Our girls know what it’s like to be away from family during the holidays. That’s why, for their most recent service project, a group of our young women partnered with Operation Gratitude to send thank you cards to the brave men and women in the military who are serving our country.

Operation Gratitude sends 200,000-plus care packages annually, each filled with food, entertainment, hygiene, handmade gifts, and personal letters of appreciation to veterans, first responders, new recruits, wounded heroes and their caregivers, to individually-named U.S. service members deployed overseas and their families waiting at home.

In their messages, the girls express appreciation for the hard work the armed forces are doing in their commitment to keep us safe. Our young women hope that these notes of appreciation will brighten someone’s day as they spend the holiday season serving our country.

The project was especially meaningful for Erykah, who has relatives in the military and writes to them often. “I liked how we were able to communicate with people that are serving our country,” she says.

Our young woman Kelli was also grateful for an opportunity to spread holiday cheer. “I loved it because showing gratitude towards people serving our country is the best,” she says. “Sometimes, doing the smallest thing can brighten someone’s day.”

Kudos to our young women for giving back during the holiday season!