A Call to action: How YOU can help us spread the word.

15 actions you can do to help us spread the word.

It’s been an interesting two weeks with  the news of the earthquake in Haiti and the ensuing calls for support to help their country in their hour of need. The support has been nothing short of phenomenal from all the stories I have read and all the donations pouring in from all across the world and in our own country here in the United States, there are literally thousands if unique Fundraising events to help the impoverished nation and ailing peoples of Haiti.

Now let’s step back a moment and take a look at this to see what it means to our own country.  Our United States mobilized in record time additional military resources, our countries finest Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen were sent on deployment for undetermined lengths of time to help Haiti.  For many this is their first time away from home for extended deployments from their families. Right now no one knows how long this operation will continue, but it is sure to be many months. We also still have thousands of our military men and women deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq with more scheduled to depart every day for lengthy deployments away from their husbands, wives and children.

This post is a request, a CALL TO ACTION to ALL whom will read this:

Whether you are a current subscriber to our weekly OPERATION Hug-A-Hero Newsletter, or possibly an RSS Newsreader subscriber, if you’re a Facebook Cause Member or you are reading this from a TWEET on Twitter or just a passerby looking to see what we are all about. Perhaps you came across the Operation Hug-A-Hero blog from somewhere in the Blogosphere?

How you arrived here does not matter. What you do here is of great importance to us and our Military Families. We are not asking for money…or Donations, (although you are more than welcome to contribute to enrich a young child’s life should you so desire to do so….and it is tax deductible too) or as you are shopping online be sure to visit iGive.com. If you buy anything, Operation Hug-A-Hero gets an automatic donation from your purchase.

What we are asking for is an infinitesimal (extremely small) moment of your time to help spread the word about our cause. Haiti is extremely important, but we want to make sure that everyone knows who is helping and that they may in turn need some help of their own. At least the Children whose parents are answering our Nations call to duty. Let’s not forget them!

Here’s what you can do to help:

Please perform one of these small tasks below to help us spread the word about our Mission.

Please HELP US and share our OPERATION Hug-A-Hero site with others:

1. Click on the Share/Save Button Below the article for this post (share or email from here)
2. Forward this post/article in an email to friends, family, neighbors or co-workers
3. Forward your Newsletter to friends, family, neighbors or co-workers
4. Post this article on your Facebook Page
5. Share with your Facebook Friends from the FB Share Button above or the Share/Save Button Below
6. Add our Facebook Cause to your Facebook
7. Tweet this article from the Tweet Button Above or the Share/Save Button Below
8. Follow us on Twitter
9. Retweet this article
10. Make a comment on an article of interest on the site.
11. Subscribe and Watch us on YouTube
12. Sign up for the Operation Hug-A-Hero Newsletter
13. Sign up for our RSS Feed
14. Send our URL (Web site address) to a friends, family, neighbors or co-workers
15. Send an email to
feedback@causeworld.com and ask them to include Operation Hug-A-Hero in their nonprofit listing.

Our President gets it. In a statement today prior to his State of the Union address on Wednesday, President Obama stated “military families welfare is an important part of U.S. national security”.

After all, this is what OPERATION HUG-A-HERO is all about.

For more information on the Mental Health & Welfare issues that our Deployed families routinely deal with please read the related post below.

Wives & Military Deployments – SPECIAL REPORT by NEJM

Children & Military Deployments – SPECIAL REPORT -

Wives & Military Deployments – SPECIAL REPORT by NEJM

An interesting story published on Thursday January 14th, 2010 in the New England Journal of Medicine entitled “Deployment and the Use of Mental Health Services among U.S. Army Wives” discovered that the wives of soldiers deployed suffered higher mental health issues.

This was the largest study ever undertaken. The results are very conclusive and indicate “that the mental health effects of current military operations are extending beyond soldiers and into their immediate families.”

The study shows again “that when a service member deploys, the entire family deploys,” said Air Force Maj. April Cunningham, a Pentagon spokeswoman.

