Plebe Summer Care Packages

Colleges and Universities A-Z Naval Academy - Annapolis
1

<h1>From usnaparents.com</h1>

<p>Plebe Care Packages
Dear Parent: </p>

<p>Congratulations on your future Midshipman’s selection to the United States Naval Academy. Your son or daughter’s acceptance would not have been possible without your years of commitment and dedication. </p>

<p>Your son or daughter is about to enter the rigorous training environment of Plebe Summer. Family support is very important to ensuring success. A visible means of showing your support often takes the form of letter and “care packages” from home. Over the years, letters have proven to be a much more effective means of boosting moral than packages as your Plebe often has little time to enjoy the package’s contents. Two or three short letters each week will provide a quick “pick-me-up” that will really keep your Midshipman charging. Should you desire to send “care packages” the following guidelines are provided. </p>

<p>Limit the size of the shipping container to no larger than a shoe box.
All items should be single serving and non-perishable. There are no refrigerators in Bancroft Hall for food storage.
The regimen of Plebe Summer is a controlled training environment and requires adherence to a healthy diet. “Junk food” is highly discouraged during Plebe Summer. Healthy items such as energy bars (such as power bars), powdered sports drinks (Gatorade or equivalent, granola bars, etc. are encouraged. Do not send sport/dietary supplements (available from GNC, Vitamin Shop, etc.) as the ingestion of possession of any items containing steroids or similar chemical compounds is against Federal Law and Department of Defense (DOD) policy. Any DOD approved nutritional supplements required to support varsity athletics will be provided by the individual team trainers.
Each new Midshipman will receive a post office box number along with their Company and Platoon assignment on Induction Day. To ensure successful delivery of your letters, we request that you notify friends and family members to not send mail until they have the full and complete address. All mail should be addressed as follows: </p>

<p>Midshipman William T. Door
Class of 2010
X Company, X Platoon
P.O. Box XXXX
Annapolis , MD 21412-XXXX (Last four digits of P.O. Box number) </p>

<p>Your midshipman will also be assigned an email address while attending USNA. This email address will remain the same for all four years they are here. However, during Plebe Summer training, Plebes will not have (or have access to) a computer to send or receive emails. Email addresses and computers will be issued at the start of the academic year in August at which time Plebes will be able to notify friends and family of their email address. </p>

<p>Again, we thank you for your help in these matters. The challenge of Plebe Summer can only be conquered with everyone’s support. The above guidelines will serve to assist your Midshipman in the best manner possible. </p>

<p>Sincerely, </p>

<p>CDR Fred Harr,
Officer in Charge,
4th Class Regiment</p>

2

<p>You get Boodle during Plebe summer>?/????>>??>?</p>

<p>At West Point thats a no no.</p>

3

<p>Unless they changed the rules, care packages are OK, provided they don't bring any problematical items.</p>

<p>I'd follow the advice in that letter. Doesn't get any better than the OIC.</p>

4

<p>he's my battalion officer. a pretty by-the-regs guy.</p>

5

<p>Hey Wheelah44, what's the summer plans? Are you getting any time off? Whatever the call, be safe and have some fun - you've earned it!</p>

<p>Congrats again on "surviving" your first year! :D</p>

<p>And thank you for all your help these past few months!</p>

6

<p>Wheelah, I was wondering the same thing. Are you still on campus? I was there on Thursday dropping off a swimmer and will be back on Mon to pick up same swimmer. I must have asked directions from about five different mids and everyone couldn't have been nicer. One dicey moment though parking my XL in a size 2 spot (mirrors in.)</p>

7

<p>nope, i'm not still on the yard. there are a couple of swimmers doing summer seminar detail though. i'm enjoying my leave, but ill be back in naptown on the 2nd for some summer training. i'll be seeing all the new plebers running around!</p>

8

<p>This is a tip I picked up from my plebe mentor family daughter who did her plebe year last summer- the big day to send a package is July5th- said it was the toughest day- apparently they give the kids some time off for the 4th celebration- but that the 5th is really rough- said it helped if a care pacakge could arrive that day.</p>

9

<p>I know this is a super old thread, but I thought I'd just write on here rather than making a new one....so can anyone chime in on good ideas for care packages? my mom wants to know...</p>

10

<p>Like was said above... protein bars & such, I think pictures are ok. Pretty much anything you know isnt prohibited. No electronic gadgets, watches, sunglasses, etc.</p>

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<p>i heard baked goods....yeah?</p>

12

<p>Some of my son's favorite items follow:
1. convenient cleaning supplies are good. glass & surface cleaning wipes in soft packets. bleach pens for stains in white works.
2. soft t-shirts cut into smaller pieces for polishing shoes.
3. dried fruit.
4. applesauce cups and fruit cups (don't worry about spoons, they just "drink" them out of the cup!)
5. beef jerky or slim jims
6. spray on sun screen; it goes on fast and easy.</p>

13

<p>Nothing that will be messy and get on their uniforms. Home baked cookies are good but I did stay away from chocolate chip.</p>

<p>Powdered sports drink
Cliff bars
granola - trail mix
parade black shoe polish
any special soaps etc that your mid may need. I sent department store face soap that Mid had been using for a few years - helped clear the acne up as Mid started to get it bad from all the sweat and sunscreen on face.</p>

<p>Mine did not want any cleaning products - said company issued enough of that type of thing</p>

14

<p>Tip for Care packages:</p>

<p>Send the first 2-3 carepackages in shoe-box plastic containers (with secure lids).... these can hold food items meant for your plebe and not for the mice-
following that, send items in regular packaging (the flat rate boxes work well)- that your plebe can then refill.</p>

