How to Help Injured Soldiers

What You Can Do to Help Injured American Soldiers

Oprah.com | February 26, 2009

Volunteer Opportunities and Donations

They've made amazing sacrifices for your family. If you want to give back to members of our armed forces, here are a few ways to get started volunteering or donating.

Walter Reed Army Medical Center: Volunteering and Donations
Find out what you can do for veterans at Walter Reed.

A Note About Sending Mail to Walter Reed
The staff at Walter Reed Army Medical Center says they are amazed and delighted by the outpouring of letters for the soldiers recovering at the facility. However, mail cannot be accepted if it is not addressed to a specific patient. If you don't know a soldier at Walter Reed but would like to send a letter, visit the center's website to see if there are any special letter-writing campaigns taking place.

This show was filmed in January 2009. Some of the patients who spoke with Oprah may no longer be at the hospital, so mail sent by name to them will be returned. If you want to send generic holiday greetings to recovering wounded warriors, please be aware that mail without a specific patient name is not accepted by the U.S. Post Office. It will be accepted if sent to a special Red Cross P.O. Box address good through December 7, 2009:
Holiday Mail for Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

How to Volunteer or Donate in Your Community
Call your local military or veterans' hospital to see what you can do to help. Don't have one nearby? Visit Network for Good to find organizations in your area.

SHARE YOUR STORY
Our soldiers have chosen to make so many sacrifices for our freedom. Now, we want to hear your stories! You could be featured on Oprah.com or be on the show.

Honor the Soldiers in Your Life
Send us a photo and tell us about your friends and family who are serving in the military.

Share Your Advice
Are you a military family coping with a deployment? What gets you through? Share the best advice you've gotten to help other families in similar situations.

Attention, Soldiers
Is there a letter or photograph that helped get you through a day, week or tour? Would you like to thank your family and friends for their support? Send us an excerpt of those letters or a special message for your loved ones.

Printed from Oprah.com on Sunday, May 19, 2013