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NOTE: When communicating online, your Marine's privacy is as important as Operations Security. Please respect YOUR Marine's privacy! |
| Learning Center:
About Deployment |
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(from your Marine, with the USMC, and with other families)
(tips, tricks and money savers for mailing to YOUR Marine)
(bills, taxes, legal issues, injuries, notification from the Marine Corps)
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Learning Center:
About Homecoming |
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(Tip: While in our store, check in your Marine's unit store for more homecoming shirts!) |
| Learning Center:
Bootcamp |
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| Local Support Groups in Your Area |
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NEWEST SUPPORT GOUPS:
Anaheim Hills, CA
(Orange County Area)
Eagle River, AK
For a list of all support groups in our database or to find one in your area, see:
If you are interested in starting a local support group in your area, please visit the "Support Groups" section of our website:
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| Marine Corps Spirit
T-shirts, Gifts & More |
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Show your Marine Corps spirit and pride! Proceeds from sales support MarineParents.com, an IRS approved 501(c)(3) public charity.
For Father's Day:
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Remember your Marine on Father's Day with a themed cake that stands up to shipping and hot weather!
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Dear Marine Families,
If this is the first edition of the MarineParents.com Newsletter you have received, WELCOME! If you are a returning reader we are glad you have joined us.
New and exciting things are always happening at MarineParents.com and we've got two exciting changes to announce.
First, we'll be holding 1-day conferences, four times a year in different regions around the U.S. This format changes is to help keep costs down for families who would like to attend, and to bring our services closer to you in order to provide more support to our Marines and their famlies at home.
Second, we'll be adding two columns in each newsletter written by professionals in the fields of military law, Post Traumatic Stress, Veteran's benefits, and deployment issues. We'll be giving you an opportunity to "Ask the experts questions" as well.
Two dates for your calendar:
May 29, Chat night with Dr. Cantrell
August 9, Kansas City Missouri, 1-day conference
Semper Family! |
| Deployment Calling Cards |
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| For Combat Deployed Marines: Which Cards work Overseas?
Assurance that your Marine can call home while deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan or Kuwait is a critical component to your peace of mind during combat deployments.
There are two types of calling cards that will work from Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait. Your Marine's location will dictate which card to use. We recommend obtaining one of each.
Unit Chat Nights:
If your son or daughter is deployed, and you would like to chat with other families in his/her battalion, check out the chat schedule to find that battalion's schedule chat night:
Would you like to hook up with the message boards for your son or daughter's deployed unit? See the following link for deployed units message boards:
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| Father's Day Gift Idea: Marine Corps Barbecue Gift Box |
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For the Father's of Marines and for Marine Fathers on Father's Day this year
 There is a chef in every Marine Corps Family! Treat your favorite Marine Corps chef to this ooh-rah collection of chef gear featuring United States Marine Corps ensignia and labeling. The entire gift collection is $53.95 which includes priority mail shipping to any US address or APO/FPO address. Our Marine Corps Chef Gift Box makes a great gift or buy one for yourself to add to your collection of Ooh Rah spirit items!
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| 9th August in Kansas City:
1-day Marine Family Conference |
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Learn about the Marine Corps, IRR, Deployment and network with Marines and Marine Corps Families
We're planning our first ever 1-day conference to be held on Saturday, August 9, from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. in Kansas City, Missouri.
We'll be holding 1-day conferences up to four times a year in different regions of the U.S. This new format for our conference will reach more families in more locations and be more affordable for the families who want to attend.
Though this is our first 1-day conference, this is the Fourth MarineParents.com Conference. We'll be bringing you guest speakers, breakout sessions, and lots of networking opportunities-just like our 3-day conferences, but we'll be packing it into one day.
Look for information on the web site by June 1st. |
| MAIL CALL! During Bootcamp |
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| What You Should and Should NOT Do
Need some help understanding what's okay and what's not okay to send to your Recruit at bootcamp? We've complied years of experience from parents of recruits to help you get it figured out.
Stick to letters only. Resist sending packages unless your recruit has sepcifically asked you to send something.
Though your recruit may move from one location for training to another during bootcamp, you will always use the same mailing address for him/her (see the box text box below and to the right for exceptions).
Mail arrives at the Depot (MCRD) Monday through Saturday. Depending on the training schedule, there may be a few days delay getting the mail into you recruit's hand and posssibly a further delay having an opportunity to open mail to read the letters from home. Don't despair; training comes first. Your recruit's mail would never be held for disciplinary reasons.
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Operation Sock Attack! |
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| Progress Report: 227 pairs so far!
We're on our way to getting the best socks made to Marines in Iraq!
Ten years ago May was designated as "National Military Appreciation Month," an idea intended to bring Americans together around its military family with the intent to honor, remember, recognize and appreciate all branches of the military that have served and are presently serving.
This year during Military Appreciation Month we're asking each person to donate a pair of Covert Threads socks for Marines stationed overseas. Covert Threads are the very best socks available for our Marines in hot climates. What better way to show them you appreciate them than by helping to take care of their feet during the hot summer months in desert climates.
We've raised enough to purchase 182 pair thus far. Covert Threads will donate 45 additional pairs. But we're far from our goal of 1000 pairs!
All socks purchased through the MarineParents.com "Covert Socks for Marines" interface will be shipped to Marines on the Care Package Project™ list, June 7, 2008. We hope to have enough funds to purchase 1000 pair of socks. Covert Threads has agreed for every four pairs purchased, we'll get a fifth free.
