Number of Participants: 10
Hours Donated: 10
Value of Time Served: $845
Event Type: Veterans & Military Families
Sport: Schools
Date: December 17, 2016
Location:
Union Avenue Lynbrook
New York 11563, United States
About:
Imagining that it must be difficult to be away from home during the holidays, the student council at Lynbrook’s West End School (which includes student athletes) organized a drive to collect essentials for U.S. Navy troops serving in Bahrain.
The drive had special meaning for the school, since one of the members of the troop, Lt. Colin Dickinson, is a relative of student council co-adviser Jacqueline McDougal. On Dec. 14, students received a surprise visit from Dickinson, who was home on leave from his work as a logistics officer with the Navy Expeditionary Combat forces in Bahrain.
/p>”From the bottom of my heart, I thank you, on behalf of myself and my guys who weren’t able to come home for Christmas” he said. Dickinson shared details about his life in the military, his ROTC training and his travels to California, Japan and Jordan. “No matter what career you choose, your schooling is important” he said. “Going to school, working hard and listening to my parents and teachers was how I got to where I am today.”
When asked how he decided on a military career, the Harvard graduate explained, “We all have a debt to society. Whenever we can give back, we should. I decided that I wanted to give back by serving my country.”
On the sailors’ wish lists were items such as lip balm, toiletries, socks, bandanas, travel-sized games, granola bars, powdered drink mixes and beef jerky. Each grade was in charge of collecting select items to be sure all the sailors’ needs were met. To defray the cost of shipping, students sold bracelets stamped with the words West End Champions. Students worked under the direction of McDougal and co-adviser Lori Gus.
Photo Captions:
West End student council members and their advisers Lori Gus (left) and Jacqueline McDougal (right) welcomed Lt. Colin Dickinson to their school.
Photos courtesy of Lynbrook Union Free School District
Photos courtesy of the Lynbrook School District
