By Sgt. Santiago Rubio
BAGHDAD, Iraq- The 68th Chemical Company of the 1st Cavalry Division would have been content to collect a few hundred pairs of shoes for some Baghdad kids. Instead, the unit has received more than 5,000 pairs of flip-flops, sandals and sneakers from back home.
And the boxes kept coming. 1st Lt. Brian Cyr, the executive officer with the chemical company, started up the shoe drive nearly three months ago. With so many shoes delivered through his unit, he's bringing the drive to a close.
"We are mission complete," Cyr said. The 68th Chemical Company is currently serving in the Al Rashid district of southern Baghdad.
The unit initially began the shoe drive when they saw that many Iraqi children had nothing on their feet. Publicity from the event widened when Catholic News Services, a national newsletter, picked up the story. Shoe shipments came in from all over the United States as well as a few monetary donations.
Cyr, a Nebraskan native, said that seeing the children put on a new pair of shoes for the first time is something he will never forget.
"The joy on their faces is a lifetime of memories," he said. The chemical company has distributed 1,000 pairs of shoes initially in one sitting. "Then more boxes started coming in so we would take them out on patrol and hand them out to groups of kids and their mothers" he said.
"Now the children have something on their feet to play soccer with and the soldiers couldn't be happier." Cyr called the shoe donations a bright spot for his unit during this deployment. Twelve soldiers from the 68th have been wounded in combat since arriving in Baghdad.
Even with the hardships, Cyr said handing out the footwear has shown many people that most Iraqis are appreciative of U.S. efforts to bring peace. "It has defiantly shown Soldiers that the majority of Iraqis are not the ones shooting at us," he said.
| Date Taken: | 10.04.2004 |
| Date Posted: | 10.04.2004 13:39 |
| Story ID: | 455 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 63 |
| Downloads: | 28 |
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