Help Us Find Those In Need!
Do you have a friend or relative who's going overseas or has been called to Active Duty? Do you know of a military family who could benefit from the USO's Programs?
Please tell them abut the programs listed below, or visit our website to contact the nearest USO center. Go to www.USO.org
Honor Our Troops!
Whether you meet in an airport or on the street, the next time you see one of the men or women of our Armed Forces, take a moment to offer your hand and say... "Thanks! We appreciate what you're doing for us." It will brighten their day immeasurably and send them on their way knowing that Americans support them.
**Please note: not all services/programs are available at all USO centers.**
Deployment Redeployment Support Program (DRSP):
Through the Deployment Redeployment Support Program, USO of Hawaii volunteers and staff organize resources to provide Aloha to our soldiers who are deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan and when they come home. Volunteers and staff provide refreshments and support while the soldiers await their aircraft and then while they wait to return to their families upon their arrival back to Hawaii. USO Hawaii works closely with all branches of the military and dedicated volunteers and staff remain on call as flight arrivals and departures change at a moments notice. USO Hawaii is the only agency allowed to interact with the troops during these times when they are awaiting departure or returning home. Nearly 20,000 troops are reached through this program annually.
Airport Centers:
Open day and night at major airports worldwide, our Centers assist military personnel and their families on long and tiring trips. We have playrooms for kids, snacks, beverages, videos, books, magazines and computers. You can even take a shower and a nap!
Gate Pass Program:
USO Hawaii along with TSA at the Honolulu International Airport offer family and command members the opportunity to meet or escort their Warrior arriving or departing for IOF or OEF on domestic flights. Please ensure that you have a copy of your spouses orders before requesting a gate pass.
United Through Reading Military Program:
Through this program, Moms and Dads can read aloud to their children, even though they're thousands of miles away. The USO video-records them reading a favorite book: the DVD and book are then sent to their kids back home. Troops often wait in line for hours for a chance to use this service.
USO Warrior and Family Care:
Meeting the special needs of troops wounded in the War on Terror, this USO Program supplies clothing and toiletries to injured soldiers, and sponsors "USO Day Rooms" in military hospitals, where troops can relax and be entertained. WE also provide financial assistance so relatives of injured soldiers can travel to be with their loved ones.
Operation Phone Home:
What do GI's want most? To phone home! So the USO has set up a private telephone network to connect troops in Southwest Asia with their loved ones back home. We also buy and distribute prepaid phone cards so our troops can call home for free... from anywhere!
Thanks for Giving Events and Volunteer Salute:
Logging an average of over 1,200 hours a month combined, the volunteers are the lifeblood of USO Hawaii. The Thanks for Giving Events and the Volunteer Salute are events that allow the volunteers to gather and celebrate their own good work. Awards and tokens of recognition are provided to the volunteers during these events.
USO Entertainment Tours:
It's what everyone things of when they hear "The USO." The music has changed through the years, but we still go right to the Front, all over the world! So, our troops can hear "Thank You!" directly, from America's Stars.
The Sesame Street/ USO Experience:
The "Sesame Street/ USO Experience for Military Families" tours around the world to help military families, and especially their young children, cope with the challenges of deployment to foreign lands and the uncertainties of long seperations from parents and loved ones - and on top of that, the kids love it!
USO2GO:
Even the smallest hilltop outpost, the USO delivers snacks, music, movies, video games, laptops, phone cards, art supplies and sports equipment - even toiletries and beanbag chairs - so our front-line troops can set up their own "Mini USO Centers" and take a break from the constant stress of combat.
Mobile Canteens:
If troops can't come to us, we reach out to them! These special vehicles go virtually anywhere with hot coffee, doughnuts, and internet access, so GI's can "chat" and email with family and friends back home.
Operation USO Care Package:
You can't always buy sunscreen in the desert! USO volunteers hand out hard-to-get items, toiletries, snacks, books, CD's... all the everyday needs that we take for granted. To date, more than 2 million care packages have been distributed to troops headed overseas.
USO Overseas Centers:
For 70 years, USO centers have served as much-needed "Homes Away from Home" for generations of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen seeking a place to kick back and relax, and for a few precious moments, escape the stress and grind of daily duty.
