Welcome to our home 

"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something..." "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."

Helen Keller

A Different Christmas Poem

by: LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the
sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
A way from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,

I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."

"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.

My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."

My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..

Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."
"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."

"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."  

Our Board

 Tim Perry, President

Tim's family has served in WWI, WWII, and the Korean War. Having volunteered with nonprofit groups since 1988, Hugs4Smiles is the culmination of these efforts and insight. He has worked in electronics for the past 23 years and is currently working toward a Master's in statistics.

 Kristi Olson, Vice President

Kristi is the proud wife of a National Guardsman  who recently returned home from his 19 month tour of duty in OIF III. The couple has a beautiful son whom they love dearly. Kristi's passion for supporting the troops is evident to all who know her. Kristi is a stay-at-home mom. Other military ties include her dad, who served in the Air Force, and relatives who have served in the Coast Guard, Army, and Mavy.

Mary Ellen Esquino, Adoptions Coordinator     Mary Ellen has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Pittsburgh in Health Records Administration. She worked for 12 years as a manager in the medical records field before becoming a stay-at-home mom. She has been married for the past 20 years and has two children. She is very involved in her children’s school and her Catholic Church. Mary Ellen doesn’t have any immediate family members in the military but has always believed in the unconditional support of the military and of honoring those that have sacrificed to give us the freedoms we have each and every day.                                                   Reasa Davis, Secretary A USAF brat herself, Reasa has been married to her National Guardsman husband for 12 years, and he is currently deployed and serving in OIF III. They have 5 incredible children who keep Reasa both busy and on her toes. Reasa is a proud supporter of all our men and women who proudly serve this country, knowing first hand just how trying this can be at times. Reasa is with Hugs4Smiles in an effort to persue her own mission of ensuring that no  one feels forgotten or unappreciated while serving in one of the five branches of service, especially during times of deplyment.

Our Family 

Hugs4SmilesUSA volunteers come from many walks of life, careers, backgrounds, and hopes and dreams for the future. Our membership includes military and civilian families alike. We represent all ages, ethnicities, spiritual beliefs, political affiliations, and socio-economic levels.

And yet, we are all united for a single purpose: providing support for deployed soldiers from all five branches of service, their families, and for each other. 

Adoption

When you volunteer, Hugs4SmilesUSA assigns you a deployed hero's family and/or the hero, or military personnel in need of suuport. You then send the hero two care packages, Packaged Hugs, each month. If the soldier's family has also been adopted, they receive one package each month.

More importantly, between the Packaged Hugs, you correspond with them as well. We hear over and over again from these troops that, believe it or not, these kind words--through email, card, or letter--mean the most. They are always touched that a total stranger is willing to reach out with kindness and generosity, when in their eyes, they are "just doing their job."

If you or a loved one is facing deployment, or are already in a deployment situation, and are seeking adoption, please contact us. You are the very reason Hugs4SmilesUSA exists. Keep in mind that we support both the deployed troops and their families as well. Let us send some Packaged Hugs to your family back home; They need something to smile about, too!

Volunteer Support 

Send Hugs - Help a Hero Smile

Hopefully by now you've found it in your heart to join our family of volunteers. Our troops face hardship every day and take it in stride. They sacrifice so much and ask so little in return. If you can send two small packages each month and correspondence in between, visit our Contact Us page and email Volunteers.