East McDowell 8th-graders pack goody boxes for soldiers

Just wait, Kuwait, it's on the way

Credit: photo Britt Combs

Teacher Shannon Parker (right) and East McDowell Junior High students sort and pack gift boxes to bring Christmas cheer to troops far from home.

By Britt Combs
Published: December 01, 2009

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Christmas far from home doesn't seem much like Christmas. For some young men and women from McDowell County, swept away to Iraq or Afghanistan for military duty, Christmas will be a bit more sweet, thanks to the efforts of a group of eighth-graders from East McDowell Junior High School.

Shannon Parker, the teacher behind the project, said she was very proud of the response.

"All my eighth grade language arts students participated," she said.

"I received an e-mail stating that the troops in Kuwait were out of supplies," she explained. "I asked the kids if they would be willing to give up their allowance or give up a Christmas gift. They have really been enthusiastic about this."

As the kids packed boxes, making sure each had a good variety of gifts and surprises, Parker ran off items on a list of needed supplies. There was nothing elaborate or fancy on the list, just the simple daily things civilians take for granted and expect to have available whenever needed.

Dry food and snack items topped the list; jerky and trail mix and old reliable, ramen noodles. Batteries, pens, socks, sunscreen and over-the-counter pain relievers were other items on the list, and well-represented in the piles of gifts the kids had collected.

Then there were toiletries like foot powder and deodorant, and games and toys like yo-yos, anything easy to pack and carry and that might provide a little fun, comfort or amusement.

"There are only certain items that can be sent to soldiers," she stated. "My students and I decided to see if we could collect these things as a means of showing our appreciation for what these brave soldiers do each day.

She said shipping a gift box to the Middle East war zone was surprisingly expensive -- "$11 a box," Parker explained, but the high school's NJROTC was able to make arrangement s to get them shipped for free.

That's good, because there are a lot of boxes indeed. Parker stated that when all the packing was done, "we had about 100 of them," each filled with dozens of small gifts meant to convey a little love, comfort and thanks from the kids of East Junior High.