LOS ANGELES — Operation Gratitude is has launched a New Recruit Care Package program to thank our newest members of the military for stepping forward and devoting the next several years of their lives in service to our nation.
Upon graduation from boot camp, each recruit is handed a package of goodies from Operation Gratitude in a custom-designed box.
The New Recruit Care Package Program is in full swing at Marine Corps Recruiting Depots in San Diego and Parris Island, and at the Navy’s Great Lakes Recruit Training Command in Illinois. The organization expects to bring the Army and Air Force training centers on board in 2015.
A Marine private wrote Operation Gratitude, “On the last week of boot camp, each of us received one of your packages, and I wanted to let you know that they were very much appreciated. Receiving those packages helped make us feel human again, and that reminder of our nation’s support boosted our morale. Thank you very much for your generosity. Semper Fidelis.”
In addition to an assortment of snacks and entertainment, hygiene and hand-made items, each care package includes a “Loved One Medallion,” a specially designed Operation Gratitude keepsake for the recruit to share with a special family member or friend. The medallion thanks loved ones for their support and lets them know that the American people stand “hand in hand” with them.
“We hope the recruits get two things from receiving these packages,” said Angel Cuevas, director of operations for Operation Gratitude. “First, we hope it lifts their morale. Second, we want them to know someone, somewhere cares. This is the generosity of the American public. We are supporting their mission wherever it takes them, and we don’t want them to be alone.”
The distribution of all New Recruit Care Packages is handled directly with the military training centers.
Operation Gratitude (operationgratitude.com) was founded in 2003. According to the program, it annually sends more than 100,000 care packages to recruits, veterans, first responders, Wounded Warriors, caregivers and to U.S. service members deployed overseas.