The results of this study mirror the findings from the RAND Corp. study of military children that we reported on last month in our Operation Hug-A-Hero SPECIAL REPORT,Children and Military Deployments that discusses Deployment Effects on Children of Military Families. The NEJM story details the fact that Children of deployed parents suffer more emotional issues, particularly if separations are long or the parent at home is troubled.

It’s a fact … kids do worse when Mom does worse. “So if spouses are more likely to need mental health services as deployment times increase, than their kids are more at risk.”

The NEJM story is pretty technical, so if you want an easier read, I would suggest the USA Today summary that you can read by clicking here: Army wives with deployed husbands suffer higher mental health issues.

The NEJM report along with the RAND report signify that  children of military parents are adversely impacted emotionally with a parent who is deployed away from home for significant amount of time. This is the main reason that Operation Hug-A-Hero was created. We can and have made huge positive psychological impacts to the children that are recipients of our FREE Hug-A-Hero® dolls.

Download a copy of this Report

TampaBayOnline Features OHAH

Operation Hug-A-Hero’s Executive Director Lisa Berg and her family were featured on Tampa Tribunes’s – TBO.com (Tampa Bay  Online) .  The Story by Geoff Foxx of the Tampa Tribune is an inspirational story that details the history of Daddy Dolls as well as how the Dolls have helped Lisa’s children. Also of great importance is the note regarding the recent troop surge announced by President Obama and how many children of military family’s can be helped by a Donation, so that Operation Hug-A-Hero can supply more Dolls to children whose parents are about to deploy in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

With President Obama’s recent announcement that 30,000 troops soon will be sent to Afghanistan, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero is accepting donations so that more Daddy Dolls will find their way to the arms of children who miss their parent. A donation of $25 can get a doll to a child.

Click here to read the entire TBO story entitled Hug-A-Hero dolls provide comfort to children of deployed military.

Related Posts:

December 2, 2009 Press Release – OHAH offers public opportunity to support ‘littlest heroes’

K6F59DCTAGJY

OHAH’s Exective Director Featured on Tampa’s 10 Connects.com

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero’s Executive Director, Lisa Berg was featured on Tampa Bay’s WTSP TV Channel 10 Connects.com on Friday December 18, 2009. You can check out the text of the interview from 10 Connects Web site where you can view the interview. Or you can view it right from the home page of Operation Hug-A-Hero in our Featured Video on the right sidebar ->.

Here are Lisa’s comments from the interview:

I was happy to come down and interview. What a warm welcome 10 Connects gave me. Couple other points I didn’t get a chance to make: MacDill AFB Enlisted Spouse’s Club raised money for our cause to help those on MacDill in need. Please contact us to find out how to place a doll into the loving arms of a child in need right here in Tampa. Also, ANYONE can donate. Every $1 helps. In recent days, groups have come forward to donate instead of buying each other Christmas gifts (RNs from Orlando and Kansas City). We thank each of you for your support. Let’s Help our Little Heroes left behind. Let’s support our troops who are protecting us by us providing comfort to their children. Think about these children right now as we all plan to celebrate the holidays with loved ones. Thanks for your interest!

Related Posts:

Afghanistan Troop Surge – Public Opportunity to support littlest hero’s

Deployment Effects on Children of Military Families – SPECIAL REPORT -

Children & Military Deployments – SPECIAL REPORT -

At Operation Hug-A-Hero® we know firsthand the negative effects deployments can have on children. After all Hug-A-Hero® Dolls were created by two military wives who struggled with a way for their children to be able to connect with their fathers who were deployed Marines. That was the original basis for Daddy Dolls®. The founders Tricia and Nikki, saw the huge psychological payback for their own children by seeing the connection their own children had with the dolls, which bear the image of their fathers. Several years later the nonprofit OPERATION Hug-A-Hero was created.

Up until recently little was known about how children were affected by long absences from parents who were deployed overseas and the reintegration after their return home. The National Military Family Association commissioned a study by the RAND Corporation that addresses this issue.

