At Live Oak Elementary, Rockport

For the third year the students and staff at Live Oak, under the leadership of Susie Moss, Counselor, have filled stocking boxes for Christmas mailing. This year we had two Air Force active duty servicemen visit the school to personally thank the students for boxes they received while serving in the Middle East.

Local Churches Share the Christmas Spirit

We loaded 54 stocking boxes at First Presbyterian Church, Rockport. Beverly Jacobson of FPC coordinates the stocking box project for her church and St. Peter's Episcopal as well. Her sister coordinates from Gateway Church in Ingleside/Gregory where they also filled boxes. Full of goodies, gifts, letters and pictures, the boxes will surely brighten the season for our troops so far from home this year.

H-E-B Partners Share Christmas

These Rockport H-E-B partners filled 20 stocking boxes to share with the troops. They and other co-workers collected the items and wrote many thank-yous to include in the boxes. This community spirit has kept our project going and brought Christmas cheer to many so far from home.

6000 Boxes Mailed

On Nov. 14 a milestone of 6003 boxes mailed was reached. Approximately 80 boxes were mailed this day, the first of several hundred that will be mailed during the Christmas season.

Thanking the Supporters

Melanie Harris came to Carla's on our work day to personally thank everyone for the support she received while deployed to Iraq. We had a great visit with her, recognizing that she exemplifies the outstanding young men and women in our military. We expect her to excel as she continues her service to our country.

Special Welcome Home

CC Airport was buzzing with Patriot Guard Riders and our troop support group, welcoming home Melanie Harris from her tour in Iraq as an Army medic. We sent care packages to Melanie each month during her deployment. Joyce Barnes, our top-notch patriot, posed with Melanie outside the airport.

Elves of Del Mar College

On Oct. 27 Dr. Judi Phillips and Suzi Johnson from Del Mar College in Corpus Christi came with a pickup load of donations for the troops. Students and staff had collected, sorted and boxed a large assortment of the items needed to fill our boxes. They did a great job of getting these things together and delivered, and our group really enjoyed getting them ready for the big Christmas boxing and mailing.

At Little Bay Primary, Rockport

The Kindergartners were enthusiastic about sharing the Christmas boxes and their thoughts of the soldiers fighting to keep us free. Bahia Bay supporters Carla Reed, DiAnne Lewis and Jimmie Kelly enjoyed meeting them, their teacher and the principal.

Early Christmas Elves

Toni Martinez, Kindergarten teacher at Little Bay Primary, challenged her students and the other teachers and students at the school to fill stocking boxes to send to our men and women serving in the Middle East. They filled 20 boxes and we picked them up on October 15th. We expect to send several hundred stocking boxes as well as other care boxes this year, our 5th to share Christmas with our troops.

Independence Day

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Steven Hodge Visits

After a year in Afghanistan, Steven Hodge is home again, stationed now out of Baton Rouge. He came to Rockport to visit mom, Susan, and stopped by on the 18th of March to thank our group for care packages. While overseas Steven found and purchased his BMW on E-Bay; it was shipped to his mom in Rockport, another reason for him to be here. One of our most involved volunteers, Joyce Barnes of Mathis, sped over to help on this day, and got an unwanted speeding ticket in her haste to bring the many items she had bought for the boxes and to meet Steven. She's thinking of trading her Mercury sedan for a new, speedier model.

Beginning Our Fifth Year

On March 18 we sorted, bagged, rearranged and worked on troop lists, labels and customs forms, getting ready to mail this month's care boxes to our troops. On the 20th, we packed boxes and readied them for mailing; on the 21st, about 82 boxes were put in the mail. Next month will mark the beginning of our project's fifth year. Lucille and Donna, two of our Winter Texan volunteers, pitched in and helped for the last time before returning North for the warmer months.