If someone comes to your door asking for donations for MarineParents.com, Inc., it is a scam. MarineParent.com never solicits donations by going door-to-door -- ever. We only ask for donations via our websites or through fliers included in shipping products from the EGA Shop.

Recently we heard from a Marine parent who had a person come to her door looking for donations supposedly to help MarineParents.com. The parent made a donation, but after checking with our office, the scammed parent had to cancel the donation and change her account numbers.

Don't fall victim to door-to-door solicitations purporting to be from MarineParents.com. Protect yourself, and be secure in the knowledge that when you donate your time, money or goods to MarineParents.com, it's going to help our Marines overseas.

Or just text MARINEPARENTS  to 22828 to sign up!   

If this is the first edition of the Marine Parents newsletter you have received, WELCOME! If you are a returning reader we are glad you have joined us and thankful for your support.

In This Issue

We're asking for your support to help us send Girl Scout Cookies to Marines deployed to combat zones in Afghanistan. It's a little slice of home.

If you have a recently deployed Marine, you'll want to check out all our services and information through a variety of MarineParents.com websites.

You'll read about Vietnam Veterans day, where America's vets finally get the homecoming they deserve. We're also promoting a study being conducted by two universities on post-traumatic stress disorder, high-risk behavior and impairment suffered by troops who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

We'll tell you about Marine Week 2012, Marine Corps Aviation Week and get you set for another online chat with Dr. Bridget Cantrell.

Finally, have you signed the petition in support of Gold Star families through the Family Medical Leave Act? Check out our update and reminder.

God bless and Semper Fi!

Tracy Della Vecchia

We have 800 cases - or, 9,600 boxes - of Girl Scout Cookies® arriving in April. To ship the cookies to Marines in Afghanistan war zones, we need to raise $10,120 - and to reach our goal, we need your help. We need to raise the full amount by April 21; for just $12.65, you can send a whole case (12 boxes) all by yourself. The Girl Scouts have kept up their end of the bargain, and now it is time to keep up ours!  

Having your Marine deployed for the first time can be a nerve-racking time full of worry and doubt - and a lot of questions.

As "a place to connect and share®", MarineParents.com, Inc., is here to help you find the information you need in an OPSEC-appropriate manner. On our Marine Family Network website (click here to access), you can find groups, start a blog, ask questions and find out how to take part in events around the country or online.

On our main MarineParents.com website (click here to access), we have links to deployment; links to your Marine's specific battalion and unit; links to unit-specific information pages; and links to information about the country in which your Marine is deployed.

You can also learn about operations security (OPSEC) procedures and ways in which to communicate with your Marine; about sending care packages; issues that arise during deployment such as identity theft, income tax filing and power of attorney; suggested reading and much more.

Photo by Cpl. Scott Schmidt Tom Burns, a 61-year-old Vietnam veteran, looks for Marines from 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment along the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall Nov. 11, 2010.

Thirty-nine years ago - March 30, 1973, to be exact - the Vietnam War officially ended when the United States withdrew its combat and support units from Southeast Asia. From an American public at large that had long since grown tired of the war, many of the returning veterans were greeted with hostility or indifference.

Thirty-eight years later, the veterans finally got the reception they deserved. Click here to read more ... 

In their ongoing efforts to change the Family Medical Leave Act to include time off for families of military service members who have died, Barry Kluger and Dick Linn recently spent time on Capitol Hill.

They went to a dozen Congressional offices, soliciting advice and support in their efforts to advance the case. The reaction, Linn reports, generally seemed to be positive on their "mutual education tour." Republicans and Democrats agreed that the bill stands a much better chance of being considered and/or passed in 2013.

Here at MarineParents.com, we urge the Department of Labor to broaden the scope of its proposal and to mirror the language in The Farley-Kluger Amendment to the FMLA of 1993, which petitions Congress to amend the Act to include time off for the loss of a child. 

The Senate Bereavement Act of 2011, inspired by The Farley-Kluger Amendment and introduced by Sen. Jon Tester of Montana, proposed the FMLA extend leave options. We believe there is no better time than now to include any and all loss of a child.

Click here to sign the petition ...

Click here to follow the Facebook page ... 

Depending on which source you use, estimates of post-traumatic stress disorder among Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom veterans range from 6 percent to more than 18 percent.

To learn more about the unique needs and concerns of these active-duty service members and veterans, the University of South Florida RESTORE Lives Center and the Anxiety Disorders Research Program at the University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY) have joined together in a research project. The Assessment of Base Rates of PTSD, High-Risk Behavior, and Impairment Study is designed to gather accurate information and identify these needs.

Click here to read more ... 

Click here to sign up ... 

Bridget C. Cantrell, Ph.D., author of the acclaimed post-traumatic stress disorder book "Downrange: To Iraq and Back" and "Once a Warrior: Wired for Life," will hold an online discussion group Thursday, March 29, 2012, from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Central Standard Time. It is sponsored by MarineParents.com, Inc.

The topic of discussion is post-traumatic stress disorder and warrior transitioning. Military personnel and spouses, parents or other adult family members who would like to learn more about PTSD and warrior transitioning are invited to attend. The discussion groups are held in the MarineParents.com online chat room.

Click here to read more ... 

Click here to access the chat room ... 

Click here to purchase books online ... 

A: It's ... both.

At this year's fourth-annual Marine Week, you'll get a chance to see and climb aboard the military vehicle that is both helicopter and airplane, the Marines' MV-22 Osprey.

Marine week kicks off June 11 and runs through June 17 in Cleveland, Ohio -- also home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The seven-day event celebrates community, country and Corps, and it is free and open to the public. Click here to read more ...

Click here for more info ...

From Lt. Col. Alfred A. Cunningham in 1912 to Capt. Vernice Armour in 2001. From Lt. Gen. Frank E. Peterson in 1952 to Lt. Col. Sarah Deal in 1993.

From the Curtiss airplane to the Lockheed Martin F-35 jets.

Pilots and planes, they're all part of the Marine Corps Aviation wing. And they're all part of history as Marine Corps Aviation celebrates its centennial throughout 2012. Click here to read more ...