To The Reader’s Forum:

We, the Blue Star Mothers New York Chapter 4, are at it again! We have adopted a platoon from the 10th Mountain Division at Ft. Drum to support during their deployment in Iraq. We are preparing to pack and send boxes to them on Saturday, May 5, at 9 a.m. at the Fluvanna Community Church, 3363 Fluvanna Ave., Jamestown, NY.

This community really came through at Christmas; we send 920 care packages to our deployed troops around the world! We have received words of gratitude from so many, and we are inspired to continue this effort not just at Christmastime, but throughout the year.

We again invite our community (in fact we’re depending on you!) to join us in this effort. We will be accepting donations and assistance on Saturday, May 5, beginning at 9 a.m. to help us in the packing of these boxes. Or if you have some donations that we can pick up, please let us know. There is no better way of expressing our gratitude to these men and women, our sons and daughters who put themselves in harm’s way for our freedoms, than to come together as a community and pack up some love from home! We welcome all who want to come and join us with this special event!

In our correspondence with our Adopted Platoon one request was made: they have asked for Nerf guns and supplies, so they can have some Nerf gun fun to blow off some steam! We would appreciate any help to fulfill this request. Of course, snacks are always an appreciated staple for these care packages, as are the all-time favorite homemade cards and letters. Please consider helping us out.

Also, mark your calendars now for our 6th Annual Gold Star Memorial Remembrance Celebration, which will be held on Saturday, May 26 at 10 a.m., at the Jamestown Veterans Memorial Park on 3rd and Logan Streets in Jamestown. We will be remembering our local Gold Star heroes and honoring the families they left behind. Our community is encouraged to attend this very special ceremony kicking off the Memorial Day weekend of remembrances, as we show these families our hometown love and support.

May we never forget them and may God bless America!

Kathleen Collver, Vice President

Blue Star Mothers NY4