SPRINGFIELD — Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White is urging Illinois families with service personnel to "send love through the library" this holiday season by utilizing free Internet and electronic mail capability available at Illinois public libraries.
Thanks to grants from the Illinois State Library and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, White said almost every public library in Illinois has been able to obtain Internet and electronic mail connections during the past several years. He is reminding families with soldiers in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere that they may use the Internet and obtain e-mail access at their local library to communicate for free with their loved ones.
"All of us sympathize this holiday season with families who have loved ones bravely serving our country in faraway locations," White said. "One of the simple pleasures our soldiers truly appreciate is being able to exchange e-mail with family members and loved ones. A message from home can brighten their day, and mothers, fathers, wives and children back home anxiously await e-mail messages from our soldiers to reassure them that they are safe.
"Families with servicemen and women who are abroad this holiday season should check with their local public library to see if they have free electronic mail and Internet access, and I urge libraries who possess such technology to publicize such access. Because of patron demand, almost all of our Illinois public libraries have obtained Internet and e-mail technology during the past several years. I hope families with men and women in the military will 'send love through the library' this holiday season and let our soldiers know how much we miss them and appreciate their heroic efforts on our behalf."
White also said library patrons may log on to the following Web sites to show support, to include greeting cards, virtual Thank You cards and calling card donations to help troops stay in contact with loved ones:
http://www.defendamerica.mil/support_troops.html
http://www.usocares.org/home.htm
http://www.army.mil/operations/iraq/faq.html
PROGRAMS