Information about Army Spc. Joe Roche and for Care Packages to Soldiers

Information About Army Spc. Joe Roche
and for Sending Care Packages to Soldiers

Originally, this page was for care packages needed for soldiers within the 16th Combat Engineer Battalion of the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division (Joe Roche's unit) whose deployment was extended in April '04 after personal possessions had been shipped home. Many, many of you responded to the call for care packages -- for which we, and more important, the soldiers, are extremely grateful.

This page then was dedicated to sending care packages to the 1st Cavalry Division, which arrived in Iraq in January 2004, and began departing in December 2004. We are grateful to those of you who sent care packages to them as well

We now are recommending the non-profit organization Keystone Soldiers (http://www.keystonesoldiers.com/ as a source of addresses for soldiers, Marines, airmen and sailors serving overseas who would appreciate care packages and/or notes of support. In the meantime, for those of you who already have an address for a soldier or unit, but are simply visiting this page for advice on what to send in a care package, we still recommend the following:

IDEAS FOR CARE PACKAGES
Powdered Kool-Aid and Gatorade
Batteries
Magazines
Beef jerky
Baby wipes
Hand-held games
CDs and CD players
DVDs and DVD players
Paperbacks
Cookies or chips
Snacks of any kind - but especially ones that don't melt!

It is recommended that the following not be included in care packages: pork products, pornography or items of a "sexual nature," sharp objects, and alcohol. Include your return address on the package so it is not misidentified as a "suspicious" package.

Please do use the U.S. Postal Service to ship care packages and letters of support. Commercial shippers such as FedEx, Airborne, UPS, etc. do not presently deliver in Iraq. The U.S.P.S. delivers packages with APO addresses to the U.S. military, which, in turn, delivers them to the appropriate units. Postage rates are the same as for domestic U.S.

Army Specialist Joe Roche's Experiences

Keep the Faith: A Letter from Iraq by Joe Roche
(this is Joe's most widely-read essay of this collection, reprinted by newspapers nationwide and in Stars & Stripes, and read on the air by Rush Limbaugh, Kirby Wilbur and other talk radio hosts in April 2004. It subsequently was quoted by President Bush in the President's speech at the Republican National Convention of 2004 and also in an exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington)

Blog: Joe Roche: Antidote to Defeatism - 8/26/05

Blog Entry: A Honeymoon for American Soldiers Based in Europe - 2/18/05

Blog Entry: Iraq: Stay Determined - 1/12/05

Blog Entry: Death of a Patriot by Joe Roche - 10/4/04

Blog Entry: Joe Roche to be quoted in Smithsonian Institution exhibit - 9/10/04

Blog Entry: Joe Roche quoted in page one Washington Post article - 9/10/04

Blog Entry: President Bush quotes Joe Roche in Republican National Convention speech - 9/2/04

Blog Entry: Fahrenheit 9/11 and Its Impact on Military Morale, by a Soldier - 9/26/04

Press Release: Fahrenheit 9/11 is Having "Devastating" Impact on Military Morale, Says Soldier Deployed Overseas

Blog Entry: "Here in Baghdad We are Facing a Serious Sustained Terrorist Offensive" - 6/27/04

Press Release: A Soldier's Update: "Here in Baghdad We are Facing a Serious Sustained Terrorist Offensive"; Soldier Recounts Support for Enemy from Iran and Elsewhere; Describes Fortitude and Dedication of U.S. Servicemen - 6/27/04

Blog Entry: "I've Seen Many Tears Today in the Eyes of Big Strong Soldiers As We Watch the News Coverage of Reagan's Death"- 6/7/04

Blog Entry: Right in the Middle of the Karbala Fighting - 5/24/04

Blog Entry: A New E-Mail from the Front in Iraq: "I Ask That the American People Be Brave" - 5/12/04

Press Release: A Combat Soldier Writes From Iraq: "I Ask the American People to be Brave" - 5/12/04

Press Release: From the Front lines: A Combat Soldier's View of the Iraq Prison Abuse Case - 5/5/04

Blog Entry: "I Hope People Don't Lose Faith in Us": A Soldier Discusses the Prison Abuse Incidents - 4/30/04

Press Release: From the Front lines: A Combat Soldier's View of the Iraq Prison Abuse Case - 5/5/04

Blog Entry: "One of the Most Inspiring and Important Things to Us Has Been the Incredible Arrival of Care Packages..." - 5/4/04

Blog Entry: The Good Men Do (list of the battalion's achievements) - 4/30/04

Press Release: Amid the Nightline Controversy, Remember: Our Troops Are Doing A Great Deal of Good - 4/30/04

Blog Entry: Page One Washington Post Coverage for Joe's Unit - 4/20/04

Blog Entry: It is Like They are in Denial - 4/19/04

Blog Entry: "It's Mentioned by Nearly Every Soldier That I Have Met..." - 4/16/04

Blog Entry: But, Mostly, He Talked About the Children - 4/15/04

Blog Entry: Democrats.com Claims Soldier Who Proclaims News is Good in Iraq Doesn't Exist - 4/11/04

Letter-to-the-Editor in Maui News: Hang in There, Says Vietnam Vet - 4/11/04

Blog Entry: Help a Soldier, If You Can - 4/10/04

Blog Entry: "My Battalion is Right in the Middle of Sadr's Challenge" and the News from Iraq is Good, Soldier Says - 4/7/04

Press Release: "My Battalion is Right in the Middle of Sadr's Challenge" and the News from Iraq is Good, Soldier Says - 4/7/04

A Selection of Photos of and by Joe in Iraq

Army Spc. Joe Roche (L) with an Iraqi friend

Spc. Joe Roche of the 16th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Division, on a Humvee. Joe's duties typically include driving his platoon's lead Humvee

Joe Roche's captain with Iraqi children in a school built by the 16th Engineer Battalion

Iraqi children at the back of Joe Roche's Humvee. According to Joe, the children are saying "Thank you America," "Bush good" and "I love you."

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