Meenu Bhardwj / For the Chronicle Vicki Nixon of Operation Interdependence signs the Packing slip for a care package put together by volunteers.The care packages are sent out to troops stationed overseas.
12/01/04
WHAT THEY WANT |
| Here are the most-requested items: • Powdered drink mixes (to add to water) • Unscented baby wipes • Chocolate • Disposable cameras • Beef jerky • Personalized cards and messages • Sunflower seeds • Phone cards • Games such as playing cards or crossword puzzles • Socks |
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It was 9 a.m., two days before Thanksgiving, and Vicki Nixon was up to her elbows in stuffed quart-sized closable baggies.
Instead of pre-made casseroles or frozen dough, though, beef jerky, candy canes, soap and homemade cards — perfect, practical little presents for overseas troops — stretched the thin plastic.
If all goes well, Nixon said, these care packages should make it just in time for the holidays.
"I think it's a good cause, because they are putting their lives on the line for us," said Nixon, who this summer began volunteering with Operation Interdependence, a nonprofit that allows people to send care packages to deployed troops. "We can sit in our heated homes and enjoy every little right and privilege, and that is because of them. It seems like the least we can do."
Groups locally and nationally are scurrying to assemble and ship holiday care packages to troops overseas as time runs out. It typically takes 10 days for a package to get to Iraq, but the December crush can double or triple that timetable.
"Obviously, friends and families with members serving overseas want to make sure they get those in time for the holidays," said Dave Lewin, spokesman for the United States Postal Service. "This time of year, people want to do something."
Care packages typically include soap, socks, chocolate, oatmeal, powdered drink mixes, games, moist wipes, toiletries and personal messages. As Operation Interdependence volunteers filled baggies last week, they added donated handwritten cards, including one from a third-grader named Lindsay.
"Thank you for risking your lives for us," she wrote. "I really appreciate it. You are so nice. Maybe I will grow up to be
HOW TO HELP |
| Many local groups still need donations and volunteers for care package shipments to troops overseas. This is a partial list — more organizations may be found at www.americasupportsyou.mil. • The Houston Arts Academy will collect items through Monday. Visit www.houstonartsacademy.com for what's needed. Take donations to 504 Caplin, inside Lindale Assembly. For information, contact Brenda White at 713-691-3234 or camnet2001@aol.com. • Ingrid Clark and the Family Worship Center in Pasadena are collecting items and donations. Contact Clark at 832-865-7995 or 409-935-8152. • Operation Interdependence sends care packages to deployed troops year-round and needs volunteers and donations for all aspects of the assembly and shipping process. For information, call 281-814-8588 or visit www.oidelivers.org. • Operation USO Care Package allows individuals to sponsor a care package through a $25 online donation. Personal messages may be included, and donations may be made in the name of others. For information, visit www.usocares.org. |
Operation Interdependence founder Albert Renteria said messages like this are the most important part of care packages.
"The greatest gift we can send people are notes," he said. "Not everybody has a strong family network back home."
Former Marine Reserve and Pasadena resident Ingrid Clark is organizing a care-package drive for the 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines, many of whom are from the Houston area. Clark said her husband's yearlong deployment to Cuba taught her compassion for troops overseas.
"It was just important for us to do something to let them know we hadn't forgotten about them," Clark said. "We want them to know someone is thinking about them and we know the cost, the sacrifice they're making over there."
But with that interest can come difficulties for the postal service, which has processed and dispatched more than 100 million pounds of mail for Operation Iraqi Freedom troops since deployment began. Lewin said that since many of the troops are frequently on the move, employees sometimes struggle to sort and ship their packages.
Additionally, unlike in the past when Americans could send packages to "Any Servicemember," Sept. 11 security restrictions now require all mail be to a specific person and address, leaving many people without personal ties to troops unsure of how to get involved.
"People want to help but don't know how to get it there," said Brenda White, director of the Houston Arts Academy, which recently collected care-package items.
White said she worked with personal contacts overseas to determine which troops would receive the packages and is partnering with Federal Express to cover shipping costs.
Operation Interdependence's Nixon said finding money for shipping is important for volunteer groups because it adds up so quickly. She said it costs $30-$35 for each 30-pound box her group — which is national but operates a shipping center in Spring — sends to Iraq.
She said the local branch ships 10 30-pound boxes, each filled with 50 care packages, every month.
"We want to try to cover everybody over there," she said.
Nixon added that even donations not made in time to reach the troops for the holidays will be used and appreciated.
"We can still ship out, and we have another couple of weeks to ship and it'll get there by Christmas," Nixon said. "But even if it doesn't, we ship constantly. Those troops are not just there for the holidays."