kberry

A friend of mine sent this to me and I thought I would pass it along.
I think it's a wonderful idea.

When filling out your Christmas cards this year, take ONE CARD and SEND it to this address:

A Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue
NW Washington, DC 20307-5001

If we pass this on and everyone sends one card, think of how many cards these soldiers could get to bring up their spirits! Feel free to re-post. This is a wonderful thing to do!

bstock

What a nice idea!! Thanks for sharing!!

Sewfine

That is a great idea. Thanks for sharing.

CherryPie

That is a wonderful idea. Those men & women need to be remembered for serving in the military and fighting for our freedom. Thank you for sharing with us.

mayday

great idea.

mayday

JUST FOUND THIS
.Advertise | AdChoices
Don't send a card to a recovering soldier
I'm not being a scrooge! Here's the best way to show support for the troops
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30.Advertise | AdChoices. By Herb Weisbaum
ConsumerMan

msnbc.com contributor
updated 12/6/2007 12:17:57 PM ET 2007-12-06T17:17:57
Print Font: +-I don’t mean to sound like a scrooge, but don’t waste your time or postage mailing a holiday card to a recovering soldier at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Maybe you’ve seen the e-mail going around. It suggests that you send a Christmas card to a hero.

There are a few versions of this e-mail out there, this one being the most common:

When you are making out your Christmas card list this year, please include the following:

A Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20307-5001

If you approve of the idea, please pass it along to your e-mail list.

It’s a great idea, but unfortunately if you send something addressed this way, it won’t be delivered. So please, don’t forward this e-mail.

The U.S. Postal Service will not deliver any letter, post card, or package that is not addressed to a specific individual. Anything sent to “A Recovering Soldier,” “Any Wounded Soldier,” or “Any Service Member” is unacceptable.

“We cannot accept any mail that is not specifically addressed to an individual or an organization at the medical center,” says Terry Goodman of Walter Reed.

Sometimes one of these letters will make it through to the medical center. If that happens, it is returned to sender. Goodman says officials are just following Department of Defense policy designed to ensure the safety of patients and staff at all military hospitals.

Advertise | AdChoicesAnd don’t try to contact Walter Reed or any other military medical facility to get the name of a wounded service member to write. Because of medical privacy regulations, hospital officials can’t give out that information.

So what can you do?

Walter Reed suggests visiting the “America Supports You” Web site where you can make a donation to one of the more than 300 non-profit organizations dedicated to helping U.S. troops and their families.

Other resources:

•
•
•
If you want to do something for the military men and women from your area, contact your local military base or the local National Guard or military reserve unit.

Is it worth making the extra effort to find the proper way to show your support? Walter Reed spokesman Terry Goodman says the wounded men and women recovering there appreciate the outpouring of concern and care. “They really, really enjoy and love the support they’re getting from their fellow countrymen.”

More information:
Support a recovering American soldier (.pdf file)

© 2011 msnbc.com. Reprints

Jothesewer

Two years ago my sister & I did this, I sent 50 cards and wrote notes in each one. I did not put a return mailing address on the envelope, but my sister did and all of hers came back. I suppose mine were pitched. The post office will not deliver anything without a name. I was really disappointed after I spent time and money and thought I was doing a good deed. Jo

Toni-in-Texas

This is an out of date request. Walter Reed Hospital closed August 27, 2011.

BETTY62

Thank you for sharing. What a wonderful thing for us to do for our wounded soldiers.

BETTY62

I can't believe what I'm reading in some of the previous posts. The Post Office delivers junk mail to my home day after day addressed to Current Resident or Postal Customer. Why would they not deliver it addressed to A Recovering Soldier at a specific address ? Sounds like our goverment has rules or maybe it's the hospital that has rules that prevent us from sending mail to our wounded soldiers. This situation stinks. Do you think it just may be because they don't want to employ additional staff to deliver the thousands of cards they would receive. We should all check with our local Post Office and find out why we get junk mail but a wounded soldier can't get a card. Then we should all write our congress person and lobby to get the rule changed. All of our Service People need our support and this would be a good way to show them we care. And, the Post Office says it's going broke, well here's a hint why.