Hi Carders 

That is very nice of you to get in touch, I don’t know how much you know about what I have been doing but will give you a short up date.

It was 2007 when I had the idea of having handmade cards sent to the troops, so that they could have a nice card to send back to their loved ones I tried my local news paper but they were not interested which was a blessing in the end, so I listen to Radio Devon and got in touch with John Govier, who used to have a late show  from 10 till 1am and sent him an email with what I was trying to achieve thinking that he may read it out some evening , well that evening he read out my e-mail and continued to talk about it all evening in fact for weeks and so all this began, it was November 4th  and by November 28th 4,000 cards went out, from there a magazine did the story also Joanna Sheen, and last year 25,000 cards went out to our boys and girls in conflict zones, this week I have sent out 500 Mothers Day cards , and have another 5 boxes ready to tomorrow to go, I also get cards up to Headley Court which is where our troops go to if they have been injured and have lost limbs so need help to cope with what has happened and need artificial limbs.

The next big dates are of course Mothers Day which tomorrow will  have to be the cut off point, it is then Easter Cards , and Fathers Day which I think is June 22nd so really I am working 6 weeks in front to be on the safe side. But there is always the need for birthday cards etc, but I do have at least 2,000 here at the moment, my one problem is finding boxes shoe box size as I can get about 50 to 60 cards in them and of course weight has to come into it as a 2kilo box goes free. So if you would like to send cards it would be great if you have a box but don’t worry if not.

None of the troops pay for these cards nor do the ones at Headley Court, I have heard from a solider that the NAFFI out there is charging between £4 and £15 for a cards which is really disgusting, I know a lot of the kind people who have sent me cards right from the beginning have said they wanted to do something for our troops but didn’t know what, and now they make cards for them.

I hope this is a help to you and again many thanks for getting in touch.

My address is

Jacqui Wood

31 Butt Park Road

Plymouth

Devon

PL5 3NP

 

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Support Our Soldiers Newsletter April 2009

25th April 2009Latest News and Updates
Nell McAndrew runs Flora Marathon for SOS
We'd like to wish Nell McAndrew all the very best of luck as she takes part in the Flora Marathon tomorrow.

To everyone who's sponsored Nell so far, our sincere thanks. If you haven't had chance as yet, it's not too late, you can do this very simply through JustGiving using the following link http://www.justgiving.com/nellmcandrewsos2009

All the very best of luck Nell!!
Sponsor A Parcel
The SOS teams send parcels to our servicemen and women throughout the year and not just at Christmas. These parcels are a huge boost to morale and really are appreciated.

If you'd like to sponsor a parcel for one of our brave boys and girls then you can do so using the following link http://www.justgiving.com/sos-sponsor-a-parcel You can leave your message of support too.

We're pleased to announce that made up parcels can now be sent to our Head Office for forwarding on. Parcels should weigh no more than 2kg and can be sent to:

Support Our Soldiers
Operations House
2 Whitley Street
Bingley
BD17 4JH
Forces Families Meetings
We're delighted to announce the launch of our Forces Families meetings.

These are a great opportunity for families with loved ones in the Armed Forces to get together in informal settings with others in the same situation.

Please check out our website for details of the meetings in your area.
The Gurkha Justice Campaign
Britain has had no greater friends than the Gurkhas. They have served all across the world in the defence of our Country for nearly 200 years. Over 45,000 died in the two World Wars as part of the British Army. They are still fighting in the British Army today.

You may have seen in the media that the Gurkhas have been fighting in Parliament and the Courts. Step by step, things are getting better - but there is a long way to go.

The Government decision of 25th April 2009 on Gurkha settlement rights is yet another huge betrayal of the Gurkhas who have served our country.

Only a tiny fraction of the Gurkhas who retired before 1997 will win settlement rights under the new policy. A Gurkha will have to have served 20 years or more or won one of a handful of medals: the big majority of Gurkhas served for 15 years under standard army policy.

You can read the full details of the Government's decision online.

The campaign for full Gurkha Justice will now be taken back into Parliament and the courts. The Government needs to know they will have a huge campaign against them who will commit to righting this wrong.

Please sign up to the campaign below. We will keep in touch with you about how you can help: there is now much that needs to be done.

Join Joanna Lumley in the campaign: together, we can finally right this wrong.

http://www.gurkhajustice.org.uk/
Support Our Soldiers Merchandise
We have a great range of merchandise in our webshop so please do take a moment to look through. All proceeds from the sale of the merchandise goes to help our brave servicemen and women serving overseas, and their families at home.
Contact Information
We have over 60 coordinators across the UK. Their contact details are shown on the Contact Us page of the website.

To get in touch with Head Office please email info@supportoursoldiers.co.uk or write to - Support Our Soldiers, Operations House, 2 Whitley Street, Bingley, West Yorkshire BD16 4JH

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