UC Davis cadets, community supporters and members from Yolo Military Families met Saturday at the ROTC office on the UC Davis campus to pack 100 boxes that will be sent to deployed military personnel in Afghanistan. Most packages will arrive by Christmas.

Donations from the community made all this possible. A Yolo Military Families fundraiser Saturday, Oct. 22, at SaveMart kicked off three weeks of collections. Donations were dropped off at the Davis Police Department, Yolo Sportsmen’s Association, Harrison Storage, Redwood Barn Nursery,The Graduate and 1st National Bank.

Employees of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Davis post office, along with residents of The Arbors Apartments, made generous donations, as did Coldwell Banker-Doug Arnold Real Estate.

Lastly, the Davis Sunset Rotary Club sponsored a Veterans Day barbecue at The Davis Graduate to raise funds to cover mailing costs for the packages.

“Hugs from Home, Make a Difference Day, Give a Piece of Your Heart — the community did all that and more,” said Linda Smith of Yolo Military Families. “Your donations not only send needed supplies, they remind our deployed service members that we support them. Yolo Military Families sends its gratitude to all our supporters.”

Staff Sgt. Aaron Welch, who participated in the fundraiser, will be honored by the American Red Cross as the 2011 Active Military Hero. He will receive the award at the annual Heroes Luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2, at UC Davis’ Freeborn Hall. Tickets are $65 per person ($50 is a tax-deductible donation). To reserve them, call (530) 662-4669 or visit redcrossheroes.eventbrite.com.

For more information, contact Vicki Faye at (530) 662-4669 or [email protected].

To contact Yolo Military Families, e-mail [email protected].

veterans BBQW

Celebrating the end of a successful Veterans Day fundraiser Friday at The Davis Graduate are, from left, Charlie Swanson, owner of The Graduate; Staff Sgt. Aaron Welch, the 2011 Red Cross Active Military Hero nominee; and Davis Sunset Rotarians Steve Boschken and Kevin Whitehead. Courtesy photo

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