the homefront blog

Here are some comments, emails, and letters we’ve received that just make our day every time…enjoy!

From some of the companies who donate supplies:
“Thank you so much for letting us be a part of the great service you do!! We are so happy to donate to such a wonderful cause.”

“Your organization is doing a noble act helping our brave military men and women stay connected with their loved ones back home and Kitchen Sink Stamps is honored to lend a helping hand.”

“Hello Friends, I think your organization is doing a wonderful thing. Keep up all the great things you are doing. I will help contribute as much and as often as I can, when I get new products in. We can make a difference, one step at a time.”

From some of our cardmakers:
“I am so excited to be able to rediscover this hobby, I had all but given it up completely when I found the CFH site and it’s like art therapy for me!”

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You don’t know what you did, but you made my day by doing it! Just now I went to the CFH Homefront Blog and saw that the picture of cards has my most recent ones in it! It really just made my day seeing them there. I mean, I know they are going to the troops, but somehow seeing them there with the others ready to be packed and shipped really hit it home for me!”

“You are doing a great thing for all the service men and women and thank you for that!”

“Thank you for doing this and allowing me to help our great heroes!!!!!”

“Oh happy day! I found your website!!! While searching for a group that sends handstamped cards to our troops to let them know we’re thinking of them I found your site! Your organization is exactly what I was looking for. Until Angel Stampers for Soldiers discontinued I set aside 2 days a month to make “Soldier cards.”

“My nephew just returned from Iraq so I fully understand how very much a card from “back home” can mean. Thanks so much for doing this!!!”

“My daughter is a Cadette Girl Scout with Troop XX. As part of her Silver Award she is collecting and making cards to donate to your organization. She has about 100 cards so far and has just started within the last two weeks.” (Another email came in saying she might be increasing her goal to 3,000 cards!)

“I am writing to commend you on your efforts of sending cards to the troops. I am the wife of an Army Major who is currently stationed in Iraq. I know how much these cards are appreciated and how much hard work this is. So I just wanted to say Thanks for standing behind our troops. It really does make a difference.”

“I came across your website cardsforheroes.org today and I immediately wanted to become involved. My family and I have a good friend who is being deployed in September to either Iraq or Kuwait, we’re not sure yet, and he has a wife and 2 daughters, so this effort is so encouraging. Thank you to everyone who got this organization started. I can’t think of a better way to use my card making supplies and my love of card making to share with our beloved heroes. I’m going to spread the word around and I myself have a few friends that get together monthly for a card making workshop, and I’m hoping we can start making cards for this effort, but I can assure you, that I will be making them whether or not I can get anyone else involved or not. Thank you again.”

Feel free to leave a comment telling us all what this project has meant to you!

Many thanks to Dave Pierce at RIS Paper (Connecticut) who obtained a fabulous donation on our behalf, and the folks at Mohawk Papers, including Jane Monast, for making the donation: big boxes of cardstock—the equivalent of about 9,000 sheets! We appreciate the partnership with great companies like this who make it possible to do what we do for our heroes!

If any of our cardmakers would like some of this paper, Paula (the stamper in CT who solicited this donation!) is willing to pack up the paper and get it out to you if you paypal funds for the shipping costs. First come first served! (This post will be edited to indicate all paper is gone, once it’s all been divvied out!)

Flat Rate envelope: $4.80, about 50 sheets
Flat rate box: $9.80 box, about 250 sheets
Large flat rate box: $12.95, about 500 sheets

Email Paula at desmarsol@aol.com, and specify if you would like the red the tan, or a mix; again, first come first served. She’ll give you her paypal information once you email her.

Thanks again to the donors - and to Paula for her help securing the donation and doing all the packing up and shipping!

These Thursday posts list items and blessings received during the last 7 days, so if you’re looking for confirmation that your package or monetary donation was received, check in on Thursdays.

Cards, supplies, and help received this week:

1. VI H, Haugen, WI - thank you so much for responding to the newspaper article with a donation…we appreciate it SO much!
2. LOUISE G, Niles, IL, thank you so much for the cards!
3. TRACEY C, Plainfield, IL Wow - thanks so much for the envie full of cards and the generous shipping donation!
4. REBECCA G, Vero Beach FL, thanks for the beautiful cards and the generous shipping donation!
5. JENN B, Harrisburg, IL, Thanks so very much for the wonderful cards and the shipping help!
6. SUNNIE L, Winsted, CT - Beautiful cards! Thanks for the shipping donation too!
7. JULIE M, Honey Brook, PA , WOW! Thanks for the huge box of cards and for sponsoring shipping costs for two boxes!
8. SUE ANN D, Marietta PA - Thanks for your continued support!
9. MICHELLE D, Berlin, NJ, Beautiful cards, thanks so much!
10. JOAN F, Worcester MA, thanks so much for more great cards!
11. LINDA A, Seven Fields, PA, these are gorgeous cards, thank you so much for them and the shipping help!
12. MARJI F, Howey In Hills, FL: Wow - what an awesome box of cards, thanks so much!
13. CINDY I, Texarkana, TX - Thanks so much for the box full of beautiful cards!
14. MISTI O, Dabis OK - Thanks for the beautiful cards, and donation toward shipping, Misti!
15. JOANNE E, Pittsburgh, PA - Great cards, thanks so much!
16. KERRY D, Lancaster, PA , Awesome cards, thanks so much!
17. JANET J, Newport News VA , Thanks for the great cards and generous shipping donation!
18. VIRGINIA H, Hamilton, OH, Thank you so much for the generous donation towards shipping costs! I’m looking forward to seeing your beautiful cards.
19. REBECCA C, Vancouver WA, Thanks for the awesome box of cards!
20. TERESA B, Tampa, FL, Thank you so much for the wonderful cards!
21. MARGE M, Wayne NJ - Thanks again, Marge. Its nice to have the holiday cards ahead of time!
22. AMY J, Mondovi WI, Thank you for your cards filled with a very nice message!
23. LINDA L, Burleson, TX, Thanks for the great cards!
24. LADETTE K, Canon City CO, Thanks for the beautiful cards and shipping donation!
25. TINA R-F, Beaverton OR, beautiful cards as always, bless you!
26. DEBI K, Milton, WA - Thanks for the wonderful box of cards and the shipping donation!
27. KATHYLEEN C, Matawan, NJ - Thanks for the beautiful cards and shipping help!
28. LEANNE S, Westcliffe CO, Thanks for the awesome box of cards and shipping donation!

