Operation AC

I certainly don't use this Blog as an advertisment for any compnay or product, but I truly believe one group needs heavy recognition. Many people ask me if there is anything I personally need. The answer is always the same. I have been very fortunate this tour to be stationed at the US Embassy. The State Department has gone to great strides to make the IZ as comfortable living situation as possible. There are, however soldiers, sailors and Marines out there who are not as fortunate as we are.

During OIF I, there was a big need for air conditioners here in country. Here is the story of Operation AC.

Operation AC has raised $2,876,392.00 and has sent 9,400 air conditioners, 14,500 heaters and $1,901,960.35 in Morale, Welfare and Recreation supplies to US troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Not too bad for a soldier's mom and his family and YOU our contributors.
Operation AC has suspended sending air conditioners to our troops as of 9/1/05. We send combat boots, socks and wicking t-shirts now. We send to US forces only. Any donations we receive go directly to the support of US troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Horn of Africa fighting the Global War on Terror.
We at Operation AC send our US Troops mostly anything else they ask for or need. We have been at this since June 2003 and we have adapted to the needs of our troops. We send them items they are low on in supply and just are a help to them. Please adopt a soldier or marine serving and help us with our effort.
Our soldiers are humble people and they only ask for what they need like the boots we send, the socks and glove kits, morale raising items and mostly matching them up with an American who cares about what they are doing. Our troops are volunteers and they are still serving in the same place - do not forget them. Many of the ones going back now are from OIF 1 and remember me from when we started. I'm still here and I promised I would not quit till the last one comes home. My son has been back now for a year and he works here with me now that he is out of the Army helping his brothers and sisters still serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is my hope that we make their existence in Iraq during their deployment as safe and as easy on them as possible given the job they are there to do.
After sending over 9,400 air conditioners since we started - we are happy we have made an impact on the situation there. Now we have to adapt to the ever changing need of our troops and the safety of the troops given the items we send. Logistics and Delivery of Air Conditoners is now a danger to our troops. i can not risk the lives of the civilians delivering the air conditioners nor can I put safety of our troops at risk by allowing the chain of custody of these electronic items to be compromised. As Iraqis take control of their own country and our troops begin to scale back, we still need to be there for those who serve and send them what we can to help them during their deployment.

For those of you who wish to adopt a Soldier, Sailor or Marine, this is a great way to do it. This group has gone from simply Air Conditioners to anything a military member in the field could need from uniforms, and boots to MP3 players. If you get chance or want to adopt someone, log into http://www.operationac.com

My personal thanks goes out to all who have supported the troops here and a special thanks to Mrs. Frankie Mayo, President and FounderOperation AC Inc.