Newsroom - Letters to the Editor

May 5, 2008

(Letter sent to the editor of the St. Catharines Standard)

Dear Editor:

I would like to respond to the May 5 letter from Marianne Rosa, "What happened to Canada's compassion for its troops?"

Canada Post began allowing families and friends to send free parcels to Canadian troops deployed overseas during the holiday season in 2006. We repeated this commitment last Christmas, and further extended the program to include lettermail throughout 2008. The decision to repeat the program was our way of showing continued support for our troops and their families

This is an enormous logistical undertaking for Canada Post, and capacity limitations on military aircraft carrying supplies and munitions to deployed forces further complicates the operation.

Canada Post recognizes the sacrifice being made by our troops and by their families here at home which is why we continue to provide free lettermail service throughout the year. We will review the operation with the Department of National Defense to see if it is again possible to provide free parcels for the families of those serving overseas this coming holiday season.

Sincerely,

John Caines
National Media Relations
Canada Post
613-734-7675
John.caines@canadapost.ca