Operation Gratitude

Today I was watching the news and saw a great story. Joan Mazzarelli is a 98 year old woman who knits scarves for Operation Gratitude. Operation Gratiude is an organization that sends gift boxes, handknit and crocheted scarves and hats, and care packages to our service men and women. This 98 year old woman stated that she knits scarves and has knit for service persons since World War II. She said she gets up and knits until lunch. After lunch she knits till dinner. She then stated that she knits sometimes till  2 in the morning. That is dedication. She said that she sometimes knits up to three scarves in one day. Being a knitter I understand the amount of time it takes to knit scarves and hats.  All of her knitting is then sent to Operation Gratitude. As our time in Iraq and Afghanistan has continued we still have many troops serving not just there but in many areas of the world. They are all deserving of our support and gratitude. They are the ones that enable us to do the things we can and want to do. Check out http://www.opgratitude.com/ . There are many ways to support our troops listed there, knitting and crocheting hats and scarves, sewing neck gaiters and bandana cool ties, collecting candy and Beanie Babies for soldiers to give to children, and donations for care packages to make the soldiers feel a little bit of home. If you are not involved in some other way think about contributing in one of these ways. As a mother of a soldier I know how important those care packages are to the soldiers. If we all do even a little then a lot is actually done. (Thanks to Operation Gratitude for the use of their banner)