Sending Mail

Will the cadets receive mail during BCT? Are we allowed to send care packages?

Mail - Of Course! Care packages - no.
Limit mail to letters and non-attention-grabbing cards. No pictures.
At least these were the rules about three years ago.

A note: If you put their squadron and flight on the address (ex. Executioners - C), it helps the cadre track them down easier.

afmomma said:

Will the cadets receive mail during BCT? Are we allowed to send care packages?

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Basics will received mail, but care packages are not allowed during BCT. Send lots of letters, but don't enclose pictures, etc.

# envelopes as several can be delivered at one time.

Capri120 said:

Mail - Of Course! Care packages - no.
Limit mail to letters and non-attention-grabbing cards. No pictures.
At least these were the rules about three years ago.

A note: If you put their squadron and flight on the address (ex. Executioners - C), it helps the cadre track them down easier.

Click to expand...

I am up to letter #5 (doing them daily) I hadn't heard about putting their squadron on the envelope...will amend.

peppypea said:

I am up to letter #5 (doing them daily) I hadn't heard about putting their squadron on the envelope...will amend.

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That will likely be more helpful in a few weeks when the basic cadets are at Jack's Valley and are not retrieving their own mail. While they're training on the hill, they're likely going as a flight to the mail room and checking their own PO Box.

buffalo said:

peppypea said:

I am up to letter #5 (doing them daily) I hadn't heard about putting their squadron on the envelope...will amend.

Click to expand...

That will likely be more helpful in a few weeks when the basic cadets are at Jack's Valley and are not retrieving their own mail. While they're training on the hill, they're likely going as a flight to the mail room and checking their own PO Box.

Click to expand...

Thank you for sharing this information...so so so much to learn!

Certain cartoons can be ‘allowed’...especially if they are in the vein of ‘Army & Navy play for second’ ... sent DS lots of AF vs Army/Navy...or AF appropriate cartoons... knowing Cadre would get a laugh...

definitely # your envelopes or put a date on them so your Basic knows which to open first.
include funny but clean jokes your Basic could tell the Cadre - good jokes got DS a treat at a meal or two
(and knowing a serving size was 2 tablespoons got him chocolate syrup many a time)

We sent letters written on computer paper on which we'd printed current and old pictures (B&W). One son's squad allowed it (provided he shared the pix), the other son - nope.

NO PACKAGES. NO PACKAGES. NO PACKAGES.

Here's an idea we got from a mom years ago which worked wonders and the fruits of which we still have:

We sent "quiz letters" with a stamped addressed envelope for them to return to us. Check out old threads for more examples but here are a few:

1. What are your roommates names and where are they from? ___________________, ____________________.

2. Roommates seem:
a. Most Excellent!
b. Nice enough, no problems
c. Ravens Fan
d. Subhuman Ravens Fan.
e. ________________________________________.

3. My cadre is/are: (see above)

4. The food here is:
a. FANTASTIC! I have never eaten so well! I LOVE MY FOOD.
b. OK, but not Mom's!
c. Consumable.
d. Unholy, unhealthy.
e. ______________________________________________/

5. The thing I like best about BCT is:
a. All the friendly people, the activities, the food - Just the pure joy of being here!
b. It's not working at the grocery store/restaurant kitchen/office
c. Meh - not a lot, but not horrible.
d. Please sign me up for a root canal with no anesthesia as that would be preferable.
e. _____________________________

6. The thing I dislike about BCT is:
a. Nothing! It's great!
b. Miss my family! Even the cat! Even baby sister! Even mean big brother! Even chores! Even __________________!
c. Early rising
d. ______________________________________________

7. The person/people I miss most are:
a. Seriously? Glad to be rid of you! Ravens fans.
b. Mom, Dad, Sister(s), Brother(s), Dog(s)
c. That sleazy girlfriend Mom despises.
d. No one! The people here are so great!
e. My drug addled high school drop out neighborhood vagrant.

So, you get the idea. Here's what you do:

Send TWO copies. One for them to keep with notes from you on the back, and one they return to you, with the SASE. The comments they put on are hilarious. We reread them once a summer, to remind us of that long-for-us summer when our twins left home, now eleven years ago! How different they are now, married with two and three kids each (with another on the way), pilots, most excellent adults. OTOH, how alike they are to each other, and how their basic personalities didn't change- priceless!

Now get busy writing.

Fencer... I did the same thing and even to the point of putting a copyright notice in the watermark...”EASY WRITE”!! Knowing their minds would be mush and so tired...DS said it made it simple to complete and with SASE made it a snap! Had high return rate of the various variations!!