More than 800 holiday care packages mailed to US military members stationed overseas returned to nonprofit

How the USPS Stole Christmas

During this year’s holiday season, a Connecticut‑based nonprofit found itself at the center of a logistical nightmare when the United States Postal Service returned more than 800 care packages that were intended for soldiers stationed abroad.

Boxes to Boots, an organization that organizes a yearly drive to deliver snacks, candy and toiletries to service members far from home, shipped 1,139 holiday packages three weeks ago. However, 884 of those items were flagged by US Customs and subsequently sent straight back to the nonprofit in Berlin, Conn., with some even lost in transit, according to statements from the charity’s leaders.

The team was baffled as to why the remaining 255 packages made it through and why the larger batch failed to pass the USPS checks.

Boxes to Boots not only collects goods for overseas troops but also runs a $75,000 fundraiser each year, which helps cover the high cost of shipping and other operations. This year, the nonprofit spent about $10,000 on postage alone.

When the U.S. Postal Service denied the shipment, a spokesperson cited “incomplete forms” as the reason for the rejection.

Many of the returned boxes were labeled with the vague term “toiletries” — a description that apparently does not meet USPS’s new standards for international shipments. “More detailed descriptions are now required for all international packages, so it’s important not to use generic terms. It is important for customers to know that incorrect or incomplete data can prevent the Postal Service from detecting potential violations of federal export laws,” the postal official explained.

Starting September 1, the USPS also mandates that every overseas parcel include a specific tariff code. While Boxes to Boots’s organizers insisted that all packages carried the correct six‑digit code, the system still flagged them.

“They’re clearly marked for our U.S. military. As far as I’m concerned, in New York where the boxes were flagged, someone could have put these boxes, hundreds of boxes on the side, asked a supervisor what we should do about these, perhaps call Boxes to Boots, explain the issue, and taken care of it right then and there,” President Kristen Gauvin said to NBC Connecticut.

Gauvin reiterated that, because of the mishandling, the remaining boxes cannot reach the service members in time for the holidays. Many recipients rely on these parcels for a morale boost while away from family.

“I heard from a service member weeks ago saying he was looking for support. He’s having a tough time during his first deployment. His box is sitting there in the office on the floor, and I can’t get that over to him,” Gauvin told the outlet.

“I’m losing sleep over this. We need some answers. We need some solutions here. This is ridiculous,” she added.

The nonprofit reached out to U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal for help. On Saturday, Blumenthal posted on X that he is “demanding action” from USPS “to find and deliver” all the packages.

“USPS chaos & confusion, caused by contradictory interpretations of tariff codes, & other technicalities, have led to stopping & misplacing these packages,” Blumenthal wrote in the thread.

Boxes to Boots was founded in 2015 by Karen Cote, a military mother. What began as a small effort to send care packages to Cote’s son and his unit in Kuwait has expanded into a network that reaches service members in 13 different countries, according to its website.