The socks are $8/pair. To purchase online for us to ship to Marines, go to: MarineParentsInc.com/nmam-covert.asp. All major credit cards are accepted. Choose the quantity you want to purchase. Your order will reflect pairs purchased; we'll total those and get one free for every four we order with covert threads before June 7. If you buy 4 pair, we'll ship 5 pair. If you buy 8 pair, we'll ship 10 pair. |
| Iraqi Children in Need |
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| RCT 5 Marines answer the call
 COMBAT OUTPOST TIMBERWOLF, Iraq - It is better to give than to receive; a common phrase said by many Americans takes on new meaning for many children in Iraq who don't have much to offer.
Select Marines with Headquarters Company, Regimental Combat Team 5, are acting as a provisional rifle platoon, which takes non-infantry Marines and trains them to perform a basic rifleman's job. These Marines man Combat Outpost Timberwolf near Baghdadi, Iraq, and have taken a special interest in the welfare of the local children.
"One of the things we do out here is to take care of the locals by providing them with the basic needs that they may not have," said Lance Cpl. Rodolfo Ceja, 22, a supply warehouse clerk, who is from Chicago. "Especially the little kids, we try to give them food and school supplies that they need."
Click here to read full story... |
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Marine Father Shirts |
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Great Father's Day Gifts
Save $5 on orders of $50 or more in our Cafe Press online stores. Check out the designs for Dad:
Use Coupon Code JUDGETENURE by May 25 to save $5. All proceeds from sales of shirts go to MarineParents.com, Inc. an IRS approved 501(c)(3) public charity. Click here for shirt designs... |
| Professionals to Write Columns |
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| Adding Three Professionals to Write Columns for Our Newsletter
We'll be adding a monthly column from four outstanding supporters of our Marines. Each of our columnists brings a specialty to the table that will be informative and educational to our Marine families. I would like to extend a welcome to each of our columnists. Look for the columns beginning in the next issue of our newsletter. Dr. Bridget Cantrell Dr. Cantrell is a published author and licensed psychologist with a focus on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Warrior Transitioning. Her primary work currently encompasses counseling war veterans and their families. She will be writing a monthly column for the newsletter in addition to the monthly chat nights she holds online for our families and Marines. Pat Rowe Kerr Pat Kerr is the Veteran Ombudsman for the State of Missouri. She brings a wealth of knowledge about Veteran's issues, benefits, and how to navigate the vast system of veteran's benefits. Ms. Kerr is tirelessly devoted to the needs of Veterans, providing assistance for Veterans, and advocating change on their behalf. Her column on Veteran's benefits will be published monthly in our newsletter. Kyndra Rotunda Kyndra Rotunda is the author of forthcoming Honor Bound: Inside The Guantanamo Trials, which will be released in June 2008 by Carolina Academic Press and is available on Amazon. Beginning in the Fall, 2008, Rotunda will join Chapman University School of Law in Orange, California, as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Law. Professor Rotunda formerly directed the Clinic for Legal Assistance to Service members at George Mason School of Law. She is regarded as a leading expert in military disability law, and recently recorded training DVDs for the National Veteran's Legal Services Program. |
| Marine Corps RSS Feeds |
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 What is RSS, and why should Marine families care?
RSS, also known as Really Simple Syndication, is a lightweight XML format designed for sharing headlines and delivering regularly changing Web content. Many news-related sites and other online publishers syndicate their content as an RSS Feed, represented by the orange icon show above.
RSS allows you to easily stay informed by retrieving the latest content from the sites you're interested in. Marine families are interested in Marine news and will be thrilled to know the Marine Corps now has an RSS Feed!
The Marine Corps offer several choices of RSS feeds which include photos, new stories, press releases and videos. To subscribe to your choice of Marine Corps news feeds, go to http://www.marines.mil/usmc/Pages/feeds.aspx | |
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Support Our Troops: Wear Red on Friday 
Join the "Wear Red Friday" campaign to show your support of our troops! We've opened up a brand new line in our online store--you get the quality and service you've come to expect, and you can help encourage those in your community to "Support Our Troops: Wear Red on Friday!" We've got yard signs and red t-shirts for every family member and everyone in your office! Check it out today:
Remember, all proceeds from sale of products in our stores go to support the organization MarineParents.com, Inc. and our outreach projects. MarineParents.com is an IRS approved 501(c)(3) Public Charity. |
We hope this week's edition of our email newsletter has been useful for you and your family. If there are topics you would like us to address, or if you have other suggestions for the newsletter, please contact us.
The banner used at the top of this newsletter is an May, 2008 USMC Photo by Cpl. Shawn Coolman at COMBAT OUTPOST TIMBERWOLF, Iraq of Cpl. Matthew D. Gammons, 24, a wireman, from Bedford, Ky., passes out a notebook to the local children near Baghdadi, Iraq, Saturday. Click here to read accompanying story.
MarineParents.com, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity. MarineParents.com, Inc. was founded in January, 2003 in response to parents' needs to find information and to have a Place to Connect & Share™ with one another during deployments. Our free online services and connections have expanded to support and educate Marine moms & dads, spouses, families and friends and we'll be offering the 4th National Conference in Kansas City, Missouri on August 9, 2008. We've helped over 40,000 Marine and recruit families during bootcamp, training, active duty and deployments. We've shipped thousands of care packages overseas to our Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan, sent thousands of prayers and letters to injured Marines and served hundreds of lunches to families caring for their Marines at Bethesda Hospital. You've found a Place to Connect & Share™.
God Bless and Semper Fidelis,
Tracy Della Vecchia
Founder and Executive Director MarineParents.com, Inc.
Neither the United States Marine Corps nor any other component of the Department of Defense has approved, endorsed, or authorized this service. |
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