OUR STORY

The unfolding story of Treats and Letters from America

The unfolding story of Treats and Letters from America is a way for you to actively support the troops. We are a charity specifically organized to provide personalized care packages for our troops. Our packages feature our very own homemade beef jerky.

We have been making beef jerky for several years for friends and family to enjoy as a healthy snack. We found out after sending homemade jerky as a Christmas present in 2002 to our nephew Mike Anderson how much these little packages could mean to the morale of our troops. Our nephew Mike is a United States Marine and he shared his Christmas present of homemade jerky with his friends. Within three weeks of sending that first package, we received a request for more from Mike and his fellow Marines. We soon realized there was a desire by the troops for personalized packages and our homemade jerky, it was a real hit with the troops. After that response we continued sending packages and added in letters of support to thank the troops for their efforts in defending freedom.

From January of 2003 up to May 2004 we delivered our treats and letters as a private family. During that time we served from eight to three dozen troops most of whom were U.S. Marines stationed in Okinawa, Japan. Production and delivery of our jerky to the troops was financed privately during that time. We estimated that the cost to fulfill our mission during that time was roughly $1,300.00.

When we incorporated Treats and Letters we did so as a secular organization. We are rewriting our mission statement as well as adopting a vision statement expressing a clear concise message communicating our values goals and mission.

Service growth history from January 2003 to February 2006

• From January of 2003 up to May 2004 we delivered our treats and letters as a private family. During that time we served from eight to three dozen troops most of whom were U.S. Marines stationed in Okinawa, Japan. Production and delivery of our jerky to the troops was financed privately during that time. We estimated that the cost to fulfill our mission during that time was roughly $1,300.00.
• On May 5, 2004 we incorporated our charity in the State of Illinois and filed for tax-exempt status with the IRS. Between the date of our incorporation and September of 2005 Treats and Letters served roughly two hundred American troops stationed all around the world. During this period we were serving an average of sixty troops at any given time.
• On September 7, 2005 we began a period of unprecedented growth, which continued through the end of the year 2005. Treats and Letters went from serving sixty American troops on September 7, 2005 to serving more than two hundred troops by year’s end.
• We began 2006 serving over two hundred troops deployed over seas. We are currently unable to serve approximately one hundred troops who are stationed stateside. Nearly all troops currently receiving our packages have personally requested our service themselves. Our goal is to honor all personal requests.

Summary: Today we are serving nearly 200 troops around the world every four to six weeks. Nearly 20% our troops are requesting pocket Bibles and or devotionals. We currently try and send out between 100 and 200 packages each month. To meet the entire current request level we would need to produce and deliver 800 packages of jerky each month.

Sincerely,
Rich Lane, President