When United States servicemembers in places like Iraq and Afghanistan check their mail in upcoming weeks, some will get letters penned by ASU students through a program facilitated by Off-Campus and Commuter Student Services.
In recognition of Veterans Day, OCCSS welcomed students to its offices for free pizza, a screening of “Saving Private Ryan” and a writing station with special stationery for students to compose letters and thank-you notes.
The letters will be sent out by A Million Thanks, an organization that sends appreciation letters to military men and women overseas.
DeDe Grogan, an administrative assistant for OCCSS who helped plan the event, said the goal of the program is to show support for troops who might otherwise not receive it.
“Whether or not you support the politics or the war, it’s important to show support for the troops,” she said.
Though many servicemembers receive letters and packages from their loved ones, many more do not, Grogan said.
Growing up as a Navy child, she said she has always been aware of troops who didn’t have support from back home, unlike her own father.
“Out there, whether it’s in the desert or the jungle, your only family is your troop,” she said. “Think about how hard it would be to see them get care packages and you get nothing.”
The office is currently trying to get more veteran ASU students involved with Off-Campus Services because so many of them live off campus, Grogan said.
Other events that veterans are specifically encouraged to attend include OCCSS’s Adopt an ASU Family event and the Annual Thanksgiving Dinner event.
Amy Kapadia, an OCCSS administrative assistant, said the letter-writing event responds to the need for Americans to be more active in supporting the troops.
“I don’t feel we do enough for our troops,” she said.
The troubled economy should encourage Americans to support the people fighting for them even more, she said.
“With the recession, you see even more veterans standing by the side of the road, asking for money,” Kapadia said.
Adelina Armenta, a music education freshman, said that with a brother in the Marines, she has seen firsthand the struggles servicemembers face.
“They must have something special in them that they would risk their lives for someone they don’t even know,” she said.
Without the letter-writing program, Armenta wouldn’t have known how to get in touch with people serving overseas, she said.
“The first thing I wrote was, ‘Thank you,’” she said.
Reach the reporter at jessica.testa@asu.edu.
