The holidays are starting and this year many people are spending them without a mom or dad. Parents are overseas, and the kids are being taken care of by grandparents, friends, or even another family altogether. Many students here at South have parents, other relatives, or family friends away for the holidays to serve their country in Iraq.
Sometimes, students send care packages, or boxes full of goodies for their loved ones to enjoy. Bath supplies, Oreos, and long-distance phone cards are mainstays of most packages. They must be sent overseas almost a month beforehand to get to the soldiers in time for the holidays.
Students also have to be wary of what they send to certain places. Items containing pork or beef are not accepted in certain places because of the religious background of the area.
When making a care package, the general cost to mail it is $10, not including what had to be bought to put in the package. Most of the items can be bought rather cheaply, and the overall cost is generally around $15.
Some organizations like Operation Gratitude send care packages to random troops in certain areas to raise the morale of the platoon. People donate items to give the soldiers a better feeling through the holidays, and the organization has sent over 393,369 care packages to date. They receive letters of thanks and offer special, personalized care packages to be sent to a soldier of your choice at www.opgratitude.com.
“You just expect to be a family and have a family to celebrate the holidays together,”
said Elisabeth Saxe, who once hosted a foster family in her home. The father is now serving in Iraq, while the rest of his family stays in New York. Their son, Brady, is having a hard time adjusting to the change now that the holidays have come around.
“In his five-year-old mind, he doesn’t understand why Dad has to be gone. He just knows that Dad isn’t there to put him in his pajamas and read him his nighttime story,” said Saxe.
Some people become depressed over the holidays because they miss family and friends.
“I think that being gone over the holiday just accentuates all the feelings that we have of our families being overseas during the rest of the year,” said Saxe.
Many people around the world are missing their families over the holidays, but things like care packages and phone calls are making the happy times easier to bear without a family member.
