The Soldiers Wish List
From The West Point Web
From US Naval Academy Web
And From Readers Like Us
ACCESSORIES
Hot plate, to heat said water
Might want to check electric input I think Iraq is 220Volts
Coffee maker with filters and some coffee
ANTI-ITCH CREAM
For those insect bites
BABY WIPES
Baby wipes for freshening up when cannot shower
BABY POWDER
Baby powder for helping to stay dry
BATTERY OPERATED PERSONAL FANS
I was at the dollar store the other day and they had these for a dollar and they really work well. Just be sure to include a package of batteries when you send it. The temperatures in some of the tents at night has been getting to over 130 degrees, so anything that would move the air would be wonderful
BLANKET
Apparently it is beginning to get cool at night, my boyfriend asked for a fleece blanket, in a dark color so he couldn't see how dirty it became. I bought one from campmor.com and had it shipped directly to him.
CAMERA
A polaroid camera was suggested by Nina Landgraf. Send the camera and film, get back pictures. They come out pretty good (see 2Lt Jay Landgraf's page) and can be scanned in if you want to keep a set on your pc or pass some along to your local webmaster.
CANNED FOOD
Canned tuna or better yet tuna in the pouch (weighs a lot less), chicken, chili, stew, cheese dip, bean dip, rice dishes and pasta dishes that are ready to eat and just need to be warmed in the microwave (no microwaves, but with the temperature over 120, they just lay them in the sun for about 30 minutes and "God's microwave " takes care of it). (I remember seening pictures of the troops in WW2 cooking eggs on the shell of a tank .)
Canned corned beef, sardines, salsa, smoked salmon or smoked oysters, mac and cheese, but ONLY the one that has the canned Velveeta cheese, beans and franks, canned fruit and ramen noodles and cup a soup, dry cereal. They can heat the ramen, add some chicken and it's almost a real food dinner.
Also, fruit/Jell-O cups and puddings that kids use in school lunches are great. Be sure to wrap them in a plastic bag because sometimes the rough handling causes them to burst.
The unrefrigerated summer sausage will make the trip and my son says that he is the center of attention when he gets one; he can't eat it all and, after opening, it will perish.
Don't forget pickles and olives.
CIGARS
I don't support smoking, but cigars DO keep the bugs away
I've used this company, they will ship to APO - Webmaster
CONDOMS
The soldiers put this over the barrel of their weapon to keep out the dust and dirt from the always blowing wind.
DEEP WOODS OFF
Makes individually wrapped wipes which the guys like to throw in their packs
Army 3ID Mom
DRINK MIX
Powdered drink mix - Gatorade, Wylers light, Crystal lite and Gatorade powder, Koolaid
INEXPENSIVE DUST MASKS
Home improvement and hardware stores sell them in quantity - good for keeping out dust and some smells
Army 3ID Mom
EASY PRE FOOD STUFF
Any pre-packaged food that can be made with hot water: oatmeal, mac and cheese, cup-of-soup, etc.
ELECTRICAL TAPE - Cut some pieces to put over barrel of rifle to keep out sand, rain, dust, etc. If you need to shoot, it will not cause any restriction.
Huntington 110 Rifle Range Officers
ENTERTAINMENT
CDs or DVDs
FOOD STUFF
Individually packaged mozzarella cheese sticks make the trip OK. My son loves to get that.
Pringles Potato Chips, Granola, Hard Candy
Super Walmarts have a foil packaged fully cookd beef that comes in Mexican or Italian flavors. I send it with toppings for pizza or tacos........along with flour tortilla shells to make them. My Soldier loves them!!!!!!!! - ASoldiersMomma
FOOT PROBLEMS
Lotrimin in the tube (for atlete's foot)
FLY PAPER
To hang in their tents, the tank, whatever. The bugs are really bad.
FLY SWATTERS
At least include one in every box.
FUNNEL
To use to get the crystal lite and Gatorade powder in their canteen without spilling that precious flavored crystal. Most of the water the troops are drinking now is coming from the large military water containers, affectionately called a "water buffalo", so the troops must fill their canteens from this and apparently, the water is highly chlorinated and pretty nasty tasting.
HAIR GEL
Especially for the gals. Keeps the hair slicked back and off their face
INSECT REPELLANT
The troops are really suffering with the bugs. Mosquitoes, flies, fleas are AWFUL and then factor in 120+ heat, it is a terrible situation
JOURNAL
I also sent him a journal to write down his thoughts that he may want to
someday share with his own children.
MAGAZINES
We have been sending all our magazines to our son in Afghanistan, they don't really care what they are, but everybody finds something interesting, helps pass the down time.
MOSQUITO NETTING
That they can cover themselves with when they try to sleep
NASAL ITEMS
Saline nasal spray
PANTY LINERS
Not for what you are thinking. The troops, both men and women are using these as liners in their helmets to keep the sweat from chaffing them and also keep the sweat from running in their eyes. Necessity is the Mother of invention.
PERSONAL STUFF
Chapstick, Lotion
LLBean medium Toiletry bag (green or black)
Lotrimin in the tube
QUICK FOOD/ENERGY
Power bars
Protein powder, protein bars, etc.
ROOM DEODORIZERS
LOTS of room deodorizers...
Army 3ID Mom
SANITIZER WIPES
Individually wrapped sanitizer wipes also to throw in their packs
Army 3ID Mom
SCRAPBOOK
My daughter is saving everything she gets from him and making a scrapbook
to give him when he returns.
SHAVING ITEMS
Mach3 razor and blades
SHOWER
SUNSCREEN
Lots of sunscreen
TRANSFORMER/CONVERTER
Submitted by Jasmine:
My husband who is stationed in Iraq requested a tranformer, to convert 220 to 110. Well I finally located a business that can help. The Travel Oasis. I spoke to Jim and he was very helpful at setting me up with the correct piece of equipment. Here is their web site.
VITAMINS
Multivitamins could be sent periodically.
WASH BUCKETS
You can purchase wash buckets and portable individual showers at http://www.campmor.com. They will ship to an APO address.
Special thanks to:
All those that sent in a contribution to this list
If any of you have other things that you have sent to the troops that were really appreciated, please let us know so we can add it to our list.
This page was last updated on: September 8, 2008
New additions will be marked with a brown star. Check the date at the top left of the page to see how recent it is and compare to when you checked it last.
--Mike
