Posted on 04/19/2004 9:21:26 AM PDT by Dbdaily
Missouri Soldiers Work to Rebuild Schools in Saddam's Hometown
April 19, 2004 How to Contribute to "Operation Pencil Box" (KMOX-St. Louis) Some Missouri National Guard soldiers are building goodwill in Iraq, not with bullets and tanks, but with pencils and crayons.
Members of the Guard's 835th Corps Support Battalion are part of "Operation Pencilbox". Sergeant Gabe Medina of Rolla says his unit is responsible for rebuilding and restocking nine schools in villages near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. "Those schools are the ones we really need to help out," said Medina, on the phone from Iraq. "The resources just aren't there."
But Medina says even the small amount of supplies that the unit has been able to so far scrape together has made a big difference.
"Every time we go into the villages, they get a lot more friendlier. They start remembering your face and your name." Megan Lynch, KMOX News
The 835th CSB is asking for the following supplies for the nine schools near Tikrit: - school textbooks on learning how to read - paper/notebooks - pencils/pens - erasers - chalk - bookmarks - crayons - soccer balls
They're also asking for personal supplies for families: - shoes - socks - children's clothing - shampoo - soap - toothpaste/toothbrushes - hand sanitizer
For more information, contact the Family Readiness Group at the Missouri Army National Guard through Judy Menard at her e-mail: jminard@psrsmo.org
or mail items directly to Iraq:
835th Corps Support Battalion ATTN: "Operation Pencilbox" OIF-FOB Speicher APO-AE 09392
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