News & Announcements
Saturday, October 18,
2008
Dear Supporters &
Contributors
After much
thought and careful consideration, I have regretfully concluded
that the time has come to discontinue our wonderful OTIE program.
Tough times, both economically and politically, have converged to
create an environment that makes keeping the organization viable
more and more diffcult. We are currently shipping out the
remainder of the good we have on hand and will officially shut down
OTIE on November 1st.
We have been very blessed by your
continued support these past years. On behalf of all the soldiers
touched by our endeavor – and they were many -- please accept our
gratitude. Your tireless efforts, helped us make a modest
contribution in a place where it sometimes made a big difference.
Sincerely,
Cynda
&
The OTIE Team
Sunday, August 24
The worst of the heat
is probably over, so we
will be back at the unit starting the Wednesday after Labor day.
As of now, we plan to work every Wednesday in September. If
you can join us, please do.
Not
everyone took the month off. Angela, Jordan and Heather of
Girl Scout Troop 325 bagged candy and some hygiene supplies for us.
Thanks so much girls and devoted troop leaders!
Tuesday, June 17th
Sorry, but we are no
longer able to accept donations of Girl Scout cookies.
The food banks are thrilled to get them, though, so please do
contact one of those.
A special thank you
to Darlyne, Pam, Sally and Carol,
Ministers of the Cloth at Southminster Presbyterian. They just gifted us, and the
troops, of course, with well over a hundred neck coolers. In
case you aren't familiar with these, they are narrow strips of
fabric filled with crystals. Once the bands are soaked in
water, the crystals fill and hold water. The soldiers can wrap
them around their necks or wear them under hats. Take if from
someone who sews -- they are a bear to make.
The
Riverstone community had a Memorial Day event and collect
donations for OTIE and well as spread awareness through their
newsletter. Thank you so much, Cynthia for spearheading the
event and dropping off all the supplies you collected at
Suzy's Hallmark. We are so grateful. Times are a little
hard right now, and we've seen a drop in donations, so we are
particularly glad to get these items.
Wednesday, June 4,
2008
OTIE is officially in
the dog days of summer. We
have three fans now, which really helps, but no one complains of
being cold. In deference to the heat, we have decided to
forego Saturdays for the summer unless a group specifically requests
a day. In that case, we'd be happy to open up.
Otherwise, if you would like to help out, please try to join us on a
Wednesday morning or ask if we have any home projects. We can
always come up with one.
Any group want to bag
candy?
We'll purchase it and provide you with the bags!
Monday, May 12, 2008
Oh, no, I
forgot to mention Girl Scout Troop # 3703. Thank you!
Friday, May 9, 2008
We are now officially
in cookie heaven.
Thanks to the efforts of
numerous Girls Scouts (and their equally dedicated mothers), our
pantry is overflowing -- and that's a great thing. Many of the
GS troops have not only brought the cookies, but stayed and helped
us work at the unit as well. Very warm thanks to
Troop 5625
Troop 12724
Troop 19136
Another group
came by for an hour late Wednesday afternoon but it all happened so
fast we didn't get the troop number. So sorry! A
special web hug to Kim, Melinda and their delightful daughters
for sticking it out until the bitter end. Without them, we
would have missed our dinner!
Jodie
Reichardt, one of our favorite girl scout moms, has a son who
was not content to stand by, just watching his big sister's efforts
to support the troops. He went to his teacher and suggested
they all write letters. Julie Comando at Drabek
Elementary, enthusiastically agreed and we were presented with a
great big stack of colorful letters. Thanks to you all!
We're invited to Hawaii! The 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat
Team is having a volunteer recognition ceremony and we were sent
an invitation. We won't be going, but we certainly do
appreciate the thought.
Friday,
April 18, 2008
Members of the
Fort Bend Chapter of ABWA
continue to support the troops through
our organization. They dropped off more donations at the
Early, McClintic &
McMillan location, as
well as sending financial gifts and those always treasured phone
cards. We hear there is about to be an article about their
group in the newspaper, too. We look forward to knowing them
when they are "famous"!
