Lutheran Hour Ministries (LHM) has launched a three-month project to collect health and school kits for children in Iraq.
In the project, titled “Iraqi Children — Precious in His Sight,” Synod members are encouraged to assemble the kits and mail them by Sept. 30 to Iraq.
Coordinating the delivery of health kits among seven schools in the Tikrit area will be Capt. Norman Cox, who is assigned to the U.S. Army’s 835th Corps Support Battalion. Cox is from Columbia, Mo.
Each health kit should contain a child’s toothbrush, a 6-oz. tube of toothpaste, two pair of children’s underpants (any size, from 4 to 10), two pair of socks (for same-size child), and a bar of soap.
School-kit distribution will be coordinated by Chaplain (CPT) James Freitag, pastor of the Lutheran Church of St. Paul in Graham, Wash. Freitag is serving as a chaplain in Iraq. He will distribute the kits to children in remote areas of the country.
Each school kit should contain six pencils, six pens, a ruler, a pencil sharpener, an eraser, scissors, a glue stick, a box of 24 crayons, and a package of notebook paper or three spiral notebooks.
The contents of each kit should be placed into a 1 1/2-to-2-gallon “zip-locking” plastic bag, along with the appropriate forms, which may be downloaded from www.lhmint.org/iraq.
Mail health kits to CPT Norman Cox; 835th CSB, HHD; OIF2, FOB Speicher; APO AE 09392.
Mail school kits to Chaplain School Kits; Box 5A; APO AE 09391.
Although the kits will go directly to Iraq, the postage is no higher than for mailing within the United States, according to Rev. Rudy Schaser, manager of international volunteer services with LHM.
Cox and Freitag are performing a valuable service, Schaser said. “They’re making sure we don’t lose sight of the children during these dangerous times in Iraq,” he said.
For more information, contact Schaser at (800) 944-3450, Ext. 4256, or lllschaserc@lhm.org.
Posted June 25, 2004