<p>If you send fruit cups, etc- make them flip-top cans, and don't forget to pack some plastic spoons that can be easily discarded.</p>

<p>Don't oversend items- there is only so much room in their con locker, so 2-4 shoebox sixed containers should be enough. In our experience, we found 2 boxes for "food items," one box for "stationary type items" and one box for "the other small stuff" worked out well and kept the con locker in order.</p>

<p>Following I-Day, we sent 2 initial boxes:
one filled with granaola bars, canned fruit, jerkey, etc- pick the snacks your mid likes (keeping to the healthy choice items that the USNA wants!)</p>

<p>Second box:
-white chaulk (great for covering last-minute marks on shoes and whiteworks)
-tide pens
-cough drops
-frebreeze (the little darlings start smelling quickly)
-one or 2 photos from home
-blister pads / nu-skin
-small american flag (if they did not aleady bring one tucked into their wallet on I-Day, which is the way to go on this item to avoid any charges of "mutiny!"
-shampoo/conditioner (regular sized bottles)- for the summer, a combined product is recommended as they might not have time to shampoo-rinse-condition-rinse..... )
-bar of soap, and full-sized replacement bottles of toiletries to supplement the travel-sized ones sent down on I-Day.</p>

<p>On that note- for I-Day, stick to travel-sized bottles of toileties (mouthwash, toothpaste, deoderant, a medium-sized shampoo/conditioner product, etc)--- keep it "light" as they will have a lot of stuff crammed into their sea bag to carry-and then follow it up with full-sixed replacements sent from home that first week. The travel-sized stuff should hold them until reinforcements arrive. </p>

<p>One other note:
the carepackages might "sit around" for awhile before they - and your letters- are "retrived and distributed" to your plebe. The cadre will determine when they can dispatch plebes to the mailroom to get the stuff, and then distribute- so by the time your plebe gets something, he/she may have several boxes and letters to carry back. It's a good idea to put the "date sent" on the outside of letters so they can read them sequentially.</p>

<p>Also- each year there are plebes and priors that receive nothing- for a variety of reasons. Each week, when we sent a package for our plebe, we sent one to the chaplin's office to distribute to "whoever needed one." In 2010, the parents that posted to college confidential "organized" and each one of us "adopted" a company for this purpose- thus, someone sent to "alpha" company, someone sent to "bravo" company, etc..... we sent all the packages c/o the chaplins office, but addressed "to a plebe in XX company". Just a thought! </p>

<p>(and as a tribute to efforts of all the great parents on here, not only did we get every company at USNA "covered," we did the same for USMMA, and a one-day mailing to USMA!)</p>

<p>Starting with the second set of cadre (in the past, following week 3) most found sending the "home baked" stuff was "overlooked" in most companies..... while your plebe will not be allowed to "keep them for themselves," by this time many of the cadre permitted the entire company (cadre included) to share! As this "may or may not" hold true for this year remains to be seen!</p>

15

<p>If I would like to have some Under Armor compression shorts for PEP in the morning is it best to bring them with me on I-day or to have my mom send them in the first care package? There is nothing that I hate more than running in loose fitting under garments, and would like to make sure that they don't get taken and stored for the rest of the summer on I-day.</p>

16

<p>you could try both. bring 2 on i-day AND have mom send 2 in the first package. that way you'll have them as soon as possible either way.</p>

17

<p>As everyone knows, every year is a bit different and each company is different. That being said, all the '1st aid' items that were suggested we send i.e. band-aids, neosporin, blister pads, motrin, cough drops, vitamins, moleskin, etc.....was ALL confiscated by the cadre. Even shoe polish and polishing rags were taken. All confiscated items were put in the I-Day backpack and returned at PPW. One thing I couldn't send enough of was the Propel powder packets, Costco <individual bag="" packaging=""> trail mix, homemade goodies <tip, bake="" and="" freeze="" before="" sending,="" keeps="" fresh="" a="" tad="" longer=""> and Zone bars. Apparently, the entire company enjoyed the boxes.</tip,></individual></p>

18

<p>re: underarmour</p>

<p>would agree- bring a pair, have a pair sent.</p>

<p>also- while this will apply to just a few of you- if you will be doing football or lax, pack your underarmour in your athletic bag- the coaches will collect the day prior to I-Day, giving you access on the days you practice. Can't vouch for what the other sports do...</p>

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<p>As a parent if you're going to be there on I day you can bring the first shoe box with you and mail it while you're there as soon as you have the PO Box#. </p>

<p>Son asked for boxer briefs, (all white), sent him a few pairs of Under Armor as well for PEP. As others have said powdered drink mixes like Propel etc were great to flavor the green canteen they lived with all summer. Body wash was a hit as shower time is very limted. </p>

<p>More than anything I would just encourage parents, relatives, friends to write. On a number of occasions our son commented about coming back to his room and getting mail and how that connection helped him get through a bad day. </p>

<p>Sometimes I think the suggested packing list provided for I-day is designed more as a placebo for parents than to address any real use by the Mids. The issue most everything they need. Our son handed us back his still packed back pack on PPW with most everything they told him to pack still in it.</p>

20

<p>Get a nalgene bottle for the powdered drinks. If you put it in the canteen mold will develop and the canteen is all you will be allowed to carry with you outside of your room. Send preaddressed envelopes with stamps on them so your plebe does not have to take the time to address them. Ensure nothing embarassing is in the package since the cadre will make your plebe open them in front of them to ensure there is nothing against regs in them.</p>