Every month the Adley
family meets at St. Bridget’s Church and packages bubblegum, beef jerky,
newspapers, and hand wipes. These are just a few of the items that will make
the 6,555-mile trip to Afghanistan, where appreciative servicemen and women
will open their care packages.
The idea for the group FLAGS, which stands
for Families of Lexington Are Grateful for their Service, began six years ago
when the Adley family visited family friend Colonel Robert McLaughlin at the Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North
Carolina.
"We were just so
appreciative of the service that Bob and other members of the military were
contributing. So in the days after we just kept thinking of ways we could give
back," said 21-year-old Myles, the eldest of the Adley children and co-founder
of FLAGS.
Since 2009, the Adley
children have found out what military personnel needed while serving abroad,
then learned the base addresses and sent the packages via the United States
Postal Service. In the four years since FLAGS began, the Adley’s have sent more
than 1,000 packages and said the feedback from both the recipients and the
Lexington community has been tremendous.
Organizations around the
community such as The Knights of Columbus, The Girl Scouts and Lexington Public
Schools have found ways to contribute, whether it is through donations
Letters from the
military consistently fill FLAG's post office box, as do pictures of the troops
holding items from the care packages. On Sunday, Colo. McLaughlin presented the
Adley family with an award on behalf of Major General Kenneth R. Dahl of the
U.S. Army.
"It’s touching to
know they start this because of their trip to Camp Lejeune," said
McLaughlin, a Lexington native. "Military members don’t ask for anything,
but when they receive something from people in the states it’s very much
appreciative."
This wasn’t the first
time the Adley’s were thanked personally for their efforts. Mary Ann Whalen
received FLAGS care packages for months and decided to show her appreciation
when she came to visit Lexington.
"Not only did she
send a hard written letter, but she presented us with a framed flag that flew
above one of the bases in Afghanistan," said FLAGS co-founder, 19-year-old
Sheridan Adley.
Learning the trade
Like
most startup nonprofits, research and learning through experience are all part
of making an organization operate efficiently. For instance, learning the
correct codes for each base was essential so the packages wouldn’t be returned
in the mail. Finding out the ins and outs of the post office was something they
eventually figure out over time.
"The people at the
post office know us by name now, but we found out never to show up first thing
in the morning with 60 boxes, traveling halfway around the world," said
Sheridan who studies at UMASS Lowell. "Once we sat down and talked with
them, they opened the post office early for us so we could get in before heavy
traffic."
Then there was learning
about the troops. Finding out what military members needed from abroad gave the
Adley’s a true glimpse into every day life of abroad. While going out on long
patrols, servicemen and women requested bubblegum so their mouths wouldn’t dry
up. Beef jerky, which never spoils, is a popular item in many of the packages.
"It’s the things
that we really take for granted over here that they appreciate the most over
there," said 19-year-old and co-founder Keaghan Adley. "For us, we
can walk around to the corner store. They don’t have that luxury."
"Anything is
appreciated but I really liked the Crystal Lights [flavorings] for my battled
waters," McLaughlin said with a laugh while describing his ideal care
package.
Paying their tribute
The support of the
community has become a large part of FLAGS survival.
The Adley family alone
could not support the costs associated with sending packages to Afghanistan,
but companies such as Cubist have helped with mailing, while Lexington High
School has donation boxes for the care packages
"They believe in
the service of American’s sons and daughters. It’s nice to see especially from
our hometown,’ Col. McLaughlin said.
While people might
associate war with politics, the Adley’s said the effort to support the
military should not be decided based on partisan preference.
"Even if you don’t
agree with why they are over there, they are over there for us," said
Sheridan.
"The least we can
do is proved them with a little bit of home," added Myles.
Read more: http://www.wickedlocal.com/lexington/news/x606637814/A-way-to-give-back-Lexington-nonprofit-provides-military-care-packages#ixzz2YpLDKQdn
Follow us: @WickedLocalLex on Twitter | TheLexingtonMinuteman on Facebook
No comments:
Post a Comment