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WASHINGTON D.C. (January 23, 2008) - Folks in the Lone Star
State are doing their part to help troops in Iraq and Afghanistan
win hearts and minds with "Victory Boxes."
"Our mission is to actively engage the American people to assist
our military by having them send a servicemember a Victory Box
containing goods needed by the Iraqi (and) Afghan people, primarily
the children," said Mary Margaret Halleck, president of the
Texas-based group called Victory Boxes.
The boxes contain a variety of items aimed at providing local
citizens with practical, but not always attainable, goods. Those
goods include hygiene, comfort and food items, and most
importantly, they contain toys and school supplies for the
children.
The Garden Council of Fort Worth and the Tarrant County
Gardeners worked together to send 200 "Victory Gardening Totes"
that contained some special items in addition to the expected
ones.
"(They) contained seeds, gardening tools and gloves," Halleck
said. "The fabric totes were … sent to the commander of the Marine
civil affairs (unit) in Ramadi, Iraq, in November 2007."
Another 200 garden-themed totes are being assembled for shipment
to Kabul, Afghanistan, next month.
When Victory Boxes have been packed and shipped, selected
servicemembers willing to participate in the Victory Box program
distribute them to orphanages, schools and hospitals in areas
hardest hit by conflict, Halleck said. Those efforts have proved
rewarding on several fronts.
In an effort to reach out to the local population, a colonel and
his team in Kabul have adopted three orphanages. "They have
purchased hand-crank sewing machines to help the children learn to
sew," Halleck said. "We send him lots of fabric and sewing
supplies."
While the Victory Boxes are helping servicemembers relate to
local citizens, they also show troops how much support they have
back home.
"(Army) Sgt. David Padron, just home from Baghdad, wrote and
thanked me for sending him the Victory Boxes," Halleck said. "He
said it helped him and his men keep a humanitarian look at things
and, in the end, it helped them not only get information they
needed from the people, but it really put smiles on the faces of
the people for them to know these things came from the American
people."
Victory Boxes is a new supporter of America Supports You, a
Defense Department program connecting citizens and corporations
with military personnel and their families serving at home and
abroad.
"I am hoping with Victory Boxes as a (supporter) of America
Supports You, the Victory Box will be introduced to many more
people," Halleck said.
Editor's Note: Military families can also avail
themselves of the Defense Department's America Supports You
program, which highlights home-front groups across the nation that
are providing a variety of services and support to troops and their
families. A listing of these groups and information about their
efforts is available at www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil.
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