Sending the Troops A Piece of Home

Earlier this week we some of the men and women whose passion makes Operation Support Our Troops – America (OSOT) happen.

Deb Rickert, who serves as founder and president of the all-volunteer organization, formed OSOT after making Valentine’s Day cards for the troops with her church in 2003. People didn’t stop their donations with cards. As she described it, "stuff just kept coming in.”

Rickert said the experience made her aware of the number of families throughout Chicagoland that like hers, were suddenly military families. As the nation came to terms with its feelings on the latest war, military families had another challenge to accept: saying goodbye to their active dutymen and determining how to best support them from afar.

“People lose sight of the the fact that we have loved ones going into harm’s way,” she explained.

To show their gratitude, OSOT sends active duty members, stationed mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan, a piece of gratitude: a 12x12x12 box filled with the staples of home.

Anyone can add a name to the organization’s list by submitting a request via email. OSOT ships to soldiers from all parts of the nation. Newly submitted names are moved to the top of the recipient list, then go into a rotating database for upcoming shipments.

Volunteer Jim McDonald, of Naperville, joked at the latest packaging session that the deployed are pretty well fed. What they are missing are the small comforts, like Pop-Tarts and beef jerky. Roughly half of each box’s contents are meant for consumption.

“This is what they know,” explained warehouse manager Deb Wolfe. “The names are familiar.”

OSOT accepts a variety of items via private and group donations. They encourage church groups, schools and other organizations to coordinate drive efforts. The group updates a handy top 10 list of items that are most in need as specific surpluses or shortages occur.

OSOT has 42 drop-off locations throughout Chicagoland. Lisle locations include the , , the Lisle Township building and .

So what does a soldier receive in his or her care package?:

• Proteins: tuna, granola bars, canned nuts
• Breakfast pack: oatmeal, cereal, Pop-Tarts
• Snacks: crackers, canned fruit and fruit snacks, drink mix packets, Rice Krispie treats
• Toiletries: vitamins, toothpaste, chapstick, cleansing wipes for eyeglasses, toilet paper
• Enertainment: books, CDs, DVDs, Sudoku booklets

Smaller goods, like granola bars, are stuffed into gaps like packing peanuts. Items fill the box out to each corner and up to its brim. One 25-pound box goes a long way. While each package is addressed to a single soldier, volunteers say that less coveted items are dispersed throughout an outpost.

The line’s grown on feedback, said Wolfe. Canned vegetables are no longer accepted because they weren’t well received. Wolfe said OSOT prefers to make the most of the box’s space by sending items that will be used, not thrown away.

OSOT has also sent over pajamas, microwaves, and golf gear on request—even coffee makers for troops that preferred brewed to instant.

Some requests are easier to oblige than others. Not sure how to send over potato chips at first, Wolfe said they settled on cans of Pringles that wouldn’t explode within the box during transport. Once OSOT members had to decide who to ship an entire ping pong table and accessories overseas. (The answer: in pieces.)

Before it is sealed, each box is topped with a baggie of letters and cards. One is a feedback card from OSOT, to make sure that boxes are being received in good condition and that the items inside are useful.

The other letters and cards are contributed. Wolfe said a variety of voices reach out to the troops. A steady stream of cards come in from local schools.

Cards are submitted most often around Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Fourth of July. Wolfe said she often leaves the warehouse covered in glitter, or with a rogue sticker attached to her shirt during these months.

What Rickert finds most encouraging are the letters they receive in return, which are uplifting to the volunteers. (A select number of letters from soldiers are distributed via email to members each week, in addition to being featured on the OSOT website.)

Boxes are not 'one soldier fits all.' Packaging varies just slightly for male and female recipients, mostly in the toiletries. (Although ironically, Orland Park resident Lynne Wojcik said that according to her son, who has served two tours overseas, some soldiers have copped to utilizing sanitary napkins as helmet padding or makeshift bandages.)

On Thursdays a handful of volunteers, several retired, meet at the main warehouse to assemble the boxes for packing, restock and assemble packages for the female soldiers.

The group meets every other Saturday to assemble the men’s packages. The pace is quick, and the printer always hums just below the conversation. A volunteer is responsible for one box on its journey through the line, making all OSOT participants adept packers.

Line captains assist the packers on the opposite side of the table. They alert volunteers of special directions, offer pointers and replenish the packing items. A handful of people ready the customs forms and shipping labels. It’s announced when the last box hits the line, and again when it’s placed on the palette for delivery. In less than three hours, volunteers have around 200 boxes, 20 female boxes and 180 male boxes, ready for shipment.

Naperville resident Jim McDonald said his wife volunteered his services back when OSOT workers packed boxes into their personal cars to transport to the post office. “I don’t know that I’ve ever been around a hardworking group of people that push in the same direction…. Everyone is doing their best,” said Naperville resident Jim McDonald. (His son, Dan, has served in both Iraq and Afghanistan.)

Energy is always high, and it’s a rare moment to hear quiet. Volunteers are constantly sharing updates of their own loved ones.

“It’s a really happy environment,” said Wolfe’s daughter, Christine. “We bond over the same stuff.”

[To read more on the support aspects OSOT offers volunteers, see our .]

OSOT utilizes the other warehouse for its administrative work, and to receive and sort the donations when they first arrive. Products are checked for quality before they’re sent to the main warehouse for packing. Items that are too close to their expiration date are transported to nearby food pantries.

Volunteers here also assemble the baggies of breakfast foods, proteins, and liquid toiletries for safe mailing. Wolfe said the atmosphere for volunteers in this warehouse is quieter and more calmly paced, but also more focused on the literal task at hand.

“They’re all about the cause,” she commented.

OSOT is currently accepting donations through mid-October for its annual Christmas stocking mailing.

Stockings still include staples like puzzle books, DVDs and granola bars, but also throw in handheld games or iTunes cards. Volunteers increased their meetings to weekly during the month of November to accommodate the project. Lisle resident Betty Krupp, who helps organize the stocking project, said the advantage to shipping stockings is that they can fit six per box.

OSOT volunteers take the month of December off to tend to their own families. Administrator Barbara Giacomino said troops tend to see an uptick in during the holidays.

“But we’re here for the long haul,” she said.

[Editor's note: due to technical issues (i.e.: my camera malfunctioning), Patch should have some photos up later this afternoon!]