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PROGRAMS
WIMN (Women in Military Now) Adopt a Troop Take a Troop to the Movies
BreakfastWomen in the Military Now (WIMN)
The WIMN program recognizes two key concepts derived from our interviews with women in the military:
1. Women at the war front do have particular needs for items to aid their health and enhance their morale.
2. Women in the military have acquired, after generations of dedicated service and advocacy, recognition of the significant and varied capacities of women in military service.The activities of the effort include:
1. Collecting WIMN's items
2. Raising funds for shipping and provisioning items not collected
3. Sorting, packing & mailingWIMN's Items
I. Toiletries
II. Entertainment
- Stationary & writing pens of good quality, journals
Adopt a Troop
Every year Lawton C. Johnson Summit Middle School, as part of their 6th grade Advisory Program discusses the character of caring. Students learn to put themselves ''in the other person's shoes". The project called “Adopt a Soldier” focuses on supporting our military Troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, stateside, and around the world. Each homeroom “adopts” a service person, learns about th person and prepares a care package for him/her. The project begins with a family member introducing the Troop with a picture collage from childhood through the present and a biography. Through this the students connect emotionally to the Troop which leads to a sense of caring. The materials are left in the classroom for two weeks while students brainstorm what they could put in their care package. The emotions run strong with students, teachers and family members as moving stories touch everyone and lead to the enthusiastic responses by the students about “their” Troop .
The project wraps up with students presenting their packages to family members who return to their class. Among the items in the packages are letters, DVD’s, CD’s, magazines, books, footballs, snacks, small photo albums with pictures from around Summit, a personal letter to each service person from Dr. Ted Stanik, principal. When we are luck enough to have a Troop in town their visit to the school creates the stir more often associated with rock stars. Vice-Principal Emile George, himself a veteran, displays the flags from all branches of the armed forces. On this final day, students, teachers, and parents feel the common bond with the Troops, many of whom sat in the very seats of the current students, and who now are proud representatives of the City of Summit and of the United States of America around the world. See the photos of this terrific project.
The Troops receive an actual theater popcorn box loaded with treats and a DVD. Inside each box are a new or gently used DVD, a microwaveable popcorn, powdered drink mix, hard candy, a snack bar, a note, and a small American flag. The Troops rave about the fun they have watching and trading the movies and sharing the treats.
This program is held In January of each year on Martin Luther King Day in conjunction with the City of Summit's MLK Day of Service. For several weeks people bring their donations to a collection site and on the Martin Luther King Day students, parents and citizens gather to pack the items into the popcorn boxes which go in to large cartons for mailing. The volunteers for this event establish a routine after a briefing from SSOT key volunteers and then run with it. Leaders emerge to coach new people as they arrive, and a spirit of generosity and compassion arises that would surely please Dr. King. See the photos of this caring community.
Every family who has a son or daughter or spouse is invited to spend a morning together celebrating the lives of "their" Troops who have chosen to serve our country in the armed forces. Guests learn about the day to day life of the military life from each other. "Veteran" parents advise the new "recruit" parents. They share the worries of having a child or spouse at war, of talking to a toddler about where Daddy or Mommy is for so long, and of an intense mixture of patriotic and personal pride. Mayor Jordan Glatt, who initiated this program, provides each family or Troop a flag that has flown over City Hall. SSOT gives each one a gift special military families. This is an important day for all of us who attend as it builds the bond of citizenship, community, and compassion that we now share. See the photos of this event.
Family Coffee's
The families of the Troops meet regularly to lend each other support. We experience and understand the military lifestyle and the deployments of our sons, daughters, spouses, of "our" Troops, in a special way. That understanding is particularly comforting when we fear for their safety. We here in Summit are particularly fortunate that we can come together with the willingness to give when we need and as a result find ourselves strengthened and comforted.