The research is among the first to explore how these children are faring academically, socially, and emotionally during an extended period of wartime. Results show that children from military families studied may be experiencing above average levels of emotional and behavioral difficulties, relative to national norms.

This report has had a fairly wide media response and has been published in Stars and Stripes, New York Times and the Science Daily to name a few. We have provided links to the actual reports for your benefit.

You can read the full report from Rand’s Press Release – here Longer Parental Deployment Linked to More Emotional Challenges for Military Children

Additionally you can download the full report in a PDF format directly from the National Military Family Associations website.

Views from the Home Front – The Experience of Children from Military Families
Here are the major points from this report:

■ Children in military families experienced emotional and behavioral difficulties at rates above national averages.

■ About one-third of the children reported symptoms of anxiety, which is somewhat higher than the percentage reported in other studies of children.

■ Self-reported problems varied by age and gender: Older youths and boys reported more difficulties with school and more problem behaviors, such as fighting; greater numbers of younger children (compared with older children) and girls reported anxiety symptoms.

The results also revealed challenges posed specifically by deployment:

■ Longer periods of parental deployment (within the past three years) were linked to greater difficulties in children’s social and emotional functioning, at least based on caregiver reports.

■ Deployment-related challenges varied by age and gender: Older youths experienced greater school- and peer-related difficulties during deployment; girls experienced greater difficulties during the period of reintegration than did boys.

■Children whose caregivers had better self-reported mental health were better able to cope with the deployment experience both during and after.

■ Living on-base was linked with reduced difficulties both during and after deployment.

The results represent an important first step in understanding the link between parental deployment and military child and family well-being. The findings suggest the need for more research to improve understanding in several areas, including the link between caregiver mental health and child well-being and the reasons why girls and older youth may be reporting more challenges with deployment. The results also highlight several avenues for possible intervention. For example, families may benefit from targeted support to deal with stressors from multiple months of deployment, rather than only during initial months. Further, families in which caregivers face mental health issues may need more support for both caregiver and child.

Reports like this validate the OHAH mission and are the reason why our volunteers are eager to help us achieve our goals.  We want to help our military children who are faced with the inevitable. Founder of Operation Hug-A-Hero®, Tricia Dyal, states “We want to be able to help these children by providing them with a coping mechanism before that parent ever deploys. A Hug-A-Hero® doll should be their security blanket.”

Download a copy of this Report

Press Release December 2, 2009

Afghanistan troop surge:

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero® offers public opportunity to support ‘littlest heroes’

Members of the public are invited to join OPERATION Hug-A-Hero in easing the burden of separation from military parents to be deployed in Afghanistan troop surge.

Jacksonville, NC (PRWEB) December 2, 2009 — With the recent announcement that an additional 30,000 troops will be deployed to Afghanistan, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero has stepped forward to help provide comfort to America’s “littlest heroes,” the children of America’s service men and women who will soon deploy.

A 501(c)(3) organization serving the children of military, law enforcement and first responder families, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero provides durable, washable high quality dolls with a full-body photograph of a parent to children of America’s heroes.

With the news that additional service members will deploy in support of the Afghanistan troop surge as early as next month, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero is determined to do its part to honor and support the children left at home.

“It is very easy for the public to lend their support,” said Lisa Berg, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero Executive Director. “Donations may be made online by going to our website, www.operationhugahero.org/. It’s that simple, and givers will have the pleasure knowing their contributions have added to the quality of life for one or more of those children in need.”

“Though a doll cannot solve every issue a child may face while their parent is deployed, it certainly goes a long way to providing an emotional security blanket for the littlest heroes at home,” said Tricia Dyal, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero Co-Founder. “We’ve even heard of children keeping their parent in the circle of family life by photographing the Hug-A-Hero doll at every significant family event, such as a birthday party or holiday celebration.”

Anything that can reduce stress, relieve anxiety and bring comfort to the child of a deployed service member is an important endeavor, said Berg.

