We were thrilled to be a part of a special surprise this morning for Sergeant 1st Class Casandra Sanders.

Sgt. Sanders is one of the 70,000 American service members who are single parents. Her two daughters Kiera and Jade have already been away from their mom during a deployment to Kuwait in 2005. Now the family is facing a second deployment, possibly to Afghanistan next year... so in order to make sure they get as much together-time as possible before that happens we teamed up with Operation G.I. Jane, an organization that provides support for single moms who serve in the military.

Thanks to Operation G. I. Jane, Sgt. Sanders and her two daughters will be "deploying" together to a luxury hotel for three nights of indulgence. But wait, there's more! Wait till you see Kiera and Jade's reaction to ANOTHER surprise... an iPod Touch for each! Priceless!

With a full 5 percent of American Military raising a family in a single parent home, military supports groups can be vital resources. For example, Operation G.I. Jane helps to provide communication between deployed parents and their children, airfare for much-needed visits home, necessities kits for both mother and child, and even career transition help.

If you are a single mom in the military or if you'd like to lend a helping hand to single moms who serve, visit Operation-GIJane.org.

Single military dads, and military families in general can visit the U.S. Department of Defense Military Family Support page to find resources as well.

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Army • Coast Guard • Marine Corps • Navy • Salute to Troops

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Army • Coast Guard • Marine Corps • Navy • Salute to Troops

Talk about putting your music where your mouth is. Little Big Town played for the Troops in Afghanistan. So glad to have them on the set to salute the troops.

You can see more of our interview with Little Big Town right here.

Learn more about their participation in Drive For The Music... an initiative to drum up support for local music programs.

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Army • Coast Guard • Marine Corps • Navy • Salute to Troops

Thanks to Bert Weiss for taking time away from HIS morning radio show, "The Bert Show," (heard in Atlanta, Nashville, Indianapolis & thebertshow.com) to sit down on OUR morning show and tell us about this great thing you can do right now to say thanks to a military man or woman serving overseas this holiday season.

If you'd like to take part in "The Big Thank You" here are the guidelines (or visit thebertshow.com for full details):

LETTER FORMAT:
Each letter should be heartfelt, handwritten, original, and free of any political statements. The purpose of the letter is to express thanks to the military personnel currently deployed outside the United States. We reserve the right to eliminate those messages that are political in nature and do not reflect a positive message in the spirit of Thanksgiving. Those letters will be destroyed.

All letters must be on 8.5” x 11” paper or smaller. Do not use glue, tape, staples, cardboard, glitter or otherwise attach anything to the paper. Decorate using crayons, pencil, etc. Use both sides if you like, but use one page per letter only. Do not send cards or photographs. Feel free to include your mailing and email address, and you may get a response. Individual letters should not be sealed in envelopes.

Do not send anything except letters. We cannot accept donations of any kind, and they should not be included or attached to letters.

SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
The Bert Show’s Big Thank You
780 Johnson Ferry Road NE
Fifth Floor
Atlanta, GA 30342

There are other drop off and mail-in locations as well... visit thebertshow.com for all that informaTion.

Filed under: Air Force • Army • Coast Guard • Marine Corps • Navy • Salute to Troops

This is a salute from singer/actor Tyrese Gibson. We caught up with Tyrese at the BET Hip Hop Awards here in Atlanta last weekend.

Tyrese plays USAF Chief Master Sergeant Robert Epps in the “Transformers” films.

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Army • Coast Guard • Marine Corps • Navy • Salute to Troops

This is a salute from Therese Anderson to her niece Captain Vanessa Zaragoza, U.S. Air Force.

Therese writes:
Robin,
My niece is in Kabul, Afghanistan serving as a Captain for the United States Air Force. We love her very much and we salute her hard work and we are very proud of her.

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Salute to Troops

Alesha Payne welcomes home her daughter, Sr. Airman Carmisha Gifford, USAF, home.

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Salute to Troops • Welcome Home

These are some of the first faces our military men and women see when they arrive home from deployment. To learn how you can be a part of the USO visit their website: uso.org

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Army • Marine Corps • Navy • Salute to Troops

We are so thrilled to be part of this incredibly special moment. Senior Airman Keith Graft and Senior Airman Domenic Mash surprised their wives and MET their new babies today, LIVE on HLN's Morning Express with Robin Meade! It took about 6 weeks of planning to pull this off, and judging by the lack of dry eyes in the studio... it was worth it!

Thanks to the United States Air Force Reserve Command for helping make this reunion possible!

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Air Force Reserve Command • Salute to Troops • Welcome Home

This is a salute from Julia Jones to her son 1st Lieutenant Thomas Jones, U.S. Air Force.

Julia writes:
I'd like to salute my son, 1st Lt. Thomas Jones, USAF. He is serving our country at this time, in the hot, hot desert. He is, and always has been an outstanding son, and I am more proud of him than words can say. The job he is doing is a huge service to our country, but more importantly, to the troops he is called on to support and care for when the need arises. We miss him, and cannot wait till the day we can hug him and tell him face to face THANK YOU FOR SERVING OUR COUNTRY. We love you.

Submit a salute of your own by visiting the special Morning Express with Robin Meade Salute To Troops assignment page at: iReport.com!

Filed under: Air Force • Salute to Troops