It is amazing that CouponsToTroops has the support and participation of so many dedicated coupon clippers. There is no way we could help out so many military families without the efforts of everyone involved. With more overseas families signing up with us every day, we hope that the stories from our senders will inspire you to sign up for a family of your own to mail your coupons to!
Today’s spotlight will be on Sandi in Arizona who is part of a large group of clippers in Arizona, sending their coupons to a group of families stationed on Guam.
Name : Sandi P, Fountain of Life Lutheran Church, Tucson, AZ
Name of your group: Coupons to Troops Clippers
How many members are in your group? Approximately 50
How long have you been couponing? I have personally been clipping coupons for as long as I can remember. Our church group started in April of 2011 with the first church newsletter information and request for coupons. We have about 50 clippers and various others who donate their coupon flyers, with me as the packer shipper who does this at home. The clipped and unclipped coupons are left at church on the bottom shelf of our grocery food for the needy carts in boxes that are covered with camo themed paper. Since April, 2011 to January 2012 we have collected and shipped 77 pounds of coupons.
What motivated you to adopt a family to mail your coupons to? I was inspired by my eBay lady friends who were giving their clipped coupons to another member of the group – whose connection to her recipient was lost. Now they pass the coupons along to me.
Which country is your CouponsToTroops adopted family stationed in? We have a group of 6 Army families stationed in Guam.
What is your best piece of advice for anyone just starting to mail out their coupons overseas? Check out your postage options. We send nothing but priority flat rate boxes. I print postage from my PayPal account (PayPal Ship Now link) and receive a little discount – delivery confirmation is included at no extra cost. Senders can also use a Click-n-Ship account with the same features. Pay there safely with a credit card. APO/FPO addresses are eligible for a military discount. Order flat rate boxes on line from USPS as well as the customs forms and clear envelopes for the forms (optional). The package must still be delivered in person so the postal clerk can stamp all the forms. If you have an email address for your recipient, PayPal sends the person an email notice when you have printed your postage label. It is probably the same with the other account. Coupons are stacked between templates cut 8 1/2 by 3 inches from old mailing envelopes (minus any private info) and tied together like bundles of dollar bills – this way we can pack a lot more with no wasted space. That size bundle fits nicely inside the flat rate boxes, either medium or large. We’ve included a picture of a nearly filled medium flat rate USPS box; also one of the large flat rate box which fills about the same, but there is a space in one corner that gets filled vertically.
What is your favorite aspect of CouponsToTroops? More than one. First of all, we are paying honor to the men and women who so selflessly protect and preserve our freedom. Secondly, we give a job to a number of people who can do this service for others which costs nothing but time. It gives some of our elderly and otherwise unable to help individuals something to do to feel useful and have a sense of purpose. We have an email connection to the leader of our coupon recipient group in Guam, who is more than happy to send us brief thank you messages that yes, they received the package, and yes the amount we are sending is just about gone as we are ready to ship the next one and that they share any leftovers with others on the base. Their kindness in sending brief messages helps fuel the fire on our end and keeps our clippers inspired. Any number of people contribute to help pay for postage from time to time.
One of the women at our church and her mother, both retired, became so productive in their efforts that a group of theirs grew out of ours. They live in a mobile home park with many veterans and retired military. They have gone on to sponsor their own military group. When I become snowed under with the volume of coupon flyers at church, I ask those ladies to please take some for their next shipment. The mom can clip more than most of us in a single sitting, which makes her feel useful, since she can no longer do much by way of hand work or reading.
-We hope you enjoyed learning a little bit about one of our dedicated groups of senders. If you are a sender and would like us to put you in the spotlight or you’d like more information on how to start up a group of your own, please contact us at admin@couponstotroops.com
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This is a wonderful article – and I love to read what’s being said! It is inspiring to read such benefits from the mere task of cutting/shipping coupons! Such blessings would be otherwise missed. Thanks for the spotlight on this Tucson group!