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Any Coastie Vets/Family out there - would appreciate your advice.
My Nephew is in USCG Boot camp at Cape May. I wanted to send him a morale booster but did'nt know if "Care packages" were ok or if I should just send a letter.
Are Care package ok? If so, any recco's on good stuff to include that he would find particularly useful?
I didn't do Coastie boot camp, but they're all pretty much the same. Care packages were welcome, but keep in mind that boot camp is about team work and he'll be expected to share with his commrades, otherwise, he'll be "smoked". Letters are great also. They get you through what seems like hell. Make sure you let him know you are proud and encourage him.
Everything you need to know about Coast Guard Recruit Training can be found in the Helmsman.
Can recruits in training receive and send mail?
Yes, letters are welcome but "care packages" (food, books, magazines) are not. The mailing address is:
SR_________________________
Recruit Company ____________ (assigned upon arrival)
Munro / Healy / James Hall (assigned upon arrival)
USCG Training Center
1 Munro Avenue
Cape May, NJ 08204-5083
Mail is delivered to Training Center Cape May Monday through Friday, but due to the volume of mail, it may take an extra day to reach the addressee.
I did CG boot camp in early 2001. Care packages aren't encouraged, as there are many restrictions on what recruits can have in their possession during training. I would wait until he gets to his first unit, or at least near graduation from training.
Also, do not expect him to often answer your letters. That was the hardest part for our family. They have very little time for letter writing. I think we got two or three letters and his grandmother got one or two; and he is good about keeping in touch. It wasn't until he had been at Cape May for four or five weeks that we even got a phone call. And I did not even recognize his voice- he had what is 'affectionately' known as the Cape May Crud. You will be amazed at the transformation if you attend his graduation- the confidence and poise they develop is stunning.
I agree with these. Letters are great, as everyone is on the edge of their seat during mail-call, hoping to get one. However, send nothing but a plain letter. Anything larger than that will be suspected for drugs and opened in front of the staff. And, the letter you send may be monitored anyway so, be discrete. On his first duty station, give him time to adjust and make friends. Then, send enough cookies for the entire crew. Best to ask him what he wants you to send for the crew.
A sincere, heartfelt letter is one of the best things you can send. Receiving mail from home warms the heart and helps build esprit-de-corps by keeping them motivated to make it through when times get tough. Your letter will be appreciated, I assure you.
On his first duty station, give him time to adjust and make friends. Then, send enough cookies for the entire crew. Best to ask him what he wants you to send for the crew.
My son's birthday is right after the Christmas holidays. He was able to come home for New year's that first year, but had to leave before his birthday. I have a cake pan for what is called in the bakery industry a half sheet. It holds two batches of cake mix. I baked a pineapple upside down cake in it, flipped it onto cake boards and froze it. Then I put a large disposable tin inside it (for stability) and filled it with scalloped potatoes made with leftover Christmas ham. I froze it after baking and transferred the disposable tin to a heavy cardboard cake box. (No way was he taking my cake pan! lol). Since his first duty station was on Lake Superior we didn't have to worry about things thawing out before he got back. And on his birthday, they fixed a salad and everyone at the station got a home-cooked meal and birthday cake.
Did you know that they make Coast Guard Legos? This year I had to send packages to Alaska. Of course, Legos have a very distinctive rattle, and I couldn't find a box the right shape to ship his in, so I had to settle for wrapping the wrapped gift in brown paper. I was concerned about the box getting crushed and I needed to quiet those rattles so the post office would accept the package in the first place. Before wrapping it, I carefully opened the end and dumped out the half dozen or so cellophane packages. Then I stuffed in two or three sheets of crumpled newsprint, added a cellophane package, alternating the two until the box was completely filled and thereby crush-proof. Of course, even though they were muffled the Legos still rattled. The lady at the post office can be quite difficult, but when I explained what it was, she let it pass- seems her dad was in the Coast Guard so she knew how difficult it can be to get gifts to personnel.
I went through boot camp in Cape May in 2002, and we only recieved letters, never were allowed to recieve boxes and I recall, we had plenty of time to write back in teh evenings.
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