thedrifter
11-23-06, 08:02 AM
From Home: Teenagers collect items to give to Marines fighting overseas
By Melissa Hall
JOURNAL REPORTER
Thursday, November 23, 2006
KERNERSVILLE
The holidays might be little brighter for about 600 U.S. Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan thanks to two groups of local teenagers.
The Teens Supporting our Troops and the Teen Advisory Council of the Kernersville Parks and Recreation Department collected items Sunday at Wal-Mart to put into packages for the troops.
Group members packed the boxes Monday at Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School.
Alessandra Bazo, a senior at Bishop McGuinness and the council's secretary, said that the groups gave shoppers going into Wal-Mart a list of items and that many of the shoppers came out with the needed items.
"It was very successful," Bazo said.
Ernie Pages, the recreation operations supervisor and a council adviser, estimated that about two tons of goods were collected.
"I was taking carloads back to the rec center," he said.
Pages said he had 2,000 fliers and handed all of them out. About 75 percent of the people who came out donated something. Some people came with a cartload of goods to give.
The collected items included toiletries, paperback books, puzzle books and snacks. The goods were packed into 104 boxes and mailed Tuesday.
Jennifer deGuzman, the vice president of the Bishop McGuinness student council, was at Wal-Mart from 3 to 6 p.m.
"I was surprised by how much the community helped out," she said.
Krissy Dull, a student at Bishop McGuinness who started Teens Supporting our Troops, said that the leftover items will be used to make up packages to send in February.
"It will be on going," she said.
George Repass, the principal at Bishop McGuinness, said that the school and the advisory council work together on various activities.
"We took an interest in this project," he said.
The volunteers said they were pleased with the amount of items donated. They began collecting items at the Honeybee Festival in September.
At the festival, the teenagers collected money to pay the postage for the boxes and collected items.
"If we had more money we could send more packages," said Jerri Crews, the department's marketing and community-relations specialist. Each box costs about $8 to send.
DeGuzman said she is looking forward to making the packages again in February.
"It's a great cause," she said.
• Melissa Hall can be reached at 996-6601 or mhall@wsjournal.com.
Ellie
By Melissa Hall
JOURNAL REPORTER
Thursday, November 23, 2006
KERNERSVILLE
The holidays might be little brighter for about 600 U.S. Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan thanks to two groups of local teenagers.
The Teens Supporting our Troops and the Teen Advisory Council of the Kernersville Parks and Recreation Department collected items Sunday at Wal-Mart to put into packages for the troops.
Group members packed the boxes Monday at Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School.
Alessandra Bazo, a senior at Bishop McGuinness and the council's secretary, said that the groups gave shoppers going into Wal-Mart a list of items and that many of the shoppers came out with the needed items.
"It was very successful," Bazo said.
Ernie Pages, the recreation operations supervisor and a council adviser, estimated that about two tons of goods were collected.
"I was taking carloads back to the rec center," he said.
Pages said he had 2,000 fliers and handed all of them out. About 75 percent of the people who came out donated something. Some people came with a cartload of goods to give.
The collected items included toiletries, paperback books, puzzle books and snacks. The goods were packed into 104 boxes and mailed Tuesday.
Jennifer deGuzman, the vice president of the Bishop McGuinness student council, was at Wal-Mart from 3 to 6 p.m.
"I was surprised by how much the community helped out," she said.
Krissy Dull, a student at Bishop McGuinness who started Teens Supporting our Troops, said that the leftover items will be used to make up packages to send in February.
"It will be on going," she said.
George Repass, the principal at Bishop McGuinness, said that the school and the advisory council work together on various activities.
"We took an interest in this project," he said.
The volunteers said they were pleased with the amount of items donated. They began collecting items at the Honeybee Festival in September.
At the festival, the teenagers collected money to pay the postage for the boxes and collected items.
"If we had more money we could send more packages," said Jerri Crews, the department's marketing and community-relations specialist. Each box costs about $8 to send.
DeGuzman said she is looking forward to making the packages again in February.
"It's a great cause," she said.
• Melissa Hall can be reached at 996-6601 or mhall@wsjournal.com.
Ellie