In the spirit of "Giving Back", The Orange Blood Bank is taking on a National partnership with a national Veterans organization to provide calling cards to soldiers deployed in the war zones overseas!

We hope to provide each and every one of you the opportunity to commit your own Patriotic act right there from your chair.

Our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan have taken on the task of putting their lives in harms way, living in dusty, filthy conditions, on our behalf. They may not see their children, wives, husbands, mothers, and fathers for more than a year at a time, so that they may represent our country(s) in the War on Terror.

Right now, many of them are missing their children's first steps, or will not be able to be with their loved ones over the coming Holiday season. What we would like to do is allow you the opportunity to provide them a way to call home.

No matter what your political beliefs, or your opinion on the wars, this is an opportunity for us ALL to support our soldiers. And that in my opinion, is one of the most Patriotic things we can do!

I hope you will join us in making a difference around the world.

The members and administrators of the Orange Blood Bank proudly announce a program to help our brave soldiers in Iraq, Afghanistan, and our wounded in military hospitals.  After examining several options, we have settled on one that seems to give the most benefit for the buck.  We have selected Operation Uplink a project sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the VFW Ladies Auxiliary VFW, and is supported by The Orange Blood Bank.

Operation Uplink is a unique program that keeps military personnel and hospitalized veterans in touch with their families and loved ones by providing them with a free phone card.  Operation Uplink purchases phone cards and distributes them to servicemen and women who are separated from those they care about, and has provided more than 17 million minutes to troops.

OBB needs your help to make the holidays happier for our men and women in uniform.  We ask you to join us in bringing American troops around the world closer to home for the holidays. To make a secure donation, click on the following link,

https://secure2.convio.net/vfw/site/SPageServer?pagename=operation_uplink

Read more at www.OperationUplink.org

Thanks to "the Artful Codger" for his unselfish contribution to this partnership