Awards and Honors
Effective August 30, 2004, MarineParents.com, Inc. is an IRS recognized 501(c)(3) public charity.
President Bush Awards our Volunteer
 December 7, 2004, President George W. Bush presented the President's Volunteer Service Award to Kathryn Ostapuk when he arrived in Miramar, California on Tuesday, December 7, 2004. At the time, Ostapuk, age 24, was an active volunteer with MarineParents.com, and is now currently pursuing her education in California.
White House Press Release
Founder Receives Commandant's Coin
 Founder Tracy Della Vecchia had the honor of meeting General Hagee, Commandant, USMC, in July 2005. General Hagee personally thanked Tracy for her service to the Marine Corps families and presented her with the Commandant's Coin.
Appreciation from the Secretary of Defense
 Secretary of Defense, Donald H. Rumsfeld, sent a letter in February of 2006, expressing his appreciation to the organization for invaluable support to our men and women in uniform.
History and Achievements
The web site MarineParents.com, Inc., founded in January of 2003, offers education and support for parents, spouses, family and friends of our U.S. Marines. Education and support is available for each stage of the Marine Corps, including bootcamp, training, active duty, deployments and transitioning out of the Marine Corps.
To date, MarineParents.com, Inc. has assisted more than 400,000 Marine Corps families, shipped several thousand care packages to Marines in combat zones, sent thousands of prayers and letters to injured Marines, and actively encouraged community awareness for supporting our troops through The Care Package Project™, Operation PAL™, Purple Heart Hero Support™, and Team Marine Parents™.
The organization is under the management of the founder and executive director, Tracy Della Vecchia, in Columbia, Missouri. Tracy works with twelve full-time employees and four part-time employee, along with nearly 600 volunteers and 48 manager volunteers from around the United States. The 10-member board of directors meets regularly and includes Marine parents and active duty Marines. Due to the phenomenal growth of the organization in 2009, operations moved to a permanent office space in Columbia, Missouri. Benefactors donated over $250,000 in supplies and labor to build our corporate office, and because of their generous gifts, Marine Parents was able to ship its care packages from its own warehouse for the first time ever!
The web sites receive over 150,000 unique visitors, totaling more than 12 million hits, each week. There are over 130,000 registered members in the Marine Parent and Recruit Parent message board communities. We send out over 27,000 electronic newsletters each week.
The organization has been featured in the New York Times Sunday Magazine as well as numerous local and national newspapers, on television news casts with CBS, NBC Nightly News, CNN, CNN International and Fox News as well as countless radio stations including the Tony Snow Show, NPR (National Public Radio) and the other nationally syndicated talk show radio programs.
More In the News...
Some Links to Get You Started:
"a Place to Connect & Share™"
Marine Corps News Room
The Care Package Project™
Purple Heart Hero Support™
Operation PAL™
Gold Star Family Support™
Operation Freedom Ballot™
Team Marine Parents™
Regional Support Groups
|
This is a brief overview of the web site and the many services offered to the families and friends of Marines as well as services for Marines. Please feel free to use the
Contact Us section of the web site to ask questions or talk to a volunteer if you need assistance using the site or finding the information you're looking for. God Bless and Semper Fi!
Bringing Marine Corps families together to Connect & Share™ with one another is our primary function. Our mission includes four distinct areas: Informing, Connecting, Sharing, and Supporting. We DO NOT address or allow political issues. We DO allow freedom of spiritual proclamations, support and prayer. We DO believe in God, Family, Country and The United States Marine Corps.
Community awareness for troop support is a vital component of our work at MarineParents.com. The Care Package Project™, Operation PAL™, and Team Marine Parents™ provide opportunities to involve your community in actively supporting our troops.
The MarineParents.com Web Site
The web site addresses a wide range of topics, each backed by links to official sites and resources. Topics include the United States Marine Corps, MCRD bootcamp and graduations at both Parris Island and San Diego, unit and battalion information, combat, deployments, military benefits, resources for our new generation of combat veterans, and countless other topics including relaxation and coping skills.
www.MarineParents.com
A Place to Connect & Share™
Support for family and friends of our U.S. Marines is offered through the web site’s trademark in "a Place to Connect & Share™" which includes live support, email support, chat rooms and message board communities. Both the chat rooms and message boards are moderated for safety and to assure compliance with OPSEC (Operational Security).
"a Place to Connect & Share™
Support During Bootcamp
Overwhelmed with the prospect of sending your recruit off to bootcamp? We offer "a Place to Connect & Share™" on our Recruit Parents website by putting friends and family members from each graduating platoon together on message boards and chat rooms for support and encouragement. The bootcamp section of the web site includes training information, what to expect from the USMC, graduation information and much more.
Recruit Parents Forums on Marine Family Network | Bootcamp & Graduation Information
Support During Deployment
Deployment presents many challenges for families of our Marines. We offer "a Place to Connect & Share™" putting friends and families from each unit together on the same message boards and chat rooms. Use the deployment information section to find answers to every question you may have including phone cards, care packages, travel, communication, contact information and more.
