Care packages were (and still are) essential to our troops. I remember my family (mom and stepdad, aunts and uncles) asking me what to send when my ex was over there. Between all of us he got enough stuff to share with his guys, some of whom got nothing from anyone else. That is most definitely how you support them while deployed. 

You can also volunteer at the VA or donate items to the VA. Before he developed a form of dementia my stepdad (a Vietnam vet) would drive veterans to appointments through the DAV (Disabled American Vets) organization. I've thought about doing that myself but I have my hands full being a part-time caregiver to my neighbor who is a Vietnam veteran. 

There are definitely many ways to actually support our military that includes veterans and retirees. When I held up that sign at that protest I was supporting my then husband who was still dealing with his time in Iraq. For a lot of combat veterans the support starts at home with spouses and families who deal with the aftermath of their husband's/wife's time over there and it's freaking hard. Not as hard as they had it but hard in it's own way. I was thankful every day of his deployment and afterwards that I was a soldier before I was a soldier's wife. I could relate to things on a level that civilian spouses never could and while our marriage did end when he walked away, my time in definitely gave me an advantage before that happened.

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