“If you have been wondering what you can do to give back to America’s heroes, then now is the time to act. Please consider putting a service member’s mind at ease by doing this kindness for his or her child. I have seen the impact these dolls have made on the lives of the children and families who have received them,” said Berg. “I know we can get a Hug-A-Hero doll into the arms of every child in need.”

Note: Members of the media interested in covering this story may contact Lisa Berg via e-mail at lisa@operationhugahero.org or by telephone at (910) 546-3127.

Download a copy of this PressRelease

Press Release November 17, 2009

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero® Launches Holiday Hugs Drive

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero kicks off its inaugural “Holiday Hugs for Our Littlest Heroes” Drive to provide Hug-A-Hero dolls to the children of military, law enforcement and first responder families this holiday season.

Jacksonville, NC (PRWEB) November 20, 2009 — OPERATION Hug-A-Hero, a 501(c)(3) organization serving the children of military, law enforcement and first responder families, kicks off its inaugural “Holiday Hugs for Our Littlest Heroes” drive this week with the goal of providing 2,500 children with Hug-A-Hero dolls this holiday season.

“I will be leaving behind my fiancee and daughter to go to South Korea for a year. I have only spent a few days apart since she has been born. I am hoping this (Hug-A-Hero Doll) will help her remember me while I am gone.”

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero Executive Director, Lisa Berg, reports a tremendous increase in the applications for the Hug-A-Hero doll program in the weeks leading up to and just after the holiday season. This is due in part, Berg suggests, to the fact that the holidays are very hard for the littlest heroes when they are separated from a parent or other loved one in their lives, or, in the worst case, if they have lost a parent serving in the line of duty. “The separation anxiety is often heightened during the holidays, a time that is already particularly stressful for the family back on the homefront or that is grieving a loss. In addition, the number of units and individuals across our armed forces scheduled to deploy in the January-February timeframe is high,” stated Berg.

A recent application for the OPERATION Hug-A-Hero program from a service member in the United States Air Force readying for deployment puts the need into perspective. The application stated, “I will be leaving behind my fiancee and daughter to go to South Korea for a year. It will be extremely hard for me considering I have only spent a few days apart since she has been born. I am hoping this (Hug-A-Hero doll) will help her remember me while I am gone,” shared Berg.

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero is inviting retailers, businesses, schools, churches and other interested organizations to adorn a holiday tree with OPERATION Hug-A-Hero Holiday Hug ornaments. Each ornament (a $25 donation) represents a Hug-A-Hero doll to be gifted to an eligible child. Donors can write a personal message to the child recipient on the back of the ornament which will be lovingly included in the package that OPERATION Hug-A-Hero will send to the child. The Holiday Hugs Drive is made simple for the sponsoring organization as OPERATION Hug-A-Hero sends all of the materials – the sponsors simply provide the tree or other display for the ornaments.

Individuals who want to participate in the Holiday Hugs Drive may do so on the OPERATION Hug-A-Hero website. The website will also offer donors the same opportunity to craft a personal message to the child recipient.

“We are thrilled at the early response from organizations and businesses all over the country who are becoming Holiday Hugs supporters,” shared Stephanie Crabb, Director of Development for OHAH. “Our goal is to have 50 participants in the Holiday Hugs Drive this year, and for each of those sites to display a minimum of 50 Holiday Hug ornaments. If we achieve this goal we will be able to include 2,500 more children in our program.”

The Holiday Hugs for Our Littlest Heroes Drive will continue through January 31, 2010.

###

Down load a copy of this Press Release

Press Release November 10, 2009

News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                      November 10, 2009

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero® Veterans Day American Flag Tribute eBay Auction

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero launches eBay auction featuring an American Flag flown over an historic military installation, in honor of the winning bidder, on Veterans Day. Proceeds raised from the auction will support OPERATION Hug-A-Hero’s programs and services targeting the children of those who serve in the military, law enforcement and as first responders.

