Operation Gratitude

Large facility. Seems pretty well organized with their storage warehouse. Their volunteer organizing could use improvement to be more efficient for large groups. The event I went to had over a thousand volunteers. And one «job» was to take a box and walk around the center of the warehouse holding the box to be stuffed with goodies for the troops. I’m sorry but couldn’t we be doing something more? Also, there needs to be more consistent training for their crew members. One guy told us one way, a lady told us another way, then a more outspoken lady overruled it all and basically scolded us that we were doing a process wrong. I’d understand if it were a process to help with safety or efficiency. But we were just stuffing mailers for the troops! Volunteering is supposed to be fun not bootcamp.
Kept the rating at four star because it’s a great cause. But I hope they have more training on people skills and efficiency management.

And, away we go! After moving to a new location, come and see the new setup. Currently during assembly days, there have been three lines running. Waiting lives have been shorter (I think). Please check out the web site for volunteer opportunities.

Want to volunteer and give back to U.S. military come volunteer here. Care packages assembled for all the military branches and sent all over the world. A package sent with love and best intentions. Bring kids 12 and older. Met great college students from UCLA a dad with his two sons and sat and talked with my UPS partners Lori and Raquel best 3 hours spent totally relaxing and happy! God bless the USA!

A very well organized and popular event for families. Unfortunately it’s probably too popular. You line up and grab two boxes, walk it down an assembly line as things get dumped into it. The line is usually out the door and around the corner sometimes. Go to the second shift if you want less of a wait. Or go into the back and assemble other bracelets or cards.
It would also be nice if they could have more then a couple of lunch trucks so you could be volunteering instead of waiting in a line for 30 – 45 minutes. It would also be nice if they could switch out the people behind the assembly line every hour or two so that they don’t have all the fun.

The amount of love at this place is wonderful and contagious. We dropped off a few cases of trick or treat candy that we didn’t give out. They had about 30 people all pitching in to help support our troops in all branches of the military. If you get a chance — they have a wish list. What a nice place to help make a difference. If you have left overs from your company give aways — think of these people. It’s a nice way to say ‘thank you.’

If you ever get a chance to volunteer here, just say yes.
This group sends care packages to military personnel to say thanks. Sometimes you will be unpacking the goods into big bins, but it sounds like most of the time people come to pack the care packages. They set it up as a huge assembly line and they usually have a ton of volunteer groups. The day I went, which was the saturday of Memorial Day Weekend, there was over 600 people in the morning and a bit less in the afternoon. There were two long lines of people walk across tables with boxes getting the items to put in them then another set of tables where they were taping the boxes up and labeling them with the addresses and stickers from Operation Gratitude. Then there was another set up outside where they were filling out the customs forms.
Luckily it was a rather mild day in May, so it wasn’t too hot in the warehouse, but my co-​workers that came the year before (the same Memorial Day saturday) it was over 100 and they were dying from the heat, so keep that in mind if you are really sensitive to overheating.
They had little cups for water out of big coolers, but there is no food available on the premises, except when the food trucks arrive.
You cannot bring any bags, I did see some ladies with small crossbody bags, but basically if you can’t put it in your pockets, leave it at home or in the car.

I had the opportunity to volunteer at Operation Gratitude today as part of what my company calls ‘We Care Give Back’. They give us 4 paid days a year to volunteer & give back to the community.
I was really excited to volunteer at this event in particular because the cause is dear to my heart; I have friends & family that have served and still serve and I felt that in some small way I’d be saying THANK YOU to all the service men, women & their families for all that they do for us.
The day started with us filling care packages with candy (yes, candy)…tons and tons of candy. I’ve never seen so much candy in my life! There were HUGE bins filled with it. I love how everyone just rolled their sleeves up and got to work, filling in where needed. Such great teamwork! I loved it.
So once the candy was gone (we filled over 1,000 boxes with it) they took out huge bins filled with t-​shirts to sort through (to weed out the inappropriate ones). Not as much fun as the candy, but interesting nonetheless.
There’s so many other items that go in the packages such as dental kits, hand knitted scarves, beanie babies, personal hygiene kits, calendars, books, etc. Good stuff.
They welcome donations & volunteers 12 years of age and older with open arms, so do check out their website & stop by and volunteer when you can.
As for me, I can’t wait to do it again. I have a newfound respect for hard labor, I’ll tell you that much! haha. :)

I have to thank Carolyn and Rich Hernandez for supporting the 40thmp company with tons of candy that was donated to our troops! The kindness and generosity that was shown was amazing. I had the opportunity of visiting and I was treated so kindly with a tour of the operation. It is truly a wonderful experience to see what the volunteers do to get packages out to the Soldiers. Thank you for all you do!!!