Vendor deals we are grateful for:

Custom Acrylic Stamps
Rebecca at Imagine Stamps has the artwork for these cardsforheroes.org stamps shown below! If you’d like to order any for yourself, go to her website and email her to ask for whichever one you’d like, what your name is if you’d like to have the ones with a name, and she’ll email you the cost. It is much more reasonable than you’d imagine!

Agape Gifts: 10% discount on stamps!
Sandy R at Agape Gifts on eBay will give a 10% discount to customers who tell her they’re for cardsforheroes! She carries those awesome military stamps from Paper Inspirations as well as a great selection of all sorts of stamps.

Moulding Frame Supply Liquidators: ATG tape deal
An ebay seller, Moulding Frame Supply Liquidators (also comes through on ebay as Ty Products) has ATG tape at a really reasonable price (six 36ft rolls of 1/2 inch tape for $9.99) — if you purchase more than one box of 6, they give you a great break on shipping, so email the seller from the ebay site to let him know it’s for the cardsforheroes project.

Patriotic fabric swatches
If you’d like some fabric for making patriotic cards, send an email (link at right), and we’ll hook you up with Cheryl who saves the leftover pieces from projects she regularly creates. Fabric is a challenge for cardmaking, but it adds nice texture!

Got thanks to share?
We’d love to pass on the gratitude for donations, discounts, & deals, cardmaking help, hosts of parties/classes—whatever makes it possible for you to do more for our heroes. Email us with your kudos!

Note: if you forget where this post is and want to return to these vendor discount links, you can always search this blog by clicking on the “Categories” at the right when you’re here; posts with these deals will be linked in there.

Certificate of Appreciation
presented to
Cards for Heroes
For your support of our mission of providing honor and comfort to America’s Sons and Daughters who have been injured while serving in harm’s way. By bringing your gifts of time, talent and resources to bear, you have provided valuable support to our wounded service members, and those who care for them.

Lori Pate
Executive Director and Founder
June 2008

To celebrate Flag Day on June 14th, Impress Rubber Stamps in Tukwila, WA held their first Hero Party to make cards for our heroes!

“I have the space,” said Ann, the owner of the store. “And I love the idea of using it for this.” The store staff advertised through word of mouth and with a small rack of brochures on the counter, and ended up filling all the seats they have available at their tables!

Ann and her team designed 8 cards for the stampers to replicate, and had all the tools and materials, pre-cut papers, inkpads and stamps ready in trays when the 20 attendees arrived. Each sample card was fairly easy to follow along with, and for those who needed help, the store staff were on hand to give instructions. Attendees were able to try out a Making Memories tagmaker, paper tearing, the “kiss” stamping technique, stickles, and punches — quite a smorgasbord of techniques!

Stampers of all experience level were able to create cards from the samples; the more seasoned crafters helped out the others, and it was a great time to see the stamping community rallying together for a great cause. “It was so easy and the cards were so well organized,” said one stamper. “I’ve never made cards before, and it was so much fun!” Door prizes were given out, and snacks were available for nibblers, but the cardmaking definitely took prime focus — no slackers among this group! Participants also had the opportunity to peruse a scrapbook filled with letters and photos from the recipients of the cards, and were inspired to dig in and work hard on the cards. “It’s so wonderful to see how specific this is — that the cards really do go to an individual person to give out,” said Ann. “I like that it’s a one-to-one connection with the troops, and we know the cards are getting to them.”

At the end of the afternoon, stamped-out participants left with smiles on their faces. “I am thrilled that I can do what I love and serve our troops at the same time, said one stamper. “I’ll definitely do this again!” She turned back just before leaving to ask with a grin, “When’s the next party?” So the store plans to hold another event to make holiday cards in September! It will be even more prominently advertised, so hopefully many more local stampers can get involved!

The final count for the day? 247 cards in just a few hours! Impress sent our volunteers home with enough envelopes to match up with all the cards as well…thank you so much for your amazing donation of all the materials, time, and effort!

Attendees and other patrons were also invited to bring their own cards to donate (click here to see a blog post with photos of all the cards!), and a $5 donation to Cards for Heroes was requested to assist with shipping. Tallying all the cards that came in during the weeks before the event and the day of:
247 made at the party (birthday, baby, thankyou, general)
167 birthday cards
48 love cards
46 spring holiday cards
185 thinking of you cards
52 thank you/get well cards for wounded warriors
80 Christmas cards
27 fall holiday cards

TOTAL: 852 CARDS!!!!!!

Many many thanks to our new Cards For Heroes family at Impress, and to all who made this such a successful event! Our heroes and their families will be blessed by all your efforts!