Military Care Package Eagle Project Planning and Execution
By Ben Buskirk
Planning:
- Identify Potential Recipients of Military Care Package and find primary contact
- TB Gamberi in Afghanistan
- Determine size and scope of group receiving care packages
- 125 soldiers
- Create budget and list of items to include in each package
- $4000 budget
- $2300 in postage
- $1700 in supplies
- Identify potential partners who could donate items
- Girl Scout troops donated cookies
- $4000 budget
- Food Banks
- Find elementary schools to write notes to soldiers.
- Elementary School teacher are often eager to help with this. I spoke at Christ Lutheran School to several classes about the project.
Fundraising:
- Write solicitation letters to friends and family with addressed return envelopes included.
- Write solicitation letters to hand deliver to local businesses to procure items.
- Track incoming gifts on a spreadsheet
- Write thank you notes to all donors and partners.
Execution:
- Pick a date to have a packing event.
- Get flat rate boxes from post office. You can order these for free in advance from the United States Postal Service Website.
- Fill out customs forms for each box
- For packing event
- Set up an assembly line
- Assembly boxes and fill with care package items
- Close Boxes
- Address and attach customs forms to each box
- Deliver to post office
- We had to go to 3 different post offices as they didn’t have enough customs forms at any single post office.
