[UPDATE 2] The first order has gone in that doesn’t leave much more time for the rest. If you’d like to help send Girl Scout cookies to troops in Iraq, keep reading. We’re up to about 130 boxes right now.

[UPDATE] The cut-off for letting me know you’d like to purchase cookies is 28 Jan, but I don’t need to turn the money in until 8 Feb! So, if you’d like to help, but don’t have the money immediately, just let me know how many boxes to set aside on your behalf. Thanks.

Being a Cavalry Soldier since I came into the Army, I love to support the Cav. When I first started this project, it was to support a deployment of the 11th ACR during their last deployment to Iraq. I never changed the name, but now the project supports ALL troops, depending on which units I have addresses for at the time. Sometimes it’s a Marine unit and sometimes it’s an Army unit. This year it’s the Army’s turn again.

Each year, I collect donations to purchase Girl Scout Cookies which are sent overseas to troops for their enjoyment. Girl Scout Cookies are a little piece of home that brightened MY day when I got my first box in the…um…box! The sandbox of Iraq that is. I remember unwrapping that log of Thin Mint cookies that had been fused together by the heat. Nothing like eating an entire log as if it were a chocolaty, minty hot dog! It was impossible to separate them individually so I didn’t try.

Well, the Girl Scouts are at it again and so am I. But, this year is even sweeter than past years. Yesterday, I picked up nearly 100 pounds of free Starbucks coffee donated by Americans for the troops from the local Starbucks Coffee on Airport Road in Huntsville (plug, plug). This is the second time they’ve collected and donated Coffee For The Troops. Last year was over 100 pounds of coffee. Many of these bags have personal messages of support for the troops written on them in black marker.

Here’s what you can do to help. If you’d like to sponsor a box (or more) of cookies destined to Iraq (last year was Afghanistan), all you need to do is use the “Donate” Paypal link on the sidebar. For every $5 donated, a box of cookies is purchased and sent to homesick troops on the battlefield. This is my fifth year doing this and have sent over 6000 boxes to Iraq and Afghanistan and to all branches of the military.

You can also send additional money strictly for shipping since I’ve got the added weight of coffee this year. It’s not free to ship all these cookies, so a few extra dollars help. The cost of each box of cookies is only $3.50 each, but after Paypal fees that leaves about $1 per box for shipping. Any extra money beyond the actual cost of shipping is turned in to additional cookie purchases.

This project does two things at once: it actually supports the troops (unlike those magnets on cars) and it supports the Girl Scouts. Usually, at the end of their Cookie season, I will buy up any remaining boxes they couldn’t sell and send those as well. So, if you’re able and willing, let’s get started and see how many boxes we send this year!!

I don’t have a goal this year. I’ll just send as many as YOU want to help me send. I already purchased 15 boxes with spare money I have left in my website coffers. So, we’re off to a good start!!