NcDeuce
12-28-2003, 12:01 AM
'Operation Santa Strike' delivers gifts to Mosul
Soldiers from the 2-44th Air Defense Artillery, 101st Airborne Division, recently delivered more than 500 pounds of coats, clothes, shoes and toys to residents of Mosul.
The program, called "Operation Santa Strike" and "Operation Overcoat," was made possible by donations from U.S. donations from private citizens, churches and other community organizations responding to a soldier's e-mailed plea.
Lt. Col. Donald Fryc of Odenton, Md., contacted everyone in his e-mail address book looking for help with the project.
"We had a cold spell for about two or three days and it really struck me that there was a great need out there in the coming winter months for the kids," Fryc said.
"That was the genesis of the idea for 'Operation Overcoat.'"
The response was overwhelming, he said.
"I asked them to carry the messages to their churches and they all replied back and said, 'the boxes are on their way.'"
Fryc and his battalion chaplain, Chap. (Capt.) Jay West of Poca, W.V., led the charge to get the goodies to out to an International Displaced Persons home located within their Mosul compound, Camp Claiborne.
The 2-44th ADA soldiers too were eager to help.
The deliveries were made Tuesday.
"From a chaplains perspective, I would hope those folks learned today that the American soldiers have the biggest hearts in the world," West said.
The excitement on the faces of the children's was palpable. One boy, about the age of five, actually climbed on the back of Fryc's humvee, barefoot.
Fryc immediately gave him the last pair of shoes he had in his limited supply.
The shoes fit perfectly.
"I'll tell you, he smiled a smile that I'll remember for a long time," Fryc said.
Fryc's mission came just in time for the roughly 200 Iraqis who received jackets, clothes and shoes from "Operation Santa Strike" and "Operation Overcoat." Monday's temperatures in Mosul ranged in the forties with punishing winds and rain.
"It's a continuance of building trust," Fryc said.
"These people, day in and day out, they're fighting for their survival."
The 2-44th ADA mission figures to go a long way in what Maj. Gen. David H. Petraeus, 101st Airborne Division commanding general, calls the division's "Charm Offensive."
"It's amazing what these folks don't have," Fryc said. "We're here to help."
http://www.theleafchronicle.com/news/stories/20031227/localnews/119045-42735.jpg
Soldiers from the 2-44th Air Defense Artillery, 101st Airborne Division, recently delivered more than 500 pounds of coats, clothes, shoes and toys to residents of Mosul.
The program, called "Operation Santa Strike" and "Operation Overcoat," was made possible by donations from U.S. donations from private citizens, churches and other community organizations responding to a soldier's e-mailed plea.
Lt. Col. Donald Fryc of Odenton, Md., contacted everyone in his e-mail address book looking for help with the project.
"We had a cold spell for about two or three days and it really struck me that there was a great need out there in the coming winter months for the kids," Fryc said.
"That was the genesis of the idea for 'Operation Overcoat.'"
The response was overwhelming, he said.
"I asked them to carry the messages to their churches and they all replied back and said, 'the boxes are on their way.'"
Fryc and his battalion chaplain, Chap. (Capt.) Jay West of Poca, W.V., led the charge to get the goodies to out to an International Displaced Persons home located within their Mosul compound, Camp Claiborne.
The 2-44th ADA soldiers too were eager to help.
The deliveries were made Tuesday.
"From a chaplains perspective, I would hope those folks learned today that the American soldiers have the biggest hearts in the world," West said.
The excitement on the faces of the children's was palpable. One boy, about the age of five, actually climbed on the back of Fryc's humvee, barefoot.
Fryc immediately gave him the last pair of shoes he had in his limited supply.
The shoes fit perfectly.
"I'll tell you, he smiled a smile that I'll remember for a long time," Fryc said.
Fryc's mission came just in time for the roughly 200 Iraqis who received jackets, clothes and shoes from "Operation Santa Strike" and "Operation Overcoat." Monday's temperatures in Mosul ranged in the forties with punishing winds and rain.
"It's a continuance of building trust," Fryc said.
"These people, day in and day out, they're fighting for their survival."
The 2-44th ADA mission figures to go a long way in what Maj. Gen. David H. Petraeus, 101st Airborne Division commanding general, calls the division's "Charm Offensive."
"It's amazing what these folks don't have," Fryc said. "We're here to help."
http://www.theleafchronicle.com/news/stories/20031227/localnews/119045-42735.jpg