This seems
like a good time to thank some of the organizations that are just
always there for us. We never forget them, but they are so
much a part of us that if we thanked them every time they did
something, there would be no space for anyone else. Thanks for
all you do!
Suzy's Hallmark
Early, McClintic & McMillan
Komputer +
Kathryn at Weichart Realty
Girl Scout Troop
03521 did the cutest thing.
As well as collecting and donating
cookies, they got together around a huge table of candy and, using
cardboard tubes, tissue paper and ribbon, made the most festive
firecrackers. The girls wrote letters, too, which we will
include with their gifts. Thanks, Faith to you and your girls
for a very creative -- and gracious -- gift to the soldiers. I
know they will love it all. Picture in the gallery.
Friday,
April 4, 2008
A quick thank you
to Kathy Grayless and the
Brightwater Neighborhood Gals for all the Christmas cards you wrote to
soldiers. Nicely done!
It was great to be back on Saturday.
Thanks to those generous year end
donations, the unit was so full of boxes waiting to be unpacked, that we
couldn't even walk in there, let alone work. Many of our Saturday
regulars showed up to help. In addition, we had a great new crew of
workers from Weichert Realtors who were joining us the first time.
Byron Underwood, the office manager, learned of us through his two sons.
They are Boy Scouts who have helped us several times in the past. He
took it upon himself to recruit volunteers from the Riverstone office in
Missouri City, and what a great group they turned out to be. By the
time we left, our space was a model of organization. Without these
people, the transformation would never have occurred in just one Saturday
morning session.
We received a surprise delivery
-- Rebecca dropped off a huge stack of children's' letters for us to
enclose in our boxes. Patsy Jungdahl, an art teacher at
Huggins Elementary in Fulshear, coordinated the project. The
school principal is Irma Murre. Thanks so much to all who
participated. We know the soldiers will really appreciate the
love and creativity shown in those letters.
The year is starting off with
donations large and small. Thanks Mary Ammerman for the
supplies you passed along to Marsha. She collects books and
magazines for us and was meeting us to drop those off and present
OTIE with a very generous donation from her employers at Early,
McClintic & McMillan. They were so supportive last year,
and to our pleasant surprise, did it again. Thanks so much,
guys! Your check will fill many a box.
November was a banner month for Operation: Til It Ends.
As you'll see below, we, and the
soldiers we support, were blessed again and again. There may be people
who don't recognize and honor our troops, but I don't think they live in
Sugar Land.
XAZ sorority sisters
once again
dedicated a Saturday to packing boxes for the troops. They brought in
many donations including phone cards to make it easier for soldiers to call
home during the upcoming holidays. Thanks Ann, for all the time
you spent putting the event together, and to all the members for their
continued support. You are a fun group of women and we always enjoy
the time you spend at the unit.
On two
separate days we were visited by Tigers through Webelos -- -- all
Boy Scouts from Pack 316.
One our regulars, Brenda, inspired the service project which was supported
with enthusiasm by troop leaders and parents. Many brought donations
-- even kits. And you know how we love to get those kits.
Thanks, Brenda and all participating scouts, moms and dads. The boys
wrote letters, bagged candy, packed boxes, bagged candy, took out trash,
bagged candy, and....well, you get the idea!
The
employees of Targa Resources, Inc.
collected donations and brought them by the unit. They were so
generous! The boxes included canned goods, letters and
those precious phone cards. Thank you Carol, and all of who
contributed.
Heritage Presbyterian's VBS Mission Group
showed
up in force on Saturday, the culmination of their "Galilee-By-The-Sea"
project. The program allowed participants to experience family
life during Bible times. They even replicated a Scribe Shop where
families were able to write notes to soldiers. Donations were
contributed by both VBS students and the congregation as a whole.
