LAHARPE — Pat Spencer had a bit of anxiety in the days leading up to Christmas.
A care package giveaway that Spencer and other members of the LaHarpe Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary were putting together was nearly complete, but not to the point that the items could be delivered to the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Topeka by Christmas Day, her original goal.
A conversation with VA officials quickly allayed their fears.
The veterans in need of such things as soap, razors and other toiletries would still need those items in January and beyond, the official noted.
“That’s when we decided to do it after Christmas,” Spencer said from the VFW post Thursday.
A group of five area youngsters assisted with sorting and packing the items. Dozens of bars of soaps, books, bottles of cologne, puzzles and other items were catalogued and packed. They had been collected since October, Spencer said.
Precise counts of each item were necessary to ensure accurate VA supply inventories, and for the Auxiliary’s record books, Spencer said.
The children worked in tandem, with one child sorting through and counting the items, the other taking the sorted goods and packing them in boxes.
Spencer hopes to set up the care package collections at least three times a year, the next coming in May.
To donate, contact Spencer or another Auxiliary member.
“We can pick them up,” she said.
