SUPPORTING OUR TROOPS…

“The two-hundred pounds of items collected to send to our troops in Iraq is nothing compared to what those men and women give to us through their service and willingness to put their lives on the line for us and their country and for the well-being of others.”

That’s the comment made by Pastor Galen Grulke of Heart of the Shepherd Lutheran Church in Howell in regards to one of their church’s projects during their 40 Days of Purpose, in which the members and friends studied together Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life book.

Angela Poppe, who attends church at Heart of the Shepherd, approached Pastor Galen in September with the idea of doing something special for the 166 military personnel (144 men and 22 women ranging in age from 18-55) from the Howell National Guard Unit assigned to Iraq. Pastor Galen told her to “Go for it.”

So Angela contacted VG’s Food Center in Howell, and they donated the bags for the eighty families of the church. The Howell Armory shared an approved list of acceptable item (sunscreen, chap stick, pens & paper, envelopes, shampoo, toothpaste, liquid soap, etc.) which was attached to the bags and given out to the families with the encouragement to purchase items from the approved list and to return their bags by the end October.

On Monday, November 8, SSG. Robert Wicklander of the Howell National Guard 1462 Transportation Unit helped Angela and her husband Roland and Pastor Galen unload over 200 pounds of items that will be shipped to our military personnel in Iraq.

Pastor Galen also presented a letter from Heart of the Shepherd Lutheran Church expressing appreciation and gratitude to our military personnel and assuring the 150 plus families of the men and women from our Howell National Guard Unit that community organizations and churches in partnership with the local Red Cross are going to do their best to make sure they have a blessed Christmas.

For information about doing a similar project contact Heart of the Shepherd at 517-552-7218 or visit the church’s website – www.hotshepherd.org or contact the Howell Armory at 517-548-5147 or the American Red Cross at 517-546-0326.