"To whom it may concern" you won't be hearing from me. Oh no! I won't write letters to you. Don't expect the general letter of support that is so carelessly thrown out into the world, the letter that is meant to cover all situations. I won't spend my time writing to you or wasting your time. I won't burden you with the boring, blah, blah, blah, vanilla letter stating that this person is great.
If you happen to be on a search committee, you might receive a letter from me and in that letter you would find carefully crafted words to explain to you the wonderful talents of a colleague I have chosen to fully support. Computers these days make it so easy to tailor a letter for each person for whom I write a letter. When I agree to write that letter, I will ask the requester for five important items:
1. An updated resume or CV
2. The job description to which the candidate is applying
3. A few points the candidate believes I can best speak to related to the position they are seeking
4. The date by which they need the letter
5. The contact information for submitting the letter
I hope you will take to heart these letters written from the heart and ignore other "to whom it may concern letters" where the reference didn't take the time to truly express their support of the candidate. When it comes time for you to write a letter of reference, take the time. Ask for the materials you need, if you truly support the candidate and give it your best honestly crafted words of support. OH and by the way, if you are applying for a position and you need to include a list of references, make sure you ask those people ahead of time so they are prepared to receive calls about you.
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