Patriotism is alive and well at Operation Gratitude.
I’ve been volunteering with OpGrat for about 3 years now and I love it. I started after my fiancé got back from Iraq as a way to honor those who are still there. I saw what a toll it can take.
Anyone can volunteer to help by visiting their website or Facebook page and getting the schedule. I go on «Assembly» days, usually a Saturday from 9am to 4pm. They have two shifts 9 – 12 & 1 – 4. Lunch is always provided — donated by local restaurants (Buca di Beppo, Sharky’s, etc.).
At the end of the first shift, Caroline Blashek, the founder of Operation Gratitude, takes a microphone and thanks everyone, reading some of the letters recently received by package recipients. I usually cry at some point during those speeches. They are so moving and touching. They do the pledge of allegiance (no longer done in schools) and sing the National Anthem. Everyone sings. It is so rewarding to be there surrounded by so much love and support. I really renews your faith in your fellow man. I like seeing the Disney «Volunt-​ears», Boy and Girl Scouts, company people in their matching shirts, and just random people who often are going for the first time — parent & child, friends, just wanting to do something to help.
The jobs aren’t hard and it’s really fun. They play upbeat music and I end up singing along and dancing as I push boxes down an assembly line, or fill out custom forms with the name of the lucky man or woman who gets the box of goodies. I also like to take a break by sitting down in a quiet area and write thank you cards and letters. They try to get at least one in every box they send out. You can also collect letters and cards at work, school, or just do them at home & bring them in. They have a list of needed items on their website.
The boxes are filled with lots of cool things: DVDs, CDs, books, Girl Scout cookies, candy, toys, cards & stationary, toiletry items, chapstick, energy boosts, hats, handmade cool ties or scarves, and lots of other things. Thousands of boxes are sent out each day. It’s exciting to see the mail trucks drive in and take the boxes out — packed and shipped the same day.
They have also started a new program called «battle buddies» that sends a care package and stuffed toy to the children of deployed servicemen and women.
It’s a worthwhile and important organization and you will not be sorry you went. Hope to see you there!

Operation Gratitude is an amazing nonprofit organization based in the San Fernando Valley that supports all branches of the military by sending care packages to individual service members while they are stationed overseas.
The care packages contains goodies donated from companies and individuals, such as candy, toiletries, magazines, CDs, as well as a handwritten letter by volunteers. In the summer, packages usually contain handmade cool ties to help keep service members cool in the hot deserts. In the winter, handmade scarves and hats are usually included.
Each package is individually labeled to a specific deployed service member because the military will not deliver an package without a name because of security. It also makes the package more personal from sender to receiver.
You can volunteer with as an individual or with a group. First, read their volunteer page (
), then contact
to sign up to volunteer and get the physical location of the Armory (they do not include it on their website for security purposes).
Of course, you can always help by donating money. Each care package costs $ 15 to send USPS, and sometimes crates of packages sit waiting to be funded for shipping. They’re a responsible nonprofit, and you can even view their financial statements on their website if you’re that curious. To find out ways to help in the efforts of Operation Gratitude, visit
, and click on «How You Can Help.»
Personally, I’ve been working with them for years now… I have family and many friends that have served in the military. Operation Gratitude makes a difference to those receiving care packages, and those working on the assembly of them. My favorite jobs are writing letters and writing packing slips. It’s emotional expressing gratitude in a letter to a person you’ve never met. It’s moving seeing the names of the service people to whom the packages are being sent. Over the years, Operation Gratitude has had a lot of success, but they’re always grateful for more help. Take the time out to learn more and stop on by during an assembly weekend. It’s so fun, and so rewarding!