Photo By Staff Sgt. Katharine Schmidt | Tech. Sgt. Sarah Arthur, a training and educator with the 132nd Intelligence,...... read more read more
Camp Dodge, Iowa– It was early November when Tech. Sgt. Sarah Arthur, a training and educator with the 132nd Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, placed an empty cardboard box with a holiday wish list outside her office at the Iowa Counterdrug Task Force (IACDTF). Arthur works as the Drug Demand Reduction Outreach (DDRO) Program Manager for Counterdrug and wanted to try to do something extra this holiday season.
Since 2016, Arthur has adopted a child every Christmas to fulfill their holiday wish list. This year she had a more ambitious goal, to adopt a family of seven. Besides spreading the spirit of giving and boosting morale for her co-workers, Arthur had a very personal reason for wanting to give to families in need.
“For me growing up in a lower income household, my best Christmases were the ones when my family was sponsored,” said Arthur, “That's a family exactly like mine getting these gifts.”
Arthur’s dream of giving was made possible by Project Mission Elf. This organization helps ease the financial burdens of the holiday season for active duty, reserve and gold star families across Iowa. They provide gifts, a turkey or ham, and a frosted sugar cookie kit for a family to celebrate.
Project Mission Elf is holiday program hosted by Swingin’ for Soldiers, an organization focused on supporting military, veterans and gold star families in need. In 2021 they supported 26 families including 61 kids. This year the program reached 81 families and over 350 individuals through donations.
This inspired Arthur to want to do more and inspire her fellow service members to participate. In an effort to start small, she placed the donation box outside her office. The rest was up to her fellow service members.
“I was going to adopt a smaller family, then I got some interest from some [coworkers],” said Arthur, “So we decided to adopt one of the larger families.”
As the deadline to turn in donations approached, the cardboard box began to fill with toys, clothes, books and money from IACDTF and Midwest Counterdrug Training Center (MCTC) staff.
By December, Arthur’s sprit of generosity spread to other members of IACDTF and their families. Sgt. Jackson Parkhurst, a military police officer with the 186th Military Police Company, asked if his mom if she wanted to participate as well. Parkhurst is a DDRO civil operator at Counterdrug and when he saw the opportunity to help, he wanted to take part.
“My mom didn't really have a good Christmas growing up,” said Parkhurst, “[Giving] back to communities is kind of our family's thing of giving my mom what she didn't have growing up.”
Thanks to the large donation from the Parkhurst family and kindness of IACDTF and MCTC service members, Arthur met her goal for Project Mission Elf– providing multiple gifts for every family member.
“It's very important to help communities and it also helps with the DDRO [mission],” said Parkhurst. “Helping communities is what we thrive for.”
The DDRO mission is to offer free assistance to state coalitions based on substance use prevention. They provide technical assistance with websites, writing grants and attending coalition meetings to evaluate progress. However, their service does not end there. Soldiers and Airmen assigned to IACDTF showed support for their communities through action this holiday season that helped a family and created memories that can last for years to come.
“Other people deserve to be happy,” said Parkhurst, “Especially with the holidays. If we can give them one good day, then that's just all that could matter for any kid's life.”
| Date Taken: | 01.08.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 01.07.2025 14:50 |
| Story ID: | 488777 |
| Location: | JOHNSTON, IOWA, US |
| Hometown: | DES MOINES, IOWA, US |
| Hometown: | HARLAN, IOWA, US |
| Web Views: | 52 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Iowa Troops Make Spirits Bright this Holiday, by SSG Katharine Schmidt, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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