Students Pack Boxes for Soldiers

OHIO STATE STUDENTS DARE TO SEND BOXES TO BOSNIA

     COLUMBUS -- Kevin Davis remembers how the care packages he 
received from family and friends while on active duty overseas 
lessened the feelings of homesickness he and other soldiers felt 
during holidays away from family.  Now a sophomore at The Ohio 
State University, Davis was stationed in England for four years 
while enlisted in the U.S. Air Force.

     This memory led Davis to form DARE to Care, Ohio State 
Students for Bosnia.  Some 75 students will pack 250 to 300 boxes 
with Ohio State items, toiletries, small non-perishable foods, 
rose lapel pins and letters written by students to send to Ohio 
soldiers stationed in Bosnia. The packing will take place Dec. 5 
from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Royer Student Activities 
Center, 85 Curl Drive.

     "Oftentimes, soldiers don't think that students care about 
them because they are in the military, many of whom don't make it 
to college," said Davis, a member of DARE, Drackett Area Reach-
out Effort, a community service group. "We wanted to send these 
packages to tell the soldiers we do care, and to thank them for 
their service in Bosnia."

     The students, residents of Ohio State residence halls and 
members of DARE, perform various community service projects 
throughout the school year: recruiting for a blood drive in 
Drackett Tower, volunteering in a soup kitchen, and hosting 
Thanksgiving dinner for students who stay in the residence halls 
during the holiday break.

     "The boxes are not Christmas gifts. They are just our way of 
saying 'Thanks, we are thinking of you,'" said Jeff Redfield, 
DARE advisor and Drackett hall director.  "We wanted to create 
opportunities for students to volunteer for causes that hit close 
to home - something they believe in."

     Anyone wishing to contribute items can deliver them to 
Redfield at Drackett Tower, 161 Curl Drive.  The items must be 
small enough to fit in a 3-pound box.

     Items for the boxes have been donated by several campus area 
businesses, including Buckeye Corner, SBX, Spirit Concepts, 
Conrads College Gifts, Long's Bookstore and The Ohio State 
University Bookstore.

     The cost of mailing the boxes will be donated in part by the 
residence halls and the Residence Hall Advisory Council, the 
student governing body in the residence halls.

                            #

CONTACT: Jeff Redfield, (614) 292-8611.


[Submitted by: Von Vargas  (vargas.12@osu.edu)
               
Tue, 26 Nov 1996 14:49:48 -0500 (EST)]
All documents are the responsibility of their originator.