Sarah Howes, a girl scout who had helped soldiers through OTIE once
before, suggested the program, and we are so grateful to her, her fellow
students and the whole church.
I'm so happy to say that
thanks to Carlo,
you can, once again see pictures
in the photo gallery .
October has started out a banner
month thanks to Rita Drabek Elementary School. They
initiated a program call SOS -- Stuff For Our Soldiers -- to show their
support for our troops. A week ago, we drove to the school to pick up
what they had collected. The day was also "camo" day, so every place we
looked we didn't see students and staff (because they were wearing
camouflage and blended in, get it?). Those donations, on the other
hand, couldn't be missed. What a job they did! With the help
of some enthusiastic students and teachers, we filled a nice sized SUV
to the max. A very special thank you to the school's
principal, Mary Brewster and a pair of big hugs to Julie Comardo and
Shirl Hawes for all the work they did organizing and inspiring the
students and parents. The troops will enjoy the supplies, but your
efforts have cheered all of us here at OTIE.
We have pictures in the gallery.
While sorting through children's letters to get them ready for
packaging, there were two that stood out and merit a special mention. Mixed in with
all the letters to soldiers was one that said
Thank you so much for
supporting our troops throughout the whole world.
How about that -- Isabell was thanking us! And we
do appreciate that. The second letter was a first -- it was
in Braille. Lauren, a kindergartener, wrote it and what a sweet
letter it was. Very touching and the lucky
soldier who receives it will surely think so, too.
The word
seems to be getting out
and so many wonderful people are
discovering Operation: Til It Ends. They seem truly glad to
find, in our organization, an opportunity to support our troops with
more than lip service.
The
American Business Women's Association of Fort Bend County
gets our Soldier Sweetheart Award for the month. (I'm making
this up, but if we had one, they would get it.) They have been
collecting donated items for over two months now and the goods just
keep coming. Special thanks to Mary Ammerman, the President of
the chapter who has been encouraging all the members to bring in
their donations. Thanks also to the other project contacts
Jean Shelledy and Marilyn Nelson. As soon as the Gallery is
fixed, we'll have a photo.
Another great Saturday
thanks to our wonderful volunteers.
Despite the heat (our two little fans do not
an air conditioner make) our weekend faithfuls, Vilma, Courtney, Joy,
Cynda and Terry were joined by Kathy, Mike, Rachel, Judith and Michael -- a
family to be reckoned with. We took up two hallways but put
together 36 Men's Hygiene Kits, 12 Entertainment Kits, put away a ton of
supplies, sorted letters and still got packages ready for shipping.
Whew. Some of that group had a margarita at lunch. It was hot
work, but very rewarding.
We were also
joined by two groups that were new to OTIE. Katherine Baird
and Stephanie Martinez, Girl Scout Cadettes, brought their families and a few Boy Scouts,
too. The girls are from the Red Fern Service Unit and sponsoring
drives for soldiers, completed their Silver Award Project. OTIE was
the benefactor of their hard work. They brought in bags and bags of
supplies and boxes and boxes that were beautifully packed and ready for
shipping. Thanks girls -- you are amazing! They also brought in
a large collection of letters which we will put to very good use.
When our
wonderful Wednesday volunteers, including Sandy and Brenda,
meet this week all we will do is top off and close up boxes so we can get
them to the post office.
We'd also like
to thank one of our angels, Marsha. She is always shopping
and collecting for the soldiers and this month she stocked us up on men's
books and microwave products. Thanks -- we love ya!
