How to give overseas troops a taste of home

Girl Scouts kicked off their annual cookies sales earlier this month, and it continues through January. However, some of the troops have added a new sales pitch to their orders: Buy a box for the troops.

The idea is called "Operation Cookie Drop," and it was developed by members of the "Yellow Ribbon Support Group" in Palatine, who regularly send care packages to deployed military personnel serving overseas.

"We started it in Cary two years ago, and last year Cary troops had their biggest sales ever," says Pat McCoy of Palatine, founder of Yellow Ribbon Support Group.

She and her group of volunteers meet upstairs at the Palatine Police Station every Wednesday night, preparing boxes to be shipped. Over the last four years, they have sent more than 9,000 boxes.

What started with boxes sent to the unit of her son, Rick, who is on his fifth deployment to Iraq as a Green Beret, quickly spread to other soldiers and their units. In fact, their Web site seeks names and addresses of deployed military.

"No matter what we send," McCoy says, "it's the Girl Scout cookies that reminds them of home."

McCoy adds that the package of cookies fits right on top of their priority boxes that they ship out. They send only one box with each package, and consequently, based on the Girl Scouts' efforts, they hope to send a box with their packages all year long.

Girl Scout Troop 2315 in Arlington Heights learned about the new promotion at their meeting last week.

They learned that even if customers decline to purchase cookies, the Scouts might suggest they buy a box or two for the troops.

The project adds little extra work for the girls. If their customers agree, they simply pay for the boxes at the time they order, and then the girls circle their orders, indicating they are to be earmarked for the troops, so that they are separated when the cookies are delivered.

McCoy and her volunteers took a break over the holidays, but they began meeting again last week to pack up more boxes.

"We have 500 boxes to get ready over the next four weeks," McCoy said, adding that a fundraiser next month in Buffalo Grove intends to take 300 of the boxes for supporters to ship.

Nonetheless, they eagerly await the chance to be able to pack in the Girl Scout cookies, McCoy added.

"I have no idea where we're going to put them yet," McCoy said, "but I'll put them in my spare bedroom, if I have to."

To find out more about the Yellow Ribbon Support Group, visit: www.yellowribbonsg.org.