Personal items

[reflectagon]

Sorry, I’m still not clear regarding personal items. What exactly are plebes allowed to bring and receive? I’ve read that postcards and some snacks are allowed in care packages. Would I be able to bring a journal? I don’t have any valuable possessions from home that I care about enough, but journaling keeps me sane and organized. Also, could I receive novels and magazines in care packages? (Is there room to store this stuff though?) I’m assuming I won’t have any free time to read during the summer, but I’d like to as a first year and on.

 

[OldRetSWO]

I wouldn't count on care packages during Plebe summer. This seems to move in and out but a lot of recent mids that I know did not receive packages during the summer. I don't think that your detailers would stop you from having postcards to send out or a small journal during plebe summer but magazines and/or novels would be a red flag to me. If your roommates or even worse the detailers see you reading novels while your plebe knowledge is less than perfect, if might put a bullseye on you. At the same time, even if you're a perfect plebe, your roommate or other company mates could most definitely use some help. Now after plebe summer is a different story and it would probably be less of an issue. I'm curious though why you'd want to get magazines sent in care packages instead of buying/getting them yourself.

 

[Nemo567]

You can get packages, the get opened by the detailers before you get them though.

 

[OldRetSWO]

You can get packages, the get opened by the detailers before you get them though.

And some Company's detailers lock up the food for some period - sometimes a month or more.

 

[Nemo567]

And some Company's detailers lock up the food for some period - sometimes a month or more.

Well that is not happened in recent years. Detailers can only take "contraband" (cell phones, flashlights, ect..) items and must give back what ever they take at the end of the summer.

 

[OldRetSWO]

And some Company's detailers lock up the food for some period - sometimes a month or more.

Well that is not happened in recent years. Detailers can only take "contraband" (cell phones, flashlights, ect..) items and must give back what ever they take at the end of the summer.

I'm aware of it happening within the past couple of years. Stuff not held back till the end of Plebe Summer any more but held back for a couple of weeks.

 

[Nemo567]

I'm aware of it happening within the past couple of years. Stuff not held back till the end of Plebe Summer any more but held back for a couple of weeks.

The key part is they have not been able to lock up food. Food is not "contraband" during the summer and can be sent through packages.

 

[Just Dad]

I was a good-to-great caffine smuggler------- kinda miss that.

 

[helmsdown]

We sent care packages every week. DW would stuff plastic shoebox sized containers with snacks, foot powders, glide sticks and what ever else we could think of. We also included Sports Illustrated after I looked through it. (I know, who gets magazines?) The plastic keeps the mice out of your food for some time.

We did not send forbidden items like prescription meds or electronics and all was delivered by the detailers.

 

[Sandydesert]

Sorry, I’m still not clear regarding personal items. What exactly are plebes allowed to bring and receive? I’ve read that postcards and some snacks are allowed in care packages. Would I be able to bring a journal? I don’t have any valuable possessions from home that I care about enough, but journaling keeps me sane and organized. Also, could I receive novels and magazines in care packages? (Is there room to store this stuff though?) I’m assuming I won’t have any free time to read during the summer, but I’d like to as a first year and on.

DS's plebe summer was 2016. Junk food (chips, Doritos, etc.) were confiscated. So were sugary foods and candy. "Healthy" snacks are allowed to be sent. You will have access to fresh fruit in the dining hall-no need to mail apples, etc. I sent a plastic box for his first package about a 2 weeks after PS started. Protein bars, flavored drops for water, sunscreen, large packages of cough drops, and toiletry items are all fine to send. I sent humorous cards and colorful index cards with sayings on them once a week. Family members and friends can send cards and letters. Inspirational sayings , humorous sayings, and clean silly jokes that may be read aloud to the entire platoon can also be sent. Pictures of the family dog are always popular.

IIRC , plebes are required to write a few sentences each night about what they are thinking/ feeling about that day's events. During the first week, plebes are REQUIRED to write a short letter home. What you say is up to you. ( Note: One sentence letters that say "Here's the letter we have to write home" is not going to make parents happy.) There will be a deadline to turn the letters in to the detailers so the detailers can mail the letters home for everyone. ( If you miss the deadline, your letter doesn't get mailed and then your parents read your letter at PPW or Christmas break. Ask my son how he knows this fact. ). You are most likely not going to have time to read novels. Leave your valuable possessions at home-they will be taken on I-day and locked up until the end of PS.

Packages are opened in front of your entire platoon. I know the mom of one female mid sent her a restock of her favorite monthly product in a care package-not a big deal. Under no circumstances have cutesy stuffed animals mailed to you. It is "not college".

 

[momofmod]

My friends and I sent many care packages last summer. My son would request things during his weekly phone call and I used the flat rate USPS boxes. He requested things like Pledge wipes, paper towel (took out the inner tube and squished) and Tide pens. He's not a snacker so very little food was requested. Other people I know sent tons of snacks like Swedish fish, Twizzlers (non-chocolate treats). We were advised to send the first care package in a plastic shoe box so the treats could be safely stored away from the little furry 'residents' of Bancroft. The way the delivery of the packages works is very company specific. Some are way more lenient (like my son's) than others. If you or your parents are on Facebook, the 2022 pages will be a wealth of information. Good luck!