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Last week I began a letter writing campaign called "Dear Family", and I hope you will help me bring good wishes to the people who need to see them.
I spoke with the Houston Post Office where the Astrodome is located. I asked their manager, Adrianne Phillips, if the post office would be receptive to a mass mailing addressed to "Dear Family". Ms. Phillips was very kind and encouraging. There are millions of people in this country who feel helpless right now, wishing they could help, and yet not necessarily able to afford monetary donations. But most of us can afford a stamp and can write our feelings and our expressions of encouragement to the victims of this horrifying tragedy. Adults, children, and the elderly alike can participate, and even the soldiers abroad who are reeling from the events back home, and who need an outlet for their thoughts and feelings, can send their support.
The Post Office in Houston has agreed to collect the letters and deliver them to the Astrodome and other sanctuaries in boxes and barrels. The people housed there can, at will, choose letters for themselves from the containers. For some, it will be a momentary diversion. For others, those letters will likely become the first keepsake in a future of new memories. I just know that if I were sitting on those cots, I would be so grateful to know that others cared enough to write and lift my spirits.
Please do not send packages. The address listed below is for cards, letters, and small things that would fit in an envelope no larger than 9 x 12.
Address your letter or card to "Dear Family". You may never know who got your letter, and yet that letter or card may mean the world to the person who received it. Please share this address with everyone you know, for the more letters that arrive, the better. We want the survivors of Katrina to know they are cared about and not forgotten.
The address is:
"Dear Family" Astrodome c/o Adrianne Phillips United States Post Office
8205 Braesmain Houston, TX 77025