A very
special, heartfelt thank you
goes to Sandy Sobieski, Darlyne Fratt, Pam Stephenson, and Sally
Daugherty for their tiresome efforts in making neck coolers for the
soldiers overseas. Sandy has been purchasing the fabric, cutting
the patterns in fabric, and making the neck coolers for over a year
now. Darlyne, Pam, and Sally came on board with us this year and
through their quilting group at Southminster Presbyterian Church,
continue to make the tedious neck coolers for the soldiers at an
amazing pace. Darlyne, Pam, and Sally also make quilts for
wounded/injured soldiers. We at OTIE are so appreciative of all of
their hard work and dedication. It's an important task to help
keep the soldiers cool in the 120 degree heat they are currently
enduring in Iraq and Afghanistan this summer
August 9, 2007
Thank goodness
we rested up.
Boy Scouts -- and their mothers -- are tireless! They came in
shifts and for two weeks helped us on Wednesdays. They were
terrific and we got so much done. We'll miss having them around.
Photos are in the Gallery. They're a cute bunch of guys, see
for yourself.
We also have photos from one
of the units we have adopted. Michael, their contact is just
the nicest man. Working with him to find items his men need
has been a real joy. He's put a lot of time and effort into
organizing their needs so groups like ours can get the most good out
of donated dollars. One of the letters he put together is on
our "Wish List" page.
July 23, 2007
So many generous patrons
to thank.
The employees of Harvey Builders made OTIE the beneficiary of a
company wide drive and collected many boxes of donations.
We've already shipped most of them to troops, who, along with us,
are most appreciative. A special thanks to Stephanie
Smotherman and our own Tina for inspiring and coordinating.
Several of our regular
volunteers have gone above and beyond recently and we'd like to
acknowledge them here. Marsha has done many things for our
group and most recently collected Movie Kits for us. She even
appealed to fellow workers at Early McClintic & McMillan who
also contributed movies. They found some really good ones!
Lauren,
another multi talented patron, took on a Herculean task. With
the assistance of her daughter Ally and a friend, she shopped for 36
Men's Hygiene Kits, completely assembled them and then delivered
them to our unit. We were afraid that after that we'd never
hear from her again, but she's still with us. What a lady!
And as
always, we have the people who are our lifeblood. They
regularly bring in donations they have collected in one way or
another (Thanks, Sharon and Sandy!) or help Cynda collect soldier
addresses (Yea Sheryl!) or just show up every Wednesday even when
it's as hot as you know what in that unit (Vilma, Sandy, Patty and
Brenda and usually, Al -- we are so grateful to you all .)
June 6, 2007
Missouri City & Sugar Land Girl Scouts are
Tireless!
Troop 92
Troop 5625
Saturday, two more groups
dropped by the unit with more than 300 boxes. Both stayed and
helped in many ways -- putting together letter packets,
entertainment and hygiene kits. Extra kudos to the Cookie Moms
with 5625 -- they stayed all morning and did a myriad of odd jobs
that have been hanging around waiting to be finished up.
Peggy, single-handedly "I have a system going"!, sorted ALL those
cookies into bigger mailing boxes and then broke down all the
cartons. Thanks so much to all of you, girls and mothers.
Many of the girls write
letters to include with the cookies and they are always a delight.
We received one from this group, however, that is so special we
asked her permission to share it with you as well as the soldiers.
Please look for it in our Photo Gallery -- you will be touched.
Wednesday we welcomed two new
volunteers, sisters Rachel and Judith. They just graduated
from college and plan to help us out during the summer before
joining the real world. Saturday was a GREAT day -- we had 24
people crammed in our little space -- but you should have seen the
mess left behind. Rachel and Judith pitched right in finishing
up several tasks left half done and then organized our supply table.
I hate to admit how long it took them to sort and replace
everything. A special treat for us -- now
whenever we need something, we can just ask them to find it for us!
They are so sweet and we are thrilled they will be with us for
awhile.
My Bad.
When I edited the photos
for the Gallery, I forgot I don't know what I'm doing and made them
too small. Because I had so carefully saved all my changes,
I'm not able to enlarge them without pixelation. Small is
better than that, so grab your glasses. My apologies.
