Tobacco.org

• A Good Cigar, From Friends 

Amid the explosions echoing through the mountains of Afghanistan, or the ruins of an Iraqi neighborhood, the robust aroma of a fine cigar is helping U.S. troops remember life back home.

Quality cigars, by some estimates, are second only to Starbucks coffee on the wish list of troops overseas. Where but Tampa, Cigar City, can the need best be met?

Enter Thompson Cigars, a 92-year-old retailer near Tampa International Airport, along with a dedicated employee and an ex-Navy man with a passion for helping the troops overseas. . . .

A month after terrorists struck New York and Washington on Sept. 11, 2001, Thompson began getting requests from overseas troops for cigars. Initially, the company just sent free boxes of cigars to those who asked.

Now, it's a big-time giveaway. About 10,000 free cigars of all brands and varieties were shipped last year to troops, mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan. That amounts to $50,000 worth of finely rolled tobacco, said Thompson Cigars' owner, Carlos Franzblau.

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