Help Our Military Endure
P.O.Box 57636
Webster, Tx 77598-7636
Physical Address:
17629 El Camino Real
Suite 100
Houston, Tx 77058
Mission Statement
HOME – Help Our Military Endure is a 501(c)(3) corporation organized for charitable purposes to send care
packages to active United States servicemen and women serving in far off countries. This effort is solely
supported by monetary and non-monetary donations collected from the general public along with businesses
throughout the United States of America.
There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends
John 15:13
Letter from Etim Ekere. Click image to view larger.
On behalf of the men and women of the 407 Expeditionary Communications Squadron at Ali Base in Iraq,
I wanted to thank you for the kind and generous gifts you sent for the holiday season. We received
a package that as best I can tell had items donated from all over. I apologize for not singling
out anyone in particular who contributed to the package, my folks went through it pretty quick,
especially the single folks that are not getting a lot of other packages. Let me say thanks again,
so you know how much your gifts are very much appreciated. I obviously found your business card and
decided to send an email and attach a photo for you to share with everyone involved.
A quick snapshot of us. We are a 65 person squadron tasked with providing all the communication needs
to about 500 AF personnel here at Ali Base, Iraq. We just rotated in and are beginning a 6 month tour.
The majority of personnel are from Tinker AFB in Oklahoma, but we do have a few from a mixture of other
locations, as well, to include my duty station in Germany. Much to our excitement we received your gifts
just a couple days before Christmas and they were gone before I knew it. The goodies and treats are
appreciated, but even more than those, simply knowing that folks back home are thinking about us means
more than you can imagine. Getting cards and letters from back home is a real morale booster, especially
during the holiday season. For a lot of my folks, this is their first deployment, and first time away
from family and loved ones during the holiday season. I've attached a photo of us gathering in our common
area where I place the care packages for the folks to sort through.
I am the First Sergeant for this small group of folks and this is my second deployment. My job is
simple.....people. I'm charged with ensuring that the health, morale and welfare of those under my supervision
are taken care of. My job is pretty easy when we get packages like that from "home".
Once again thank you very much for the kindness shared.
Proud to Serve,
Kevin
///signed///
KEVIN D. ERNE, SMSgt, USAF
First Sgt, 407 ECS
Good morning Trudy, the outstanding BSA Troop 615, and phenomenal Clear Creek ISD students and
teachers!
I am a Navy guy currently serving in Iraq. I recently received several care packages from Ms.
Duhon as part of her HOME project to support the deployed troops. We finally received all of
them recently, and opened them yesterday. We had almost every service member in our section of
the floor huddled around me as we opened all 8 boxes! It was like Christmas and we were all kids,
excited to open and see what surprise awaited us.
We are all so blessed to have people back home that think and care for us, we are all very proud
to serve for our great country, and our families. Each of you have far exceeded any expectations
we had, and have done much more than you certainly needed to. The flags from BSA Troop 615 were
meticulously folded and packaged, the boxes were assembled with a variety of "stuff" that offered
something to each of us, and the unbelievably thoughtful letters by students and teachers brought
smiles to our faces.
Of course, we would not be the world's best if we also did not take care of others in real need.
We will be donating items from the care packages to a local Iraqi school across the street. Your
efforts have served us, as well as fostered friendship to needy Iraqi children.
I would personally like to thank you for all the care packages. As a proud Soldier serving in honor of Operation Enduring Freedom
it warms my heart to know there are organizations that care so much. Your packages makes us feel appreciated and drives us to
continue to fight for the men and women of our great country. I wish I could explain in words how much of a morale booster your
packages are for me and the soldiers who serve along side of me. During the holiday seasons when so many Soldiers are alone and
away from their families receiving a package with a letter from a young American showing their appreciation for our service is
amazing. Sorry it took so long for me to send a message back I apologize, but with the demanding task, connectivity problems and
fight against the taliban it sometimes is a challenge to find five minutes of personal time. I set aside this time to thank you
and let you know your work is not going without being noticed. I have received countless packages from you and I have shared
with over 300 soldiers. Of all the packages I think everyone loved the chips and cheese dip the most, I must say it has put smiles
on many soldiers faces. When I get back to the states in the next several months I would love to donate to your organization. My
Battalion Commander would also like to send a token of his appreciation on Behalf of the men and women of 2-5 INF Battalion. So
please continue to help the Soldiers of 2-5, but also the other Soldiers spread out over the middle east. You have a great
organization and it really means allot to us. So again I would like to say THANKS HOME.
P.S. will we be looking forward to more Chips and Dip
