American Forces Press Service

CINCINNATI, April 10, 2008 - It's reasonable to think servicemembers deployed the world over might be missing Girl Scout cookies again this year, but that's not necessarily the case.

More than 150 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines soon will be enjoying Girl Scout cookies and other goodies thanks to the Thank You Foundation and several members of the greater Cincinnati community.

"This was a real community effort," said John Guinn, president and founder of the Thank You Foundation. "Students from St. Margaret of York [School] collected items, and several Girl Scout troops donated cookies. Senior citizens from the Lebanon Country Manor helped pack up the boxes."

Seventh-grade students at St. Margaret of York in Loveland, Ohio, spent two weeks last month collecting care package items for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Our U.S. troops in Iraq have sacrificed so much for our country's freedom so it was a wonderful feeling for me to have the opportunity to be able to give back to them," said Marisa Pike, one of the seventh-graders who participated. "It's great to be part of a school that encourages students to serve others in their need."

Her classmates agreed the project has given them a new appreciation and perspective for the sacrifices servicemembers make, as well as the importance of volunteerism.

"This project really helped me understand that one person can really make a difference," said Sarah Wandtke, also a seventh-grader at the school. "It feels really great to know that you are helping someone. I hope we can do this again next year."

In addition to the items collected by the school, Girl Scout Troop 8238 in Landen donated 300 boxes of cookies, and Troop 41865 of Bethany School in Glendale added at least another 50 boxes, Guinn said.

Kim Robinson, a Lebanon Country Manor employee, has both a son and son-in-law in Iraq. She, along with the seniors from the manor and her daughter and daughter-in-law, helped pack the boxes for the Thank You Foundation.

"I know personally what it means to the men and women serving over there to get these packages from home," Robinson said. "We try to do all we can to let them know they are loved and in our thoughts and prayers."

Over the last several months, the Thank You Foundation has sent several hundred care packages to troops and has worked with other groups in the Cincinnati area to send clothing, school supplies, and toys to children in Iraq.

In addition, the foundation has focused efforts on providing financial support for the families of wounded and disabled soldiers in Cincinnati and across the country. In January that support helped a disabled Vietnam veteran visit his dying mother in Texas.

"We do what we can to help where other organizations can't," Guinn said. "Care packages are really just a small part of the many things we try to do to say thank you."

(From a Thank You Foundation news release.)

*Related Sites:*
Thank You Foundation  [ http://www.thethankyoufoundation.org ]
Community Sends Girl Scout Cookies to Troops [ http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=49528 ]