May 11, 2007
A NOTE FROM CYNDA
Alice Bily (Mom Bily) is an
extraordinary woman who, for several years now, has been supporting
our troops with her prayers and never-ending kindness. One
example: before their family gathering last Christmas, she
requested that each guest and family member bring an item that could
be sent overseas to our deployed military. The result was
wonderful! The large variety and number of gifts brought to their
celebration, exemplifies what just one person can do to get a whole
family involved in helping our needy soldiers overseas. OTIE sends
a huge vote thanks to Mom Bily!
Her photo is in the Gallery.
As many of you know,
I am co-founder of a project, Operation: Til It Ends, that was
started in September of 2004, with the hopes that we could send a
few care packages to the needy soldiers overseas. Here we are almost
three years later and I am pleased to say that with the help of
our amazing, hard working team and countless volunteers, Operation:
Til It Ends, a registered 501(c)(3), non-profit organization, is
preparing to start our 4th year of sending care packages to the
soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan!
OTIE is reaching out to our family and friends to help make
some soldiers very happy this year. We are asking for you to donate
2 generic greeting cards, i.e., blank cards, post cards, 'missing
you' cards, 'thinking of you' cards, 'birthday' cards (either to
wife, husband, sweetheart, son, daughter, mother, father, etc.),
'anniversary' cards, and of course, any other holiday cards that you
may have stashed away somewhere and never used. Most soldiers are
stationed wherein there is no PX or BX. Therefore, there is not a
place to buy greeting cards to send home to their loved ones. You
can purchase greeting cards at Big Lots or Dollar Stores at 2 for
$1.00. We hope that this will be an easy way to give a special gift
to those who are giving us so much!
Here is an excerpt from one of the many letters I
have received from soldiers...while we do include greeting cards in
our packages, it is never enough for all of their units.
"Post Cards are nice, because most postcards have pictures of
'home', cats, dogs, horses, mountains, GRASS, bushes, trees. Just
things that remind us of home. Post Cards for soldiers today are
kind of like what Norman Rockwell was to those in the 40's. They
remind you of how things used to be, life as we know it. Also, it
would be nice to get blank cards, Hallmark, shoe box , walmart,
dollar store or what ever. Cards that soldiers could send to their
wife, kids, parents etc etc etc. We dont need stamps, but we could
use some cards."
Operation:
Til It Ends could not be as successful as we are today without the
help of people like you
and for that we say THANK YOU! The soldiers always welcome a note
from home. If you would like to include a card or letter with
a 'message' made out to 'Dear Soldier' and add your address (if you
like), it is sure to brighten their day. They can be mailed to:
Operation: Til It Ends
c/o Cynda Williams
3803 Springhill Lane
Sugar Land, TX 77479
If
you would like to send a check for greeting cards, we
are happy to pick up the cards for you as well. Please make your
check payable to Operation: Til it Ends. If you have any questions,
pls e-mail me at
tilitends@aol.com or, of course you can always reach us here,
through the website.
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO PEOPLE IN
YOUR ADDRESS BOOK, IF YOU ARE SO INCLINED.
Thank you all for helping out our soldiers! BLESS
YOU!
May 7, 2007
Another good
Saturday.
Spring is such a busy time of year and it's hard for people to
squeeze out hours, so we were small in number this time. But
mighty! Our venerable leader, Cynda, was not able to
join us, but we soldiered on (hah). Vilma and Courtney
put together thirty of the Men's Hygiene Kits and Chance worked on
the Entertainment Kits. We're now ready for action on
Wednesday and should be able to ship like crazy.
Those
Girl Scout cookies just keep on trickling in.
More thanks to the girls in green. Saturday, two more troop
leaders dropped by with cars full of cookies -- 60 more cases.
Lots of thanks to:
Troop 17058
Alexis
Ashley Elieanna Laura Nicole
Lucia Melana Haley Hope
Rowan Katie Whitney Leslie
Troop 614
See their photo in the Gallery
April 18, 2007
