In early July, a highly skilled unit of professionals was deployed in Saco to send 15 unmarked packages to Afghanistan in a mission of mercy. At the other end of that delivery five very lucky U.S. soldiers unwrapped care, comfort and some much needed ‘stuff’ from home.
The five unnamed soldiers, from every branch of the military received a three-part care package put together by the Social Responsibility Committee of PeoplesChoice Credit Union in Saco. Smiles were the order of the day.
The not-so-secret project, headed up by Mary White of PCU, was just one of many completed each year by this dedicated team of credit union staffers. “But the whole credit union membership contributes,” Ms. White said in an email. She continued, “and this year we chose to do something for the Troops around Fourth of July; we felt that with the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks coming up it was appropriate and that sometimes all it takes is a ‘Thank You’ to a soldier to show that you care.”
The PCU team started with a list of active deployed family of PeoplesChoice members and rounded out the list to five by working with a website called Any Soldier. Any Soldier connects soldiers and senders and also offers lists of recommended and acceptable items for people building care packages.
Mary White, organizer of the project, recently received a phone call that gave her goose bumps, she says. “One of the soldiers, a Sergeant, took the time to call and thank us for our efforts, sharing with me that he would be splitting up all the goodies with his unit, it really made my week!”
PCU employees Mary White, Irene Grondin and Christine Roy are just about to ship off care packages to soldiers in Afghanistan.
Each care package consisted of three boxes, each for a different need; the first was filled with non-perishable food items and snacks; the second with toiletries and the last was loaded with things to occupy the long hours.
Some of the things that went into each box included: For the snacks box they included trail mix, chips, granola bars and a favorite with the troops, jerky. A toiletries box for each recipient contained: a toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant, soaps and body wash, razors and shaving cream and bacterial wipes. The entertainment box sent to each which included games, magazines and some special items provided by PCU President and CEO Luke Labbe.
