Update on Operation Beanie Baby

We previously posted about Operation Beanie Baby in which residents from Sandpiper collected beanie babies for shipment to our troops in Iraq. The toys are then given by the soldiers to children in that country as a gesture of goodwill. We now have an update from LPD Officer J. Ring showing how the babies are given away by the troops. The following is from an unclassified e-mail from Officer Ring earlier this week.

Soldiers from the Fort Benning based 86th Military Police Detachment (CID), Baghdad, Iraq, delivered several boxes of beanie babies, toys, and personal hygiene products to Iraqi local nationals during a free medical health clinic hosted by the 492nd Civil Affairs Battalion. The boxes were donated by residents of the Sandpiper Resident's Association. I wish the residents could have seen the faces of the children light up when I brought the boxes in.

Pictured from left to right: SA Freeman, SA Stokes, SA Winston,
SA Kneece and SA Ring

More than 40 people from the village and surrounding area came to the free clinic seeking help for different types of injuries and illnesses. There were two Iraqi doctors and a U.S. Army doctor on hand to assist with providing the free medical and dental treatment to the Iraqis. Injuries ranged from complaints of tooth aches to small children born with severe genetic defects.

Several clinics like this are held by the U.S. Armed Forces and Iraqi government all throughout the year at several different locations. The donations by residents of the Sandpiper community will continue to make an impact long after I return home.

Please let the residents know their hard work and efforts are paying off in big dividends. Their goodwill gesture today may very well save a life tomorrow.

   

- J. Ring, Special Agent, USACIDC

Comments

[ck]

It's nice to see the fruits of labor. Thanks for the update.