CV’s Giving Tree Helps the Troops

annual Giving Tree took on a different meaning last month when students brought supplies, donated pocket change and wrote letters to soldiers fighting in Afghanistan.

The school “adopted” an Army unit from Fort Riley in Kansas that is currently serving in Afghanistan, and students spent December gathering items to put under the Giving Tree decorated with yellow ribbons. Some brought in just a few coins, while others wrote letters, but each felt they were doing something important to help others.

“The kids could give us something little, but it meant so much to them,” said parent Amy Hughes, who helped organize this year’s donation drive. “With this age group, they really felt they were giving a lot.”

They were able to raise $1,300 to purchase bigger items on the wish list and pay for shipping.

Hughes said one student brought a used rubber baseball for the soldiers while another said his entire family collected pocket change to donate. But for Hughes, whose husband, Tom, is in the Army National Guard and served in Operation Desert Storm two decades ago, the letters were most powerful.

“I thought it would be a little more special,” she said. “So many kids wrote letters thanking the soldiers.”

That point was echoed by Susan Weiss, who is in the Chartiers Valley Parent Teacher Group with Hughes and also helped with the donations.

“It’s amazing what the parents told us,” Weiss said. “The kids came down and brought all their coins and money. A lot of parents were excited that we did something different.”

The school usually works with Toys for Tots, but she said this year’s partnership with Operation Troop Appreciation taught the students new lessons about what soldiers are doing overseas.

“It’s the whole spirit of it. It’s what the kids are taking away,” Weiss said. “It helps our children understand what these men are sacrificing.”

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