Notified by folks who know that they are on the way back to the US.
30 Aug 2004:
Hello from the Mediterranean Sea!! I have great news my Marines and I are on our way home. I just wanted to email you and let you know the great news and ask that you take us off your mailing list so your supporters do not have packages returned. I would personally like to thank you for all the hard work and care you put into your website. You and your supporters truly helped my Marines and my one Navy Corpsman through a trying time in our lives. We all know for a fact that the American public are the greatest people in the world. You are a true patriot to our nation and military service members. Thank you once again for all the wonderful letters and packages. I hope all of our "Thank You" letters made it back to your supports hands.
The picture is from all of your supporters!! Thank you!!!
Semper Fi,
Jon Connolly
16 Aug 2004
It looks as we will be in the theater until late Sept. hopefully we will be home in mid October. My Marines and I are doing well, and we can not wait to see dry land. The seas have not been to nice to us.
One of my Teams w/ gunny and myself.
11 Aug 2004
Hello there from Sea!! My platoon and I are safely aboard ESG-2 shipping (USS WASP). We are currently steaming around in the Arabian Gulf. We were scheduled to arrive in mid-September, but as of today were have been extended for yet another month. My Marines and I are taking it just fine. We do get paid by the tax payers for this! I would ask you if we could remain on your website for yet another month. My Marines have received numerous packages, and they have been very busy writing thank you letters, and I have been sending back several flags to personnel that requested them. I attached a couple of new pictures that were taken in Kandahar before we left. We spent a week in Kuwait, and now were are cutting squares on our ship.
If we are allowed to remain on your website, our wish list is a little different than before. My Marines are very excepting to junk food, such as chips, chocolate, and any type of hard candy. Since the Marines will have plenty of free time on there hands any DVDs, or card/board game would be great! The ships store is very limited to clothing, and after 4 1/2 months of combat operations they have very little when it comes to t-shirts (O-D Green) or UnderArmor Shirts, and black socks. Most of all letters from Americans that care about us are the real treat. My Marines have talked to me on numerous occasions about how great it is to receive a letter from someone back in the states who cares.
For all the personnel that have taken your time and resources to put a smile on my Marines, "Thank You". You are all "True Americans", and that is why we are winning the War on Terror.
Thanks for all you have done for our Armed Services!!! I am forever your friend.
Jon
18 Jul 2004
Hello from Kandahar, Afghanistan! My platoon and I are doing very well. We have all finally taken showers, brushed our teeth, and washed our gear. We have received numerous care packages and letters from around the United States over the last week or so. "Thank You" to all of your supporters from my Recon Marines. We are very happy to be accepted and taken care of by AnySoldier.US. In the last week we have sent numerous American Flags back to personnel that a requested them back.
We have signed and flown about 20 Flags over the last month. I hope they make it back to the rightful owners, and if they were mixed up in anyway I do apologize. My Marines, due to your very generous website have had the opportunity to see how wonderful the American public is, and how much the public "DOES" support the men and women serving in the Armed Forces. I hope your supporters do realize that were are VERY thankful for all that you have done for us, from the large care packages to a 2 sentence letters, we are grateful! :-) My Marines and I will be heading to another country for staging, and then a couple of weeks later we will board ships and head to Spain for our wash down. The MEU will still be active in the Middle East until late August, and will not be home until late September. I know that my Marines would still enjoy mail up until September.
We have been gone from our families and loved ones for sometime and it has been difficult, but we know that there will be an amazing homecoming for us when we return to Camp Lejeune, NC. Thank you once again for everything you have done. You have really helped our cause and moral with your love and affection.
I did find out what really happened to the mail situation. Since our unit got extended for another 30 days in Afghanistan, the mail system did not push our time to late September. They thought we were on our way home. No worries, the packages that were sent out a second time are starting to make it to my Marines.
