There are over 7,700 Nebraskans on active military duty, over 8,500 Nebraskans serving in the reserve component of our Armed Forces, and over 1,600 Nebraskans in the National Guard and Reserves serving around the world. As Nebraskans prepare for the holidays, it is important to remember the members of our Armed Forces who will not be able to be at home in Nebraska this holiday season, whether it is because they are serving overseas or because they are recovering from wounds at a hospital far from home. Gifts from home are a wonderful way to boost troop morale during the holidays and let members of our Armed Forces know we appreciate all they do in defense of our freedom.

In addition to efforts by Nebraska’s local veterans organizations and schools, there are many opportunities for all Nebraskans to support our troops and their families during the holidays:

Quilts for Wounded Soldiers: Over the past few years, my wife, Lilibet, has organized a project to collect lap-size and twin-size quilts for returning wounded military personnel. Quilts, notes and messages can be sent to: Kevin Chapman, 1310 ‘G’ Street NW, Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20005. The quilts are then given to the wounded at our military hospitals.


The "Gifts from Home" project, established by North Platte resident Jan Fukuhara, is designed to provide gifts to members of the Armed Forces serving overseas. The project is seeking donations of electronic pocket-size games such as chess or poker; hard candy and gum; cookies and non-melting candy such as peanut brittle, packed into tins to prevent crumbling and Christmas and greeting cards with personalized messages of support. The project is also seeking cash donations, which can be deposited at the First National Bank of North Platte, 201 North Dewey Street, or any of the First National Bank of Omaha branches. Indicate that the donation is for the "Gifts from Home" account. The bank account will remain open and troops will continue to receive packages for the duration of the war. For more information, contact Jan Fukuhara at 308/534-8588 or fukuhara2006@msn.com.


Nebraska’s 189th Transportation Company, the 1-167th Cavalry Squadron, the 209th Regional Training Institute and the 67th Area Support Group, currently deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, request cards and letters with words of encouragement. For more information on how to send mail to service members in any one of these Nebraska-based units, please contact Major Ihm at the Family Program Office of the Nebraska Army National Guard at 402/309-7331; Specialist DeGarmo at the Family Program Office at 402/309-7332; or Ms. Felker, Coordinator at the Family Assistance Center for the Southeast region at 402/309-7333.

"Gifts from the Homefront" certificates allow service members to purchase items from Exchanges throughout Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. Service members can purchase exactly what they need including CD’s, DVD’s and snacks. The "Help Our Troops Call Home" program allows individuals to purchase phone cards for troops to use to call home. Nebraskans who would like to purchase "Gifts from the Homefront" certificates can go on-line at www.aafes.com or call 1-877-770-4438. "Help Our Troops Call Home" phone cards are also available on-line at www.aafes.com or by calling 1-800-527-2345. These gifts can be addressed to "any service member" or individual service members.

"OPERATION: Take a Soldier to the Movies" requests that donations of new or used DVDs, microwave popcorn, artificially sweetened powdered drink mix, non-chocolate theater style candy, postage and a letter of support from the donor with a return address be sent to: c/o Hintzke & Associates, 10617 W. Oklahoma Avenue U1, West Allis, WI 53227-4010. Those wishing to make a donation to cover the cost of a movie package can make checks payable to "Soldier to Movie, Inc." and send them to the above address. For more information about this project, call 414/543-4010 or visit www.soldiertomovies.org.

Visit my website at www.hagel.senate.gov and then click on the "America Supports You" link for additional opportunities to support our troops and their families during the holidays and throughout the year.

At a time when military service members and their families are making such huge sacrifices for our country, it is important that we do whatever we can to ensure that our service members are remembered during the holidays. For our troops and their families, especially those serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, we all thank them for their service, wish them warm holiday greetings and look forward to their safe return.