About My Soldier

History

Active U.S. Army Second Lieutenant Juan Salas, a naturalized US citizen originally from Venezuela, served for almost two years in Iraq, where he saw active combat duty and was commended for his part in saving the life of a child.

His mission was to “win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people.” “It was long,” says Salas. “But the thing that kept me going was getting letters. From kids, boy scouts, students. A letter was like a piece of gold. Something you will keep for the rest of your life.” When he got back to Manhattanville College, he wanted to help his fellow soldiers still serving overseas.

He brought this idea to Manhattanville College President Richard A. Berman and college administrator Anne Gold, who were determined to find a way for Manhattanville to help. Together, and with the help of other students and Manhattanville staff, Salas and Berman devised My Soldier. To read more, click here!

Enrollment

By enrolling in the My Soldier program, you agree to “adopt” a deployed United States Armed Serviceperson. Your support should consist of periodic upbeat letters or emails to the soldier contact we will provide to you.

Upon enrollment, you will be able to download a My Soldier Starter Kit. It contains detailed instructions on how to begin as well as letter writing guidelines from co-founder Sgt Juan Salas. Typically, the soldier then replies and direct correspondence begins (about 50% of soldiers respond, but 100% appreciate getting the letters).

Participants may also choose to send care packages, which are greatly appreciated (but not expected) by the soldiers. If your soldier is unable to write back for five weeks or redeploys home and you wish to adopt another service member we will provide another soldier for you to correspond with.

To register, click here!

About Manhattanville College

There's a strong social justice and community service focus at Manhattanville-last year students at our small school of 1,500 undergraduates logged over 19,000 community service hours. My Soldier is a natural extension of the school's mission: to educate students to become ethically and socially responsible leaders for the global community.