Gary Andersen assembles a care package for his daughter, Army Medic Desirea Andersen. Courtesy photo.

LAKEPORT – The most recent packing party saw Operation Tango Mike volunteers assemble 86 care packages for our troops.

The boxes contained many special treats from home, including Girl Scout cookies, purchased and donated by Lake County citizens. The folks from People Services created handmade laundry bags and small drawstring pouches for the troops. The pouches are very functional, serving to protect eyewear, such as goggles and sunglasses.

Sue Wallace of Kelsey Creek Coffee Co. has generously been donating fine quality coffee for the care packages. She has even taken the care and time to roast the beans just before the shipping!

The 86 care packages were filled and the supply bins emptied at the end of the packing. As the temperatures are quickly soaring in Iraq, care package contents are moving away from chocolate and other items that will melt easily. Snacks such as nuts, dried fruit and jerky are very popular with the troops, travel well and are lightweight enough to be carried by soldiers on the move.

As costs are a constant challenge in shipping 80 to 90 care packages each month, Operation Tango Mike volunteers are planning fundraising events. On Saturday, May 12, there will be a car wash from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Umpqua Bank on 11th Street in Lakeport.

On Sunday, April 27, there will be a fashion show and catered tea at the Middletown Adventist School at 21640 Highway 29 South in Middletown at 3 p.m. The affair will be catered by the Yuba College Culinary Arts Program. The event is the Senior Project of Amanda Rawlings, a member of the Class of 2008 from Middletown High School. Advance tickets are $15 and tickets at the door will be $18. You may purchase tickets by calling Ginny at 349-2838.

Operation Tango Mike often receives thank you notes and e-mail messages from troops receiving care packages. Six days after shipping the last batch, two such messages were received. The first was from James Rayburn, who wrote, “Hello my name is SGT Rayburn, James. I just received two boxes from you guys and I wanted to take the time to sit down and send you a thank you note. I am from Middletown so it was nice to get these boxes from so close to home. Well thank you for all that you do or our troops. God bless. Once again thank you so very much for the packages. SGT Rayburn.”

The second was from Lucerne’s Eli Christopher who wrote, “Thank you very much for doing what you do. I received two packages from you guys the other day and almost everything in it was just what we all needed. It always nice to know that people we know care about us. Thank you again. BU3 Elijah Christopher.”

Though no thank you is ever expected, it is a special treat for the Operation Tango Mike family of volunteers, who loves to hear from our troops.

If you would like to become part of the family, wish to donate or desire more information; please contact Ginny at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 707-349-2838.

Middletown volunteer Ellen Hunt assembles a care package. Courtesy photo.

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