Valentine Preparations Begin For Local Letter Writing Campaign

By Eliza Hallabeck

Valentines For Troops Project Chair Donna Monteleone Randle said this week that the local effort to send valentines and care packages to troops serving oversees is starting to hone in on its deadline.

For the valentines and care packages reach the troops in time for Valentine’s Day, Ms Randle said the local effort needs to wrap up after students return from the school year’s scheduled December winter break.

Each year volunteers work to find and list addresses of deployed personnel to send letters and care packages to, and later work to help proofread and pack the letters written by students and care packages for shipment overseas, to places like Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan, Japan, and to ships at sea.

While the effort has predominantly been directed from students in the past, Ms Randle, a former US Army Captain, Signal Corps, said this year the effort is branching out farther, with groups and schools from Monroe and Danbury already signed up to assist in the letter writing campaign.

In the last couple of years, adult groups and after school groups have also added to the program, as well as local houses of worship.

This year, Ms Randle said Valentines For Troops is making an effort to connect participants with the servicemen and women they will be writing to in advance by e-mail.

“So each group, school, church, whoever, who might want to do something special or different can prepare and mold their outreach for [Valentine’s Day] depending on what they are good at,” Ms Randle said.

Last year, Ms Randle said, a retired teacher sent photos of Newtown after a snow storm, and the troops receiving the photos loved the gift. Other examples Ms Randle said of people adding their own personal touch to the Valentines For Troops project included sending drawings, personalized cards, other goodies, and Girl Scout Cookies.

“The cookies were a huge hit,” said Ms Randle.

This year, Ms Randle said the effort already has two Navy air craft carriers and two infantry units that will be recipients of letters and care packages. The effort also has four canines signed up to received special thanks for Valentine’s Day.

Ms Randle said the effort is “always looking for volunteers. It could be a group, individuals, or a family.”

Anyone interested in volunteering with the effort or signing up to write a Valentine’s Day card or creating a personalized package can contact Ms Randle by e-mail at ndrandle@charter.net. The Valentines For Troops effort also has a Facebook page, “Valentines for Troops Newtown CT.”