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Spreading Christmas Cheer To Deployed Troops
December 9, 2008
Christmas is a special time of year for most families. It’s a time when family members join together to celebrate the Holidays. It’s a time when Christians around the world celebrate the birth of Jesus. Regardless of ones religious beliefs, Christmas is looked upon as a time to celebrate and spend time with family. Christmas is a time of year for our deployed Troops, where it often becomes very hard. They’re thousands of miles away from their family and friends and they can often feel isolated and alone at this time of year. For those who don’t have much support from friends and family it can be even more trying.
Thankfully, there are thousands of people who take part in various Troop Support organizations, who will do whatever they can to ensure that our deployed Troops have a good Christmas, even though they’re far away from home. I’d like to introduce our readers to one such group, called Operation Give.
Operation Give was the brainchild of Paul Holton, better known as Chief Wiggles, whose idea it was to not only send different sorts of humanitarian aid to worn-torn areas of the world, such as Iraq and Afghanistan, but to also send love from home to our deployed Troops in these areas and connect them with the citizens in these countries. From the Operation Give website, here’s the vision of the group.
Our Vision
The most unique aspect of Operation Give is that it not only supplies humanitarian aid to civilians in combat zones, but it also provides US military personnel who are deployed in those areas with the opportunity to connect with the civilians. Through our connections and contacts in the military, we desire to provide them with the resources needed to accomplish their mission of winning the hearts and minds of the people. This mission is just as important to us as providing much needed supplies and resources for the children of the countries where the military are stationed.
The Mission Statement:
The mission of Operation Give is to bring hope and happiness to struggling people the world over by helping them to gain access. Through servicing the requests of caring soldiers and civilians, we are working towards bringing disconnected economies into the global community, that all may experience the benefits and the peace that comes from economic connectivity and world-wide trade. As a bastion of freedom we, through kind and generous donations will provide the U.S. soldiers and indigenous civilians with the resources they need. Our focus will be greatest on children in these areas.
The philosophy:
We believe the key to peace throughout the world comes only through the eradication of poverty. By linking the isolated economies to the global trade community, internal rule sets within these countries will find a working equilibrium with the rest of the world. This will greatly decrease the likelihood of military conflict and terror world wide.1
Volunteers help stuff Christmas stockings for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of Operation Give’s annual Operation Christmas Stocking collection. Courtesy photo
This year, Operation Give collected and sent more than 20,000 Christmas Stockings to Troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan and they have even more on the way. Operation Christmas Stockings is an annual event for Operation Give, to bring just a little bit of cheer and love to our deployed Heroes who are so far away from home this holiday season.
“Even in hard times, if we can find a way to help support our troops, we do,” Paul Holton, founder and president of Operation Give, said. “Something as simple as a Christmas stocking is easy for people to handle. They stuff these stockings, knowing their little act of kindness is going to improve troop morale.”3
Operation Give is based out of Salt Lake City, Utah. This year according to Chief Wiggles, they’ve had a steady stream of pre-stuffed stockings coming in from caring citizens all over the United States. To help make sure that the stockings are delivered without a hitch, FedEx has donated free shipping of the stockings to the group’s warehouse. This is the fourth year that Operation Give has had the Christmas stocking project and it’s proved to be a huge success.
“Thousands and thousands of pre-stuffed stockings have been sent in, with the greatest stuff imaginable for our men and women serving in the military, in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said Elaine Ward, an assistant at Operation Give. Some of the items included disposable cameras, flashlights, harmonicas, clip-on lights, prepaid calling cards, playing cards, dominos, CDs and DVDs.4
Besides the pre-stuffed stockings that were sent in, volunteers in Salt Lake City joined together each Friday night to stuff stockings, since the project was announced. The volunteers have stuffed hundreds of boxes full of stockings, in addition to the ones that caring citizens sent in.
If you’re looking for a way that you can not only make a difference to our deployed Troops, but the citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan as well, then Operation Give is one organization that you might want to take a look at becoming involved with. They have several very worthwhile projects that are on-going. Please visit their website at the link below and see if the group is one that you’d like to become involved in.
Thanks Chief Wiggles for your service to our Country and for everything you’re doing to support our Troops! You’re the best!
- http://www.operationgive.org/vision-and-mission/vision-and-mission/our-vision.html [↩]
- http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=52200 [↩]
- http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=52200 [↩]
- http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=52200 [↩]
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[...] unknown wrote an interesting post today onSpreading Christmas Cheer To Deployed Troops : A Soldierâ??s MindHere’s a quick excerptOperation Christmas Stockings is an annual event for Operation Give, to bring just a little bit of cheer and love to our deployed Heroes who are so far away from home this holiday season. “Even in hard times, if we can find a way to … [...]
[...] unknown wrote an interesting post today onSpreading Christmas Cheer To Deployed Troops : A Soldierâ??s MindHere’s a quick excerptTo help make sure that the stockings are delivered without a hitch, FedEx has donated free shipping of the stockings to the group’s warehouse. This is the fourth year that Operation Give has had the Christmas stocking project and it’s … [...]
[...] Spreading Christmas Cheer [...]