09/01/04
Show Spotlight: Charity Begins When the National Association of Convenience Stores Show Ends
Have you ever wondered what is done with all of the surplus candy, cookies, packaged snacks and other goodies when the NACS Show expo ends? Each year, NACS Show exhibitors donate thousands of pounds of food and nonfood products to community food banks and other charities--and this year will be no exception.
Operation Interdependence and The Community Food Bank of Clark County will be the organizations gathering the surplus products and distributing them after the NACS Show 2004, taking place October 17 to October 20 in Las Vegas.
Operation Interdependence (OI) is the premier U.S. civilian-to-military delivery system that provides a direct means for people at home to send individual care packages, called civilian rations or c-rats, to the troops on the frontlines. Sending a care package from home to our men and women serving overseas helps to lift their spirits. For many, the c-rats from OI are the only communication they receive from home.
"The most important part of the c-rats is the personalized letter that comes with the box of goodies. Often, the person receiving the package has no one at home corresponding with them on a regular basis. This direct contact provides a touch of warmth from home that many of them go without everyday," comments Jane Schwartz, vice president of OI.
Currently, there is no system for the military to receive and distribute the thousands of care packages being sent to our military men and women from our country. OI delivers these packages without utilizing military resources, which means that servicemen and -women can concentrate on their missions and daily duties instead of taking time away to distribute the c-rats.
Care packages come filled with a wide variety of products, including toothbrushes, soap, small toothpastes, shampoo, queen-sized panty hose (for guns), sealed jerky, sealed peanut butter, packaged small foods, dry drink mixes, pens and pencils. The c-rats are boxed with enough quart-sized Ziplock bags--sometimes the most important gift since military personnel use them to keep valuables protected from sand, dirt and water--to support the entire platoon or group you have agreed to support.
OI often receives thank-you notes from the military men and women who receive the c-rats. Here's one from a soldier named Richard: "You don't know me. My name is Richard. I am a Gunnery Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps. I am currently stationed over in Iraq. We received your care packages today. Thank you so very much! It's nice to know that we have great people like yourself that care enough to take time out of your day and to think of us. It really made me feel good. I especially like my picture of the camels. Please tell the kids of Thousand Oaks, that the Marines send a thousand thanks!"
Visit OI at booth number 8701 on the NACS Show expo floor and learn how your company can get involved with this organization and support their volunteers as they send c-rats from home without utilizing military resources, keeping the channels clear for fast delivery of letters from mothers to their sons and daughters on the frontlines with the OI logistical civilian-to-military delivery system.
For more information about Operation Interdependence, visit www.oidelivers.com (powered by Interdependence). Also look for an in-depth article about OI in the October issue of NACS Magazine.
After the Show is over, exhibitors also can send leftover products to The Community Food Bank of Clark County in Las Vegas. The Community Food Bank is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to feeding the hungry and to fighting the underlying causes of hunger.
The Community Food Bank of Clark County collaborates with the food industry and the community to collect, sort and store food for distribution to those in need throughout Southern Nevada. The Community Food Bank works in cooperation with other charities and serves as a major food clearinghouse for businesses with food and goods to donate.
Ninety-two percent of the Community Food Bank's funding goes directly to support the collection and distribution of food for hunger and relief right in the Southern Nevada area. Through creative partnering, the organization works toward short- and long-term solutions that involve the entire community. For more information about the Community Food Bank, visit http://www.citycare.com/lvfoodbank/index.cfm.
For complete details about all the new products, services and educational opportunities at the NACS Show 2004, visit www.nacsshow.com. If you have additional questions, call the NACS Show Hotline at (877) 684-3600. Take advantage of advance registration rates when you register online by October 1 or via fax/mail by September 24.
Click here to find the answers to the most frequently asked questions about the NACS Show or to ask a question.