20 September 2006

Kool

I was checking out a story on Snopes.com and ran across this. I'll try to hit the post office today and see if you can pick them up there or if ya have to call for one. If anybody out there knows please email me or leave a comment.

Military Shipping Kits
Claim: The USPS provides free Priority Mail shipping supplies for customers sending packages to U.S. military personnel overseas.
Status: True.
Origins: Since the preponderance of "free merchandise" offers promoted via e-mail turn out to be nothing but hoaxes and pranks targeted at the gullible, we're pleased whenever we can announce that such an offer is genuine, especially so in this case as the ultimate beneficiaries are the men and women of the U.S. armed forces who are stationed overseas.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) will supply for free, to anyone who asks, specially packaged Priority Mail supplies for shipping "care kits" to members of the U.S. military stationed overseas. Each supply kit includes the following:
* 4 Priority Mail Flat-Rate "shoe box"-type shipping boxes
* 6 Priority Mail Flat-Rate "garment box"-type shipping boxes
* 10 Priority Mail labels
* 1 roll of Priority Mail tape
* 10 customs forms with envelopes
(The contents of the supply kits changes from time to time and sometimes includes other items, such as water-resistant Tyvek Priority Mail envelopes and Priority Mail address labels. Most of these items are ordinarily furnished for free to customers by the USPS.)
To obtain a free kit of shipping supplies, simply call the USPS' packing supplies order line at 1-800-610-8734, select option #1 ("Express Mail, Priority Mail or Global Express Guaranteed products"), and ask a customer service agent for CAREKIT04 (or a "military kit"). You need supply only your name, address, and phone number, and they'll get a kit off to you that should arrive within 7-10 days. We've tried this service ourselves: it was easy to use, the USPS customer service agent we dealt with was courteous and efficient, and we were supplied with a customer ID number to expedite the process of ordering additional supplies. (This offer includes only packing materials — senders who use these materials still have to pay the requisite postage themselves.)
The USPS also offers a "Supporting Our Troops" page on their web site with links to guidelines for packing, addressing, and shipping items to U.S. troops.

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