the following site has lots of great information concerning our soldiers, what they need ( depending on the location they are stationed or their job they might be in need of different supplies), how to contact / send care packages....... AnySoldier.com

Peanut butter and jelly
soup and crackers
canned vegggies
breakfast bonanza are all great collections for a food bank

travel size toiletry items are also great for a shelter, or to send care packages for those in the military.
Our school had a drive and we made up care packages to send to the hospitals that wounded soldiers were sent to when they arrived back in the US. There are only a few and one is not too far from us. When they come back, they don't have a supply of stuff and it takes awhile before family members are allowed to see them (debriefing, checkups, tests, surgery). We collected shampoo, razors & shving cream, lotion, etc and made up packages with a thank you note and had them given to those that were arriving at the hospital.

What a nice idea!! Our girl scouts conducted a drive last year for an area shelter. They collected travel-sized basic care products - i.e. travel-sized shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, mouthwash, shaving cream, tissue, hand sanitizer, combs, etc. A lot of these items are available at dollar stores. The shelter told us people come in and take these products with them, so they need to be small. We had such a great response, and usually a representative will gladly pick the items up if you are unable to travel to the shelter.

This is a Patriotic PLUS fundraising idea. Go to A Hero's Thanks and see. They do dog tags with a Thank You message to the troops on one side and your school mascot on the other. Do pre orders so you can obtain cheaper prices. This is a great way for your students to demonstrate school pride/spirit while saying thanks to the troops. Encourage the kids to buy two...keep one for themselves and send one to a troop. Facilitate a dog tag send off day where you obtain names and addresses of service men and women stationed in harm's way and send some to them. Pass this on to others in your district...let's all get the word of Thanks to those who deserve it!

the local high school just did a project for make a difference day called
"Pack the Pantry", they got permission from local stores to stand outside and hand out lists of items the local food pantry was in need of. They introduced themselves, explained the project and asked people to purchase one or more items from the list.....The customers handed the items to the students as they exited the store..... as the carts filled up they were transported to the food pantry. It seemed like a very simple and effective project. It might be nice to use this same approach for a "Supply our Soldiers" project.

Our PTO just sponsored for make a difference day OPERATION PB & J. Very similiary to a canned food drive but we only took in peanut butter and jelly. We received over 300 jars of each to be donated to a local shelter.