Kensington Third Graders Send Holiday Cheer to Afghanistan

Members of the 1st Infantry Division of the US Army will have extra cheer this holiday, thanks to the students in Mrs. Jaclynn Hayne’s class. Mrs. Hayne’s class at Kensington Intermediate School was chosen to take part in Adopt a Platoon, an organization that partners service members with people who want to support them by sending care packages, notes, and cards.

Mrs. Hayne’s class is supporting a 23-member platoon who is stationed in Afghanistan. Her contact is one member of the platoon, to whom all the boxes are mailed. The recipient soldier then distributes the items to her fellow soldiers, Mrs. Haynes explains. “There are 23 students in the class and 23 members of the platoon,” she says, noting that she has been on a waiting list to participate for some time. Her husband’s best friend and her sister are both veterans, so the cause is close to her heart.

The students will send items like cards, letters, and posters to the service members throughout the school year, and will look forward to receiving emails, letters, and photos in return. During the holidays, the students are assembling impressive care packages that include items like candy, hot chocolate, ramen noodles, soap, hand sanitizer, adult coloring books, games, and socks: all items the soldiers themselves requested. Each soldier will also receive an individual Christmas stocking and a mini Christmas-tree--a pinecone in a student-decorated flower pot. The students decorated the inside of the mailing boxes so that opening them will truly be like opening a gift. And the items were donated, thanks to the generosity of Kensington students, their family, and the staff.

“The whole school has been so generous,” Mrs. Haynes says. “[Principal] Mr. Murphy been really supportive and happy that we’re doing this. He approved a denim day for the staff. For a five-dollar donation, staff can wear jeans on Friday, December 9. All proceeds go towards shipping costs.” In addition, student council members will sell candy grams for fifty cents during the week before holiday break, with those proceeds going to shipping costs as well.

“The students are learning that generosity can go a long way,” Mrs. Haynes reflects. “They know what impact it will have to brighten the lives of the soldiers. We wanted to tell them how thankful we are that they are faithfully serving us during the holidays when they can’t be with their own families. We wanted to send holiday cheer from Kensington to Afghanistan.”