In this season of hope and giving the American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes, Inc. have joined forces to invite Americans to “send a touch of home” to United States service members and veterans across the country and abroad. In its third year, the Holiday Mail for Heroes program is an opportunity to share joy and thanks with our service members throughout the holiday season by way of a greeting card. Today over 1.4 million men and women serve in the U.S. armed forces and over 24 million veterans have served in the past. The holiday season is the perfect time to honor and extend a warm holiday greeting to those who’ve served and continue to do so.
How Holiday Mail works - We have established an extensive process to ensure all cards sent to our service members are safe and arrive in time for the holidays. Holiday cards will be collected through a unique P.O. Box address from Monday, November 2 through Monday, December 7*. First, cards from across the nation must be sent to this address:
Holiday Mail for Heroes
Post Office Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456
Every card received will be screened for hazardous materials by Pitney Bowes and distributed to participating Red Cross chapters nationwide. Once the cards arrive at the Red Cross chapters, they are sorted and reviewed by volunteers who then distribute them to service members, their families and veterans in communities across the country. Please don’t forget to follow these guidelines while preparing your holiday greetings!
Do…
* Sign all cards
* Entitle cards “Dear Service Member, Family or Veteran”
* Limit cards to 15 per person or 50 for school class or business group
* Bundle groups of cards in single, large envelopes (there is no need to include individual envelopes and postage for cards)
Don’t…
*Send letters
* Include personal information such as home or email addresses
* Use glitter - excessive amounts can aggravate health issues of wounded recipients
* Include inserts of any kind as they must be removed in the screening process
