GRAIN VALLEY, Mo. — To show appreciation during Military Appreciation Month (May), the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) is hosting a Truckers for Troops campaign through Sunday, May 19 to raise money for military and veteran service groups and to send care packages to active personnel.
This fundraising effort has been an OOIDA tradition since 2007, originally dedicated to sending care packages to service personnel stationed in combat zones. Truckers for Troops has also helped a variety of veterans’ facilities, including those assisting or housing wounded, disabled or homeless former service members.
Over the past 17 years, OOIDA has raised more than $800,000 and sent more than 3,273 care packages, serving more than 39,276 members of the military. The association has sent aid packages to 65 different facilities that care for wounded, disabled and homeless veterans, including the Veterans Community Project (VCP). The VCP began in Kansas City and plans to expand to include locations in every state. Currently they have locations in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Longmont, Colorado; St. Louis, Missouri; and other states.
Here’s how OOIDA’s Truckers for Troops campaign works:
During the campaign period, which ends May 19, truckers can join OOIDA or renew their membership for $35 — and 10% of that money will go toward care packages for active military personnel. On top of that, OOIDA will match that 10% dollar-for-dollar.
To join or renew membership online, click here to visit OOIDA’s membership page. If joining or renewing by phone, call OOIDA at 816-229-5791, mention Truckers for Troops and get transferred to the membership team.
For more information or to make a donation without renewing membership, visit the Truckers for Troops website. Individual tax-deductible contributions to the Truckers for Troops fund are also welcome and can be paid to the OOIDA Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation.
Send a care package, card or letter:
Drivers who would like to have a care package sent to a family member or friend who’s serving in the U.S. military may email a request to [email protected]. Include the service member’s name and complete address; be sure to include the recipient’s projected stateside return date.
Those who wish to show their support of the military but do not have a specific service member in mind can send cards and letters of appreciation to:
Attention: Truckers for Troops
P.O. Box 1000
Grain Valley, MO 64029
Towns or school names can be included when signing cards and letters, but please do not include last names or other personal information.
Linda Garner-Bunch has been in publishing for more than 30 years. You name it, Linda has written about it. She has served as an editor for a group of national do-it-yourself publications and has coordinated the real estate section of Arkansas’ only statewide newspaper, in addition to working on a variety of niche publications ranging from bridal magazines to high-school sports previews and everything in between. She is also an experienced photographer and copy editor who enjoys telling the stories of the “Knights of the Highway,” as she calls our nation’s truck drivers.
