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WASHINGTON D.C. (February 4, 2008) - Support by the boxful from
a New York home-front group is keeping servicemembers' spirits high
as they serve overseas.
"Being so far away from home, we want our daughter, son-in-law,
and the 450 soldiers in their unit and other units to know that we
love them, and think about them every day," said Sylvester Henry,
president of Adopt A Unit US. "Our objective is to provide the
(servicemembers) with an abundance of support and comfort in order
to encourage strength and optimism (while) bringing them as close
to home as possible."
Helping servicemembers feel close to home can be tricky, but
Henry and his wife, Cassandra, work to make each of the care
packages they send special. The boxes are filled with each unit's
requests with items that mostly are donated by the community.
A recent effort saw 100 boxes head overseas to boost
servicemembers' morale.
"We were informed that they were so thankful and grateful to the
community for sending so many things that they missed from home and
hadn't seen in such a long time," Henry said.
In addition to care packages, Adopt A Unit US conducts a
letter-writing campaign. Called the "Happy Day" campaign, the group
asks that people write a "warm and uplifting" letter to a
servicemember, so he or she can have something positive in their
day, Henry said.
Adopt A Unit US is a new supporter of America Supports You, a
Defense Department program that connects citizens and companies
with servicemembers and their families serving at home and
abroad.
The group hopes to expand by having a community in every city
across the country adopt a unit, Henry said, adding he hopes the
affiliation with America Supports You will help.
"We believe the networking and support of each other will
benefit us all by allowing us to expand out beyond our immediate
circle of influence," he said. "Our organization feels that
aligning ourselves with a respected group such as America Supports
You will definitely increase our exposure throughout this nation,
helping to (gain) a great deal of support for our troops."
Editor's Note: To find out about more individuals,
groups and organizations that are helping support the troops,
visit www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil. America
Supports You directly connects military members to the support of
the America people and offers a tool to the general public in their
quest to find meaningful ways to support the military
community.
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