Aidan Anderson, 11, from Snohomish concentrates on composing his letter to a service person during a Glacier Peak Cubs program Wednesday, Nov. 9.
SNOHOMISH — The Snohomish School District Grizzly Cubs gathered after school in the Glacier Peak High School cafeteria Nov. 9 to put pen to paper, writing letters of encouragement to deployed soldiers for their Adopt a Soldier campaign.
The Grizzly Cubs program pairs Glacier Peak High School students with fourth through sixth-grade students from elementary schools such as Cathcart, Seattle Hill, Little Cedars and Totem Falls. The program has scheduled events once a month.
The Snohomish Marine Corps JROTC attended the Adopt a Soldier event. Its Senior Captain, William Lennon, spoke to the students about Veterans Day and what it means for soldiers to receive letters and care packages.
“When I went to Afghanistan, I got packages like these. So, from me to you, thank you for doing this,” Lennon said. The Marine JROTC color guard presented the flag and played the National Anthem to help kick off the letter writing.
A total of 340 students are in the Grizzly Cubs program this year. The younger students are the Cubs, while their high school partners are the Grizzlies.
Little Cedars Elementary sixth grader Aidan Anderson was excited to meet with his Grizzly for the event. After discussing how to write their letters, Anderson carefully wrote a message.
“It’s good to give them motivation to keep going for our country,” Anderson said about writing the letter.
Anderson’s Grizzly mentor, 10th grader Anthony DePietto, wrote about his hobbies and asked what the soldiers like to do in their spare time in his letter. This is his second year participating in Grizzly Cubs and the Adopt a Soldier letter-writing event.
Eleventh-grade student, Pierce Steele, is experiencing his first year as a Grizzly mentor. He is enjoying the program and wants to stay in it next year. He and his Cub addressed their letters with “Dear Hero,” and thanked them for their service.
Grizzly participant Heba Abu-Halaweh enjoyed the letter writing with her Cub, noting that she was a Cub herself and this is her second year as a Grizzly.
“I enjoyed making someone happy because that brings me joy,” Abu-Halaweh said about writing the letter.
The Glacier Peak Associated Student Body (ASB) organizes the Adopt a Soldier campaign. The Grizzly Cubs have been helping with this campaign every year since the school opened in 2008.
Students collected items through Tuesday, Nov. 15. The care packages included black crew socks, hygiene items, first aid items, eye drops, card games and puzzles, books and magazines, batteries and some nonperishable treats. The ASB will assemble the care packages and prepare them for shipment.
For more information on how to help with the Adopt a Soldier care packages, contact Teri Corwin via email: teri.corwin@sno.wednet.edu
