What would you want...

[Selino631]

If you were in the armed forces for US, and you were stationed in Afghanistan. What would you want in a care package ?

I am asking because my class is sending a care package to the troops sometime in March... Figured I would hear the opinion of the AH Community...


Feedback Please.

Send cookies, and snacks (cheese its, Ritz cracker sandwiches,......) maybe a Football or frizbee and some other small things that will help occupy boredom, Send Baby wipes. Some good movies maybe and some adult magazines.


I'm deploying in a few months myself so some friends wanted me to start making a list they can send too me lol

[LLogann]

Most perishable foods are restricted.

Send cookies, and snacks (cheese its, Ritz cracker sandwiches,......) maybe a Football or frizbee and some other small things that will help occupy boredom, Send Baby wipes. Some good movies maybe and some adult magazines.


I'm deploying in a few months myself so some friends wanted me to start making a list they can send too me lol

[MarineUS]

Combat socks....for the love of God, combat socks.
If they'll let you send food, some cookies and gatorade
Adult reading is ALWAYS welcomed
Any MRE that's not the omelet lol

Got a friend stationed there right now (I had to come home - I got banged up...pissed...need to go back) from my squad. I'll see what they need.
That's just stuff we needed/wanted while I was there.

[Plawranc]

Im only an ROTC (Air Training corps in Australia) guy, but when I have been on training camps and bivouacs. Its been tough enough without people shooting at me. On excercises we have boxes full of goodies, the competition is to achieve objectives, the best team earns this box. Its filled with easy to cook food and so forth.

Good food (candy bars and potato crisps, stuff you can send) fresh socks, good books, (FHM or People does the trick  ) Sundry items.

Basically stuff that makes life easier, DVDs rock, entertainment is good. If they hadnt closed down the branches of fast food in the bases there I would suggest vouchers too.

Everyone has said these already, and all the military guys (and future ones like me) have said it too.

So its a good indication that these are what to go for.

[canacka]

My sister is a Major and she was recently there for a tour.  Funny thing that they loved in packages, aside from snacks, was hand sanitizer/lotion/cleaner, and other toiletries like that. 

[Dadsguns]

While in Afghanistan, the biggest thing I treasured was baby wipes and chapstick hands down.  
I think now they pretty much can get any type of chips and snack foods, they do run out fast when they get the good stuff like Doritos, so I would ask my dad to send me a bag and next thing I know I got 4 boxes of Doritos from my whole Family.

Someone had donated thermal underwear, not just a box, but several TRI-walls of thermal underwear of assorted sizes, was enough for everyone in our compound to have a pair for several hundred.

But what really made me feel good, was just the Christmas cards and Thank You notes.  I managed to find the time to write back to several of them and to send back a flag that was flown over our compound to a School that adopted us so to speak.

No matter what you decide to send, it would be greatly appreciated and even more so with a note of thanks.  

[lowZX14]

Many have give you quite a few good ideas and I guess it depends on who it's going to and where they are.  Some have access to things that others don't depending on where they are located.  Just a few of the things that I used to get in the sandbox that I loved were:

-Gatorade mix or other powdered drink mixes that you can easily carry out with you and mix with a bottle of water
-Just about any magazine that is recent, FHM and Maxim were usually big hits with everyone
-Snacks like beef jerky etc. that won't get crushed or crumbled in the mail.  My wife's grandma used to bake cookies and use the Glad Press 'N Seal stuff to wrap around them individually to keep them intact which was absolutely great.  Maybe some Nature Valley granola bars or something.
-DVD's were pretty good, we ended up watching quite a few seasons of different TV shows some I won't mention because I have since caught grief and laughter from my wife when I told her.
-PS or 360 games are iffy because you don't know who has what console there but are appreciated
-The hand sanitizer and toiletries idea is a good one
-Socks, socks, socks, socks as long as they're the good ones if they're not they can find other uses for them

I'm sure I can come up with more later.  If you know someone there personally and talk to them regularly and they don't have some already, my wife used to send me a couple pairs of Under Armour boxers every month or so which can get expensive but man having brand new ones to change out was great.  People don't realize when you're out riding convoys or patrolling every day and sweating what feels like gallons out how much of a difference it makes.

[Dichotomy]

snuff n smokes even 
If i was in afghanistan id want to just come home.

former brother in law and his unit deployed early to Iraq before they got infrastructure built up.  Those were premium items back than. 

[BlueJ1]

While I was there this is what we looked forward to the most,

- Chapstick
- Baby Wipes
- Bland food. I know it sounds weird after a diet of MREs and steady died of everything boiled something out of the norm is nice. Not to mention every care package comes with candy. So eventually you will get sick of candy and look for something new. The best thing food wise was crackers, tuna, cheese wiz, etc. Best box I ever got was from a lady in Texas that sent me a hickory farms box with tons of crackers, mustard, meats, and cheeses.
- Letters from kids. Had quite a few pen pals while I was over there including a 3rd grade class in New Mexico. Nothing better then taking a few minutes out of the day and put your mind elsewhere, or remembering why you are there.


Ill try and think of some more stuff we liked over there and add.

[BlueJ1]

Many have give you quite a few good ideas and I guess it depends on who it's going to and where they are.  Some have access to things that others don't depending on where they are located.  Just a few of the things that I used to get in the sandbox that I loved were:

-Gatorade mix or other powdered drink mixes that you can easily carry out with you and mix with a bottle of water
-Just about any magazine that is recent, FHM and Maxim were usually big hits with everyone
-Snacks like beef jerky etc. that won't get crushed or crumbled in the mail.  My wife's grandma used to bake cookies and use the Glad Press 'N Seal stuff to wrap around them individually to keep them intact which was absolutely great.  Maybe some Nature Valley granola bars or something.
-DVD's were pretty good, we ended up watching quite a few seasons of different TV shows some I won't mention because I have since caught grief and laughter from my wife when I told her.
-PS or 360 games are iffy because you don't know who has what console there but are appreciated
-The hand sanitizer and toiletries idea is a good one
-Socks, socks, socks, socks as long as they're the good ones if they're not they can find other uses for them

I'm sure I can come up with more later.  If you know someone there personally and talk to them regularly and they don't have some already, my wife used to send me a couple pairs of Under Armour boxers every month or so which can get expensive but man having brand new ones to change out was great.  People don't realize when you're out riding convoys or patrolling every day and sweating what feels like gallons out how much of a difference it makes.

I also second everything you said sir. I am still addicted to under armour boxers. Cost $16 dollars a pair over there. But I still went and got new ones every other week.