Manassas Journal Messenger | Aid for wounded soldiers

The Azalea Charities Aid for Wounded Soldiers project provides comfort and relief items for soldiers and Marines sick, injured and wounded from service in Iraq and Afghanistan. Depending on needs, donated items are sent military medical and evacuation facilities around the country and around the world.

Donations by check are used to buy the below items. Make checks payable to Azalea Charities — Aid for Wounded Soldiers, P.O. Box 579, Dumfries, VA 22026.

We combine small donations to purchase high value items like current DVD movies, portable DVD players, XBoxes and time-critical outpatient incidentals and food, cleaning and other support items for The Fisher Houses.

DVD movies: very important for morale of bedridden patients. Hospitals are boring and noisy, privacy is at a premium. Even momentary escape from the tedium of hospital routine can be beneficial. We have only a very limited supply of current-title (within the last year) DVD movies.

Portable DVD players: these are the 7- to 10-inch self-contained players. Particularly useful for bedridden patients and those whose mobility limitations prevent them from getting to ward lounge areas to watch movies. New only.

XBoxes: these are video game sets that the soldiers love to play. The sets come with only one controller, so the donation of an XBox should be accompanied by up to three additional controllers so that up to four soldiers can play the game together. Soldiers will play these games for hours. A real cure for hospital boredom.

Compact disc music: R&B, country, rock; anything on the top 20 CD list (usually available on an end-cap at any music store). Soldiers away for a year yearn to know the latest music. We also need soft music for the head injury and comatose patients.

Men’s clothes: many soldiers arrive at in hospital with only the clothes on their backs. Clothing should be new, good quality, in its original packaging with price tags attached. No used clothing regardless of condition. We need sweat suit sets (M, Lg, XL), boxer shorts (S, M, Lg, XL) and T shirts (M, Lg, XL).

Donations are tax deductible. The Wounded Soldiers project is sponsored by Azalea Charities, a Northern Virginia-based regional non-profit organization. Donors who wish to claim a tax deduction should include a list of their donations, the cost of those donations which do not have price labels attached and a self-addressed stamped envelope for return of a receipt. IRS Tax No: 54-1973354-501c}3.

Donation Collection Points: bring items to the Manassas Journal Messenger office, 9009 Church St., Manassas, or to the Potomac News, 14010 Smoketown Road in Woodbridge. Residents of Montclair can bring items to the MPOA office at 3561 Waterway Drive.

Woodbridge, Lake Ridge and Dale City residents can also bring donated items to the Long and Foster office in their new building at Prince William Parkway and Minnieville Road,13875 Hedgewood Drive, Woodbridge; to Weichert Realtors at 12479 Dillingham Square, or to PAKMAIL at Lake Montclair Center on Waterway Drive.

Dumfries residents can bring their donations to the Dumfries Town Hall at 17755 Main St. Fairfax County residents can deposit donations at collection boxes both inside and outside St. Peter’s in the Woods church at 5911 Fairview Drive in Fairfax Station.

Donation POC: George Kraus at (703) 680-3557, E-Mail: [email protected]