Deployment Forum on Marine Family Network | Deployment Information
The Care Package Project™
We ship over 1100 care packages five times a year to Marines stationed in combat zones. Family and friends can request a package to be sent to their deployed Marine at no charge. Organizations, individuals, and communities are encouraged to support our troops by working with us to donate both funding and care package items. As per military policy, addresses are not given to the public.
www.carepackageproject.com
Purple Heart Hero Support™
Purple Heart Hero Support™ is a first response effort improving the quality of recovery for Purple Heart service members and their families by offering immediate support, care, and guidance upon casualty notification through recovery and beyond medical retirement. The program offers a private, online forum and a learning center for Purple Heart families, and serves meals to Balboa and Bethesda Naval Medical Centers when cafeterias are closed over the weekend.
www.purpleheartheroes.com
Operation PAL™
Operation Prayers and Letters is a project that supports our Marines who have been injured. We work with families to setup a private mailing address for the injured Marine. People, church groups, and school children around the US add these Marines to prayer lists as well as write cards and letters for the Marines which we forward in huge envelopes for the Marines. The morale boost is incredible!
www.operationpal.com
Gold Star Family Support™
We offer private services to Gold Star Families, those that have lost their son or daughter during active duty with the Marine Corps. Meeting and communicating with families who understand your pain and grief can help. We give you that opportunity, no matter where you are in the world, in a private chat room, message board, and annual gathering. Access to this area is limited to Gold Star families only.
www.goldstarfamilies.com
Team Marine Parents™
Team Marine Parents™ is comprised of Marine family members and Marines who participate in either the Bootcamp Challenge at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego or the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC each October. The mission of the team is to raise community awareness to support our troops and to raise money for the projects and services offered through MarineParents.com, Inc. We are always looking for more folks to join Team Marine Parents™!
www.teammarineparents.com
Unit Information Database
Every Marine is assigned to a unit or battalion in the Marine Corps. Often, finding information about that particular unit can be challenging. Our database includes virtually every unit in the Marine Corps and includes base locations, current station, phone numbers, the unit FRO (Family Readiness Officer, a contact for family members), and links to the unit’s message boards and chat night schedule.
Unit Information Searchable Database
Marine Corps News Room
The Marine Corps News Room is a collection of news articles about our Marines, the United States Marine Corps, and our Marine Corps families. The news room is updated daily with articles from around the globe. You can simply visit the web site to read the articles, or it is also available as an RSS data feed which you can subscribe to through most internet communities like Google, MSN and Yahoo!
www.marine-corps-news.com
Regional Support Groups
To help folks find "a Place to Connect & Share™" with one another in their own hometowns, we offer a database of support groups and meeting times around the United States. You can also learn how to start your own support group using the tools and information available on the web site. Make sure your support group is listed in the database, or use the database to find a support group near you.
Regional Support Groups
Devil Dog Chow™
Devil Dog Chow™ is an amazing collection of recipes and inspiration. Families and friends from around the United States have contributed the favorite recipes of our Marines and recruits, honoring them in our own small way. Our love for our Marines and recruits can be found throughout this cookbook as it is found in our everyday lives.
Order the Devil Dog Chow™ Cookbook
Marine Corps Store
Looking for unit specific t-shirts and gear? Homecoming shirts? Marine Corps Battalion, Regiment, and Divisions? We've got MEUs and MAWs and everything in between! We also offer items for family members, from Proud Parent of a Marine to Proud Sister, Proud Uncle, Grandparents, and more! All proceeds from sales in this store go to support MarineParents.com, Inc., a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Corporation and the many projects we have to support Marines and their families at home.
Visit the Marine Corps Store
Recruit Parents Store
Our Recruit Store features bootcamp T-shirts, memorabilia, bumper stickers, coffee mugs, and more. Many items are customized with graduation dates and platoon numbers for both San Diego and Parris Island. We also offer color-specific items for each San Diego and Parris Island Battalion, Platoon, and graduating class. All proceeds from sales in this store go to support MarineParents.com, Inc., a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Corporation and the many projects we have to support Marines and their families at home.
Visit the Recruit Parents Store
Newsletters
Our general newsletter is sent twice each month. We have five additional newsletters that we send out periodically on a range of topics including bootcamp, deployment, Operation PAL, supporting the Marine Corps, the annual national conference. Topic-specific newsletters are sent every other month, with the exception of the conference newsletter which is sent monthly from January through April.
Read Past Issues and Sign-up to Receive Newsletter
In the News
Our good works have attraced quite a bit of attention in local and national cable and television news, radio shows, and printed media. This section of the web site highlights a few of those stories.
In the News
Volunteering
We have over 60 volunteers from around the United States that work countless hours each week to provide services and support to Marine families. MarineParents.com, Inc. is always recruiting more volunteers for help with moderating the message boards and chat room, unit coordinators, conference planning, funding and research. Visit the web site to learn how you can apply to become a volunteer.
Our Volunteers and Application to Volunteer
Donations & Sponsors
Costs for the web site, services and projects are funded by donations and corporate sponsors*. Your donation is appreciated. All donations are acknowledged with a receipt. To make a donation, make checks payable to MarineParents.com, Inc. In the memo of your check, write either "Operations and Services" or "The Care Packet Project™". Mail your donation to P.O. Box 1115, Columbia, MO 65205.
Donations | Learn How to Become a Sponsor
