Greetings to the HOLIDAY CARD CHALLENGE Community! I am sorry that I have missed a few months here but trust me, we have been busy busy busy!
This summer we received a lot of cards for the winter holidays and celebrated with many groups, a “CHRISTMAS-IN-JULY” card signing drive. It was fun. Groups decorated offices and families decorated their homes to get everyone in the mood to sign cards for the winter holidays (Even tho’ much of the Nation was experiencing hot hot hot days!) Some of those cards are already packed up for the upcoming holiday season and…
88,000 cards were sent out to Troops deployed aboard with the boxes of cards covered with photos of Santa in sunglasses on a Beach with palm trees! Rumor has it that 88,000 smiles lit up the Globe!
We were so honored to be a part of the Army’s 250 Birthday celebrations in Boston and New Hampshire and even more delighted to have all the attendees sign cards! We are about to attend the Navy’s 250th Birthday and are excited to be a part of that beautiful celebration too!
The Board went to Washington DC this summer to network and to plan for this year. We had the honor to meet with several US Congressmen and -women as well as Senators, had a private tour of the US Capitol and got to sit in on some Senate votings on Bills. We also had a tour of Arlington National Cemetery and a special viewing of the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. And we were so incredibly fortunate to have a unique tour of the Pentagon and a several hour strategy and planning meeting with Col JJ Johnson USAF Central Command. He is our VP for Military and Veterans Affairs.
And many many meetings, emails, zoom calls, texts ( you get the idea) were had in preparation for the 2025 Winter Card Challenge! New partners huge! And small! Have come onboard. All very exciting. We hear from many who have joined us in the past, that they have been preparing for this year so once 12/26 of last year! We love it!
We receive a lot of correspondence asking about 2025:
Same guidelines. ( please remember no envelopes). Dear Warrior. Happy Holiday message of your choice. A PERSONAL MESSAGE such as your favorite holiday tradition, book, sports team…. A message of gratitude. Sign your first name ONLY. City adn State. If you want, please include the name of your group or school… and if you are a Veteran or active duty Military or a service family, please include that as well. Drawings are great. Jokes and riddles. Poems. PLEASE: No political statements, nothing that might be triggering to someone who might be in a combat zone or hospital.
Go to how to send section and see where there are drop boxes in the NewEngland and Dallas /FW Areas. If you would like to set up a drop box in your area, let us know!
Everyone asks WHEN are they due. Well… we have a due date of 11/18 BUT EARLIER IS ALWAYS BETTER if possible as you can imagine how much volunteer time it takes to proof read and bundle up the cards to send to reach the Warriors in time for the holidays. If your cards come later, say in DEcember, we usually lovingly pack them up for next year. It is all good!
We also want to give a big shout out of thanks to our donor-partners. Some of them are 6 year olds who donate $1 and others give $10 …. And some give much more. We are a nonprofit and relay on your partnership to help cover the many costs involved in this nationwide (actually international) passion project. We also are connected to GIVEBUTTER.com, a platform for donations that makes it so easy. There is a direct link on the website. And we have a SPONSOR-A-BOX program where we put your name …family, group, company…on the box of 1.000 cards. It is $150 per box. In the last few years, some groups have done old fashioned penny drives at work and school. Feedback is it is a lot of fun and ever so helpful Please remember we are a registered 501c3 NONProfit and can provide documentation for companies as needed
We always want to make the process EASY TO DO, FUN, and MEANINGFUL. Please let us know how we can assist you. Send us new ideas. Send us your photos or you can post them directly on our Facebook page “Holiday Card Challenge”
EMAIL US AT holidaycardsnh@gmail.com
MAILING ADDRESS. Holiday Card Challenge 5 Hutchings Drive #103 Hollis NH 03049
READY SET GO!!!!
