For the 3rd year running, the Avon Lions are teaming up with the Red Cross and Pitney Bowes to deliver holiday cheer and greetings to our service members throughout the holiday season. The Holiday Mail for Heroes program provides every American the opportunity to send greeting cards to our men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces, many of whom will be far from home during this holiday season.
All you need is a pen and a piece of paper a to share your appreciation of the sacrifices our men and women in uniform make each day in their service to our country. It’s free and easy to participate, but please follow these simple guidelines:
For reasons of processing and safety, please provide greeting cards only. No care packages, monetary gifts, or letter inserts can be accepted.- Refrain form choosing cards with glitter, or using glitter to create your cards as it can aggravate health issues of ill or injured warriors.
- Use generic salutations such as “Dear Service Member” or, “Dear American Hero.” UPDATE: We have just been informed our cards will be distributed to the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat team out of Fort Benning, Georgia who will be preparing for deployment at the holidays. So, you may want to address your cards like this: “Dear 3rd Brigade Soldier.”
- Please sign your card(s), but do not provide a return address or email address as this is not a pen pal program.
- Cards should not be put into envelopes or addressed. The Red Cross and Pitney Bowes will screen cards for hazardous materials, sort and package the cards, and deliver them to military bases and hospitals, veteran’s hospitals and other locations during the holidays.
Please drop off your completed cards at one of the following locations:
[one_fourth last=”no”]Taylor Rental
7360 French Creek
Avon[/one_fourth][one_fourth last=”no”]American Legion Post 211
31972 Walker Road
Avon Lake[/one_fourth][one_fourth last=”no”]Avon Eyedesign
36840 Detroit Road
Avon[/one_fourth][one_fourth last=”yes”]AF Recruiting Office
1480 Center Rd
(rt 83) Avon[/one_fourth]
This is a also a great opportunity for group participation, from school classrooms to service organizations. If you have a group that would like to provide a large quantity of cards, please contact Avon Lion Jim Harley at 440-381-9843.
As long as you follow the guidelines above, feel free to add your sentiments to pre-made cards, or make your cards completely from scratch. Here are a few samples to get you started:
