Embrace the Giving Spirit All Year Round With Project Gearbox
The holiday season is upon us. Decorations are going up, college students are coming home and countless people are rushing to find the perfect gift for everyone on their list. However, the American troops stationed overseas are able to come home for the holidays. This fact has not gone unnoticed by the Parkway North club Project Gearbox. They collect donations throughout the school year to fill care packages to send to troops on the front lines.
“Each care package contains a little bit of home…[the boxes] remind soldiers that while they are fighting in foreign lands, the people for whom they are fighting for have not forgotten them,” said co-president senior Adam Potts.
The club is entirely student led and meets every other Wednesday in sponsor social studies teacher Melody Barger’s room. Barger speaks highly of how driven the students leading the club are, and of the cause.
“These are necessities, a way to make [the troops] lives a little easier, and it’s a way to support them,” said Barger.
According to Barger, the club sends the boxes specifically to troops on the front lines because often times they are picked through at the bases before they ever reach the front liners. While the members put together the boxes, donations are essential.
“Donations are the livelihood of Project Gearbox…the contributions of Gearbox members would not be nearly enough to reach our goals in sending out packages. As such, we must turn to our community and ask for any help it can provide…without [its support] Gearbox would not have been able to achieve the success we have met thus far,” said Potts.
As the holidays bring the spirit of giving, it’s important not to forget those who do so much for the country. With Project Gearbox, people can embrace the giving spirit not only around the holiday’s but throughout the year too.
“The holiday season…has become an American time of hope, happiness, family, and charity. Unfortunately, the service women and men of the United States Armed Forces are often unable to spend this season with the people they love. While the packages will be sent out at a later date, donating during this time will bring comfort to an enlisted person in the future. Items even as seemingly trivial as shoelaces and Planters Peanuts carry emotional meaning on the front line, regardless of the time of year,” said Potts.
As the boxes go out in May, the club is still actively looking for new members and donations.
Contact Barger or McCorkle for more information if you have donations or want to help. Monetary donations which help with the costs of shipping can be turned in at the bookstore.
By: Chaney Cooper Sports Editor