Semper Fi,
Capt. Jon Connolly
02 Jul 2004
A couple of my guys received portable DVD players, can I add DVD movies to our platoons wish list? Thanks.
Jon
(26 June)
In regards to your email about UnderArmor T-shirts. UnderArmor T-shirts are a unbelievable product for our armed forces personnel, a couple of my Marines have them and they have held up in this rough environment. Yes Please my guys to need t-shirts and those would be perfect!! If your sponsors could send UnderArmor shirts and socks my Marines do need them. If they sent m/l socks (Black or green) and Large t-shirts (green) The loose fit are what the Marines would prefer here in Afghanistan. White pt socks are always welcome.
Wish list:
UnderArmor T-shirts (loose)
UnderArmor socks - m/l (black or green)
black socks - m/l
Any kind of drink products - (Gatorade, crystal light) i.e. ready made drink mixes just add water.
Reading material - magazines, books
board games, card games, cards
Letter writing material
I have attached another pic of my platoon we took last night. It is a flag that a nice family in GA sent us. We flew it over the FOB for 24 hrs, and I am sending it in the mail today back for them to have. Once again, I can not thank you enough for supporting my Marines. Thank you and God Speed.
Jon
25 Jun 2004
Thank you for allowing my platoon to be attached to your website. Today was the first day that we received care packages from your supporters. I wish you could have seen my Marines faces....it looked like they had all woken up to Christmas morning. We received packages, letters, and of course......American Flags which we are currently flying over our platoon area. Attached are pictures of a Flag that we received from a wonderful woman in VA. It is a Flag of Heroes. The flag has the names of personnel lost on 9/11. This flag touched home to all of my Reconnaissance Marines and it reassured to each one of us what we are doing here and that the War on Terror must end. We are all doing just fine here in FOB Ripley, and it is very dusty and very hot. (107 degrees in the shade).
Thank you to all of your wonderful supporters.
You may all sleep well tonight "the Reconnaissance Marines" are guarding your gates tonight!!
Gods Speed and Semper Fi,
Jon Connolly
12 Jun 2004
My Marines and I are leaving Afghanistan the end of July, and will be in this AO until late Aug. In state side by the end of Sept. My Reconnaissance Marines and I are the Reconnaissance and Surveillance Platoon for the 22d MEU(SOC). We are forward of friendly lines for weeks on end. When we return to friendly lines, we always look forward to receiving letters or packages from personnel that care. Kind words are really what we are looking for.
The conditions here are very difficult to bear. We have been sleeping in sand for the last 60 days, and we do need any kind of hygiene products. i.e. baby wipes, shaving cream. We do not need products like chocolate......due to the 115 degrees during the day. Really any kind of candy, chips, beef jerky, or sun flower seeds are perfect.
We are stationed and conduct missions out of FOB Ripley, Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan. My Marines work very hard, and have been away from their families for almost a year now. (We have a 6 month work-up cycle) They have given up many, many things to travel to the middle east to fight the war on terror. I am very proud of what they have accomplished and it hurts me to see that some of my Marines have yet to receive letters from home, and receive care packages. I would do anything in my power to see that my Marines are taken care of. If your supporters can help, by just a kind letter to let them know there are people back in the states who care, I have helped my Marines.
I have 24 Marines. Myself a 1stLt (Capt-July 1st), my Plt Sgt - GySgt, and 3 teams of 6 Recon Marines. All teams are lead my a Sgt. I have a Headquarters element with a comm operator and a boat mech. Of my 24 guys, 13 are married, 9 with children. 9 of my 11 are under 2,1 and are single. They love their country and are willing to lay down their lives for the freedom we have taken an oath for. I plan on having a family with my wife when I return, and 4 have children expecting by the time we return.
I have numerous pictures of what we do, and where we have been.
One request that some of my Recon Marines have are "American Flags"........So we may fly them over Afgan.....sign them and send them back to personnel who support us.
Thank you for your time,
I will write more soon,
Jon