United States (PRunderground) November 10, 2009 – OPERATION Hug-A-Hero®, a 501(c)(3) organization serving the children of military, law enforcement and first responders, launched a very special auction this week on eBay to raise valuable funds and honor those who have served the nation – past, present and fallen – this Veterans Day.

To the highest bidder will go an American Flag, flown specifically in his/her name in honor of those who have served, high and proud over one of the most historically-significant US military installations in the world, on Veterans Day. The unique, one-of-a-kind collectible is expected to generate great interest and a generous bid for OPERATION Hug-A-Hero.

“We are humbled by the individuals who organized this amazing tribute and selected OPERATION Hug-A-Hero as the beneficiary,” stated Stephanie Crabb, Director of Development for the non-profit group. “There is no greater symbol of freedom than the American Flag. To have it fly high and proud, at a US military installation steeped in rich history for our cause, on Veterans Day no less, is incredibly moving for our entire team.”

Once the Flag has been flown, a certificate bearing the name of the winning bidder, the time, location and installation where the Flag was flown will be signed by a commissioned US military officer. Further, the certificate will notify all that the Flag was flown for the winning bidder on behalf of OPERATION Hug-A-Hero and all of those who have served.

The eBay auction is being sponsored by Goin’ Postal in New Port Richey, Florida, a specialist in eBay auction services that donated its expertise and waived all fees associated with the auction as its contribution to OPERATION Hug-A-Hero.

The American Flag Tribute eBay auction for OPERATION Hug-A-Hero will end at 10 pm EST on Wednesday, November 11, 2009. Interested parties may bid on the Flag on eBay, EBay Auction Item number: 180426880681.

For more information on the American Flag Tribute or other OPERATION Hug-A-Hero fundraising initiatives, please contact stephanie@operationhugahero.org

About OPERATION Hug-A-Hero:

Operation Hug-A-Hero® is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization (ID # 26-3006655) serving the children of our nation’s heroes that serve in our armed services, law enforcement and as first responders.

Since its establishment in 2008, Operation Hug-A-Hero has raised funds to launch and implement its Hug-A-Hero doll program. To date, hundreds of Hug-A-Hero dolls have been provided, at no cost, to the children of heroes that are deployed, in harm’s way each and every day, or fallen.

The Hug-A-Hero doll is no ordinary doll. The Hug-A-Hero doll’s design features the head-to-toe photograph of the recipient’s parent or loved one and a personalized message just for them. The doll not only provides comfort in the times of distress or sadness that separation can cause, but also provides a vehicle for the child to share his/her feeling and tell his/her story about his/her hero’s service.

Please visit www.operationhugahero.org to learn more, make a donation or volunteer.

Down load a copy of this Press Release

Press Release November 5, 2009

OPERATION HUG-A-HERO®

SELECTS FEEDBLITZ AS ITS PRIMARY RSS FEED

AND NEWSLETTER AGGREGATOR

WHO WE ARE: Operation Hug-A-Hero® (OHAH), www.OperationHugAHero.org
WHAT WE DO: Provide FREE Hug-A-Hero® Dolls to Children of our American Heroes
WHERE: Across the Globe
WHY: To Help Comfort the Children of our American Heroes
HOW YOU CAN HELP: Donate to and Help Make Others Aware of Our Inspiring Cause

Effective November 1, 2009, OPERATION Hug-A-Hero® is using  FeedBlitz services to integrate their RSS feeds to supply Newsletter subscription services to all viewers on our site.

OHAH Board Member and acting CTO Thomas Townsend said,

“We wanted to provide our viewers with an easy option to receive news and updates about our nonprofit organization. As a nonprofit in its infancy, we wanted to  differentiate ourselves from other nonprofits to call attention to our cause. This is the primary reason our website was redeveloped into a Social Content Managed System this last spring. Today’s technology is Web 2.0 based and social by design. Our cause has a huge social element to it, and we needed a venue that would work seamlessly into our new site to allow us to communicate on a more dynamic level, have a wide reach of different social network aspects that would still allow us to maintain a very personal and down to earth feel to it. This is where FeedBlitz uniquely fits in.

