Operation Shoebox New Jersey I want to let you know I received one of the boxes of goodies you sent. I appreciate your heartfelt thanks for what we are doing here in Iraq . I especially wanted to thank Lindsay Dewar for her picture, Brandon Ferry, Cris William Wentworth and Joshua Crowley for their drawings and notes of encouragement, Martin Marshalek for the essay he wrote, for the two Christmas cards I received signed by a Jack (the last name I can’t read) and another signed Asad B New Jersey and also to the Girl Scout troops from the Rolling Hills Council for sending my favorite snack – thin mint cookies. Also, thanks to all those that volunteered their time and efforts to put these packages together; VFW post 2290 in Manville; the Old Bridge High School Air Force ROTC; and all the students from Robert Treat Academy in Newark . We all appreciate you support and efforts back home in support of this specific mission in Iraq as well as the overall fight against terrorism to ensure freedom and opportunities are available for all people across the globe. Now its time to tell you a little bit about meself, my team and our unique mission here in Iraq . I am Major Brian Bissonnete. I am married and have a daughter that is three years old. My wife's name is Fatima and my daughters name is Aimie. When I return from this deployment I will have missed over half of her life due to deployments. I serve on a transition team which works directly with the Iraqi Army (IA). I am the intelligence advisor to an Iraqi Brigade. I am part of a ten man team that trains, mentors and advises an Iraqi Brigade on how to conduct counter-insurgency operations. We have many young Soldiers who support our team and I am amazed everyday of how dedicated and professional our young men and women in uniform are. You should all be extremely proud of every one of them. I also wanted to let you all know that things are improving dramatically here in Iraq .