Soldiers Join Civilians for Day of Caring
By Pfc. Amy M. Lane
Public Affairs Specialist
4th Sustainment Brigade
TEMPLE, Texas – Soldiers from the 4th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) joined civilian volunteers from local communities for the United Way Day of Caring Sept. 10.
The Day of Caring is a day of volunteer work, for community members to help out local agencies that are supported by the United Way. It kicks off the United Way fundraising campaign, which has a goal of raising $1.8 million by the end of the year.
“A lot of the agencies that we support need physical help such as painting and landscaping,” said Jay Taggart, chairman of the Belton Chamber of Commerce military relations committee. “We can save them from spending the money to have these things done.”
Taggart said another intent for the day of caring was to raise awareness for what the organizations do. Volunteers may not know that the agencies exist, or what their purpose is. It gives them a chance to learn and to find out what they may need.
“The more people learn, the more they want to help,” Taggart said. “Many of our volunteers are from local businesses; it really gets people involved in the community.”
The day began with a breakfast at the Ralph Wilson Youth Center in Temple. After eating, volunteers split up into groups and headed out to the community to work. Some stayed at the youth center to do yard work and painting.
Others went to Belton Christian Youth Center to pick up garbage, sweep, pull weeds and clean the playground while others did similar work at the Head Start school and the Senior Center in Belton.
A group went to Salado, where some neighborhoods were severely damaged in the flooding that week. They carried mud-covered furniture and belongings out of homes, and helped residents clean up.
Spc. Derek Rodriguez, 15th Finance Company, said that most of the Soldiers from his company who aren’t deployed participated in the Day of Caring. Rodriguez spent the morning working at a flood-damaged house in Salado.
“I didn’t know how bad it was out here,” he said. “But I’m just happy we could come out and help. It’s nice to give back to the community.”
Spc. Derek Rodriguez, 15th Finance Company, 4th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), carries furniture out of a house that was damaged in the recent flooding in Salado, Texas Sept. 10. Wrangler Soldiers did volunteer work in Salado, Temple and Belton for the United Way Day of Caring. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Amy M. Lane)
Volunteers from the 15th Finance Company, 4th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), along with civilian volunteers, assist with the cleanup of a house that was damaged in the recent flooding in Salado, Texas Sept. 10. Wrangler Soldiers did volunteer work in Salado, Temple and Belton for the United Way Day of Caring. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Amy M. Lane)