photo by: Robert A. DeFrank
Ellen Robbins, left, and Peggy Riggs of Lansing and others at the Lansing Senior Center on Wednesday sign Christmas cards for service personnel overseas.
ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Many of Belmont County’s senior citizens took time to remember and reach out to the nation’s veterans and military personnel this holiday season with Christmas cards and messages of goodwill and gratitude.
Before Thanksgiving, baskets for donated Christmas cards for veterans were at the entrance to the courthouse and other sites around the city for the St. Clairsville Senior Center to ship to those who have served.
Volunteer Shirley Pangle of St. Clairsville spearheaded the effort to obtain cards.
“I look through garage sales, stores, everywhere I can find them. I get them and I buy them and I bring them here and we send them. If people want to donate them, it’s great,” Pangle said. “I tell all the people right after Christmas, ‘Watch the sales.’”
She said the cards will be distributed across the country.
“I get cards from people who donate them and give them to us, and I have everybody here sign them,” Pangle said. “All these are going to go to Maryland, and then they’re going to get mailed out to hospitals, to veterans for the holidays. … I would like to get more senior centers involved in it and more people. I want people to realize we have them here and they can get them. … Next year I would like to see a lot of the organizations and stuff make contact with us, and I will be glad to give them cards that we need back by Thanksgiving.”
For a personal touch, Pangle said the participants include a wide variety of messages.
“They know where the card is coming from,” she said. “I tell people to write a little story if they’d like to, so they have something to read and hold in their hand.”
She added she was impressed at the community’s response.
“I love this little town. It’s a sweet town, people are nice,” Pangle said. “We did it last year, but we didn’t do it as big. I have several hundred, because I’ve got a lot coming back.”
For more information or to donate cards, call the senior center at 740-695-1944.
Meanwhile on Wednesday, seniors at the Lansing Senior Center held a card-signing for troops overseas. Coordinator David Ward said they would be sent to the United Soldiers and Sailors of America next week.
Alice Reynolds of Lansing said 380 cards were being signed Wednesday. The deadline to ship them is Dec. 5.
“We’ve been doing it, this will be the second year we’ve done it,” Ward said. “We’ve had the same last year, close to 400 cards.”
“We figured it’s just a little something for the troops while they’re overseas. To get them, we thought, would just make them a little bit happier that they’re missing their family, and we were just trying to give them a little more,” Reynolds said.
They said they wished the recipients a happy holiday season and thanked them for their service.
“Thanks for all your work and protecting us, things like that,” Reynolds said.
“It’s good for us, too, to do something with our people every year and get everybody in the holiday spirit,” Ward said. “And (writing) helps with dexterity.”
“My son (Steven Bliss) is still in the military. He’s going to retire this year,” Shirley Nichols of Lansing said, adding her son has served in the U.S. Army for 21 years. “I am wishing all the veterans very happy holidays, Christmas and hope they make it home soon to their families, and may God bless you.”
Belmont County Commissioners J.P. Dutton and Jerry Echemann also dropped by to sign cards Wednesday.
Belmont County Senior Services Director Lisa Kazmirski said each individual center plans independent projects to benefit veterans throughout the year.
The United Soldiers and Sailors of America can be reached at usasoa.org.
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