Participating in the Month of Giving, students and teachers created care packages for troops currently serving overseas. While donations have been collected for many years, the contributions from students and faculty exceeded organizers’ goals.
“Our hope is that our troops feel appreciated,” junior and Project Help event co-chair Jorris Robinson said. “We want them to get a little piece of home being that they don’t have these resources readily available while stationed.”
Project Help and Student Council teamed up to create Soldier Boxes for choir director Mr. Ben Silvermintz and his unit, currently serving in Afghanistan.
“There was this air of excitement when we sat down to talk about it,” Project Help co-sponsor Ms. Laura Lukowski said. “We were all a little apprehensive because we wanted to do it so well, but there was also this sense of privilege to be able to do this for Mr. Silvermintz and for his unit. With this sense of privilege comes a special link that connects us to them, which makes this even more personal.”
Select students were able to Skype with Silvermintz during class several weeks ago, where they told him what they were planning.
“Mr. Silvermintz was very excited to hear we were doing this,” Lukowski said. “The last time we sent boxes to his unit we had 70 boxes, but that was split between two different units. Now we have 55 boxes going directly to Silvermintz’s unit, which is absolutely incredible.”
Classes could request a box, and each student within the class could contribute an item in order to properly supply each soldier with both basics and treats as well.
“Silvermintz is probably my favorite teacher,” junior Marit Sosnoff said. “We miss him so much, so the fact that we’re doing this for him just shows how much we miss and appreciate him. We always send things to the people we care about because it shows we’re thinking about them, and I am so happy we can send these boxes to Silvermintz and the rest of his troop.”
This is the first year that Project Help and Student Council not only collected the items but packaged and shipped the boxes as well.
“In previous years we collected the items and then gave them to another organization who packaged and shipped the goods to the troops,” Lukowski said. “It definitely requires more organization and planning to make sure each box is properly equipped and packaged correctly.”
Members of Project Help spent the afternoon of Nov. 24 organizing, packing and filling out forms to mail the boxes. While the packing took the volunteers a couple of hours, Lukowski was thrilled with the number of boxes that needed to be organized.
“Project Help never set a number for what we wanted partly because we wanted people giving because they wanted to,” Lukowski said. “However, my personal goal was 50 boxes and we received a total of 55. I believe that our school did a phenomenal job; more is always better when it is for such a good cause.”
This is Silvermintz’s second tour in Afghanistan within the past three years, as a member of the Army Reserve, which has provided the community an opportunity to be philanthropic during the holidays.
“I simply enjoy giving back to the community,” Robinson said. “Since I myself have family who fought for our country, it was a bit personal for me. Our troops do so much and this is a way to show some appreciation, especially during the holidays.”
With everything labeled, packaged and addressed, the Soldier Boxes were shipped before Thanksgiving Break to arrive before the end of the calendar year.
“Day in and day out I am just amazed at the outpouring of kindness I see among the Central community,” Lukowski said. “There really is a family dynamic here, and I think that it is a privilege to be a part of it. I want people to know that we are in a really amazing place with great people who want to good things and this drive is just one more example of that.”