As our organization grows, we now have the ability to reach all of our potential demographics with a single service that integrates analytics, subscriber management and data collection facilities all in one service.

We have a dynamic team supporting our fundraising efforts.  In the current economic climate we feel using Feedblitz will help get our message out to more people, help bring awareness to our cause, visitors to our site and hopefully more donations and sponsors so we can help more children.”

About OPERATION HUG-A-HERO®

OPERATION Hug-A-Hero®: a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization incorporated in August 2008, and granted it’s 501(c)(3) designation in early July 2009. Operation Hug-A-Hero® reaches out to families of our deployed military and public safety officers in need. We do this by providing a FREE Hug-A-Hero® doll to the children of families who cannot afford one or who have lost a loved one in the line of duty.

For additional information, photos and back story on Operation Hug-A-Hero® or for local recipients (i.e. military families in your local area that have benefited from our services), contact Lisa Berg or visit www.operationhugahero.org.

CONTACT:
Founder: Tricia Dyal (910) 333-1502, Tricia at OperationHugAHero.org
Executive Director & Media Relations Point of Contact: Lisa Berg (910) 546-3127, Lisa at OperationHugAHero.org

About FeedBlitz

FeedBlitz, LLC was founded in August, 2005 to provide a service enabling marketers, publishers and bloggers to make more effective use of newsletters, RSS and new media technologies by helping subscribers get the information they want in their preferred format. FeedBlitz converts RSS and blog updates into email newsletters delivered daily (or desired frequency) to subscribers’ inboxes, instant messengers or social network site. Managing subscriptions, circulation tracking, real-time analytics, and email Autoresponders, FeedBlitz is compatible with all major blogging platforms and services. More information is available at http://www.feedblitz.com/

Down load a copy of this Press Release

Newsletter migration to FeedBlitz

The team at OHAH has been working hard to spread the message about our cause. One of the ways we achieve that is by communicating on the different social sites we have accounts on such as Face Book, MySpace,Twitter and YouTube to name a few.  Our web site here at Operationhugahero.org is our main communications portal if you will, and helps us to achieve one of our goals of being able to maintain that close dialog and relationship with our Hug-A-Hero families, as well as all those interested in following our progress or in helping us to spread the word about our mission.

Many of you have signed up for our email newsletter and it is to you that I am writing tonight’s post. We have some very exciting new features and enhancements to the site that we will be rolling out this month. The first one of those is our new and improved newsletter feature.

If you are a current subscriber, there is some important information below that we need you to be aware of so you can keep getting updates from us. If you have not yet signed up for our newsletter feature, you are going to want to do this so you don’t miss out on all the great new features in store for our visitors and subscribers.

Late last month we converted out RSS feed system from FeedBurner to FeedBlitz.  Most of you will not have noticed as it was a fairly seamless process. The newsletter feature is the final part of the integration and that means that everyone that is currently subscribed will be getting a notification from our newsletter vendor FeedBlitz in the next few days. Actually the cut-over is going to take place on November 4^th at approximately 8:00 PM EST.

So what do you need to do if you are currently subscribed to OPERATION HUG-A-HERO ?

Add feedblitz@mail.feedblitz.com to your address books or email white lists immediately.

• Only unsubscribe to our newsletter using the links we provide in each email, and not on your ISP’s spam or abuse buttons.
• Look out for the message from FeedBlitz advising you that the change has taken place.

If you want to know what the new Newsletter will look like, click on the Preview Link either here or on the home page. Be sure to pass our Newsletter on and invite others to sign up too.

Stay tuned for our Press Release that will be posted on Wednesday evening after the migration.  It will be in the new format and  the Press Release provides a lot of the details as to why we decided to use FeedBlitz services.

Thanks Again

Team OPERATION Hug-A-Hero

Next Page »