Airmen in 106th Rescue Wing receive care packages from St. David’s School students

Airmen in the 106th Rescue Wing will have some extra care items for their upcoming deployment overseas thanks to children at St. David’s School in Riverhead.

The students recently put together 60 care packages complete with a message written by a child to thank them for their service. A representative from the 106th Rescue Wing picked up the care packages Friday.

“We tried to get all of the troops’ favorites,” said Rose Horton, the director at St. David’s.

Ms. Horton said the effort began prior to Christmas as they raised more than $500. The father of one of the kids who attends St. David’s works at the 106th.

The school connected with Lisa D’Agostino, the airman and family readiness program manager at the 106th.

“We wanted to make sure everyone who was deployed out of there had a bag,” Ms. Horton said.

Ms. Horton is also the girls varsity volleyball coach at Riverhead High School and she said the players also assisted with writing some of the notes in the care packages.

For the young kids at St. David’s, Ms. Horton said the fundraiser was a way for the children to learn a valuable lesson in giving.

“For them to see that it’s going to people who support us is a good thing,” she said.

Giving back to the community through different fundraisers has been an important part of the pre-school, Ms. Horton said. Last May, they raised more than $1,000 through a lemonade stand for Peconic Bay Medical Center. Another recent fundraiser around Thanksgiving was for Maureen’s Haven.

“We really try to incorporate giving as part of the foundation we lay here,” she said.