‘Packing Party’ In Largo Saturday For USS Makin Island Sailors

Posted Feb 17, 2012 by Howard Altman

Updated Feb 17, 2012 at 05:56 PM

Some people come to Tampa for the weather.

Others for the fine educational institutions.

And some even come for the cigars.

Staci Hodge came here from Arizona to pack boxes – full of toiletries, sweets and other goodies for active duty personnel, like her son, who serves aboard the USS Makin Island, a Casablanca-class escort carrier.

Saturday, Hodge, many other military moms and hundreds of others will take part in a “packing party” that kicks off 11 a.m. at the Army Navy Union Garrison #3697 in Largo.

The public is invited to take part.

Hodge is one of the many moms who fly around the country to similar events, offering support and comraderie.

“We are a bunch of moms, and just have really taken it to,” said Hodge.  “We haven’t advertized ourselves, but we are a bunch of moms who found each other on NAVYForMoms.com.”

The website, which is for the moms of Navy personnel, obviously, has a link to an organization called Molly’s Adopt A Sailor, which was a grass roots effort started by an Oregon mom named Molly Gisi to send letters and packages to the deployed which kind of exploded nationally.

“These ladies and I have we kind of have a special bond,” said Hodge.  “They are going through same thing you are going through as mom. Your kid is deployed, you can’t talk about it. It helps me every time. They have the biggest hearts I have ever met in people.”

Hodge’s son Tyler, 23, is a petty officer on the Makin Island and Hodge was quick to point out that it is very unusual to pack for a ship with your child aboard.

Dana Hughes, a local organizer from Seminole, doesn’t have a child in the service, but said she got involved in Molly’s Adopt a Sailor – which adopts soldiers and Marines too – after her husband David died.

“It helped me focus on others during the grieving process,” she said.

The packing party will be a “tremendous event,” said Hughes. There will be Boy Scouts, the St. Petersburg Women’s Club and others.

About 300 people are expected, said Hughes.

“We will be putting snacks and hygiene products in lunch bags decorated by the kids of those on the ship,” she said.

All told, about 2,200 bags, she said.

The packing parties have been taking place locally twice a year since 2010, said Hughes.

Goods are donated by companies the moms write to.

Shipping is paid for by moms who go on line to vote at organizations that sponsor contests.

So far, Pepsi Challenge has contributed a total of $100,000 for shipping, said Hodge. Chase Challenge has contributed another $25,000.

If you would like to help out, visit The Army Navy Garrison #3697, 12850 Walsingham Rd., Largo, between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sat. Feb. 18.

The garrison is the official drop off location for Molly’s Adopt a Sailor. You can drop donations off Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. and Sunday 12 p.m. to closing. For large donations, please contact Dana Hughes at (727) 798-1351.