Valley Independent Sentinel

19 Oil Drums Shipped To Iraq and Afghanistan

by Jack Lardis | Drums For Troops | Aug 29, 2010 7:07 pm

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Posted to: Ansonia, Derby, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, News by You

American military troops in Iraq and Afghanistan will receive 19 recycled 30-gallon oil drums filled with dry goods collected by the Naugatuck Valley community last spring.

The drums were recently shipped by Better Packages Inc. in Shelton.

Some of the soldiers who will be receiving the drums are: Captain Justin Anderson of Middletown, Fran Evon of Newington, 1LT Garrett Sheehan of Derby, SPC Alan Poulan and SPC Albert Barnes of Oxford, SSG Joseph Paoli of Shelton, and Hammond Henry and SPC Jason Litke from Naugatuck.

The drums were painted by students from15 local schools, artists from Oil Drum Art and the Valley Arts Council, as well as the Derby Lowes Home Improvement staff.

Over 1,200-pounds of toiletries, packaged foods and snacks, towels, batteries, books, entertainment and sports items, and even K-9 items were collected by the schools, Derby American Legion # 24, Beacon Falls Pharmacy, and numerous businesses and clubs in the valley. The drums will also contain letters, cards, drawings and poems from the students in Naugatuck Valley.

The “Drums For Troops” containers were processed for shipping at Better Packages, Inc., manufacturer of Water Activated Tape (WAT) dispensers in Shelton.

The company has donated their packaging services and will place the sealed drums in custom-made cartons and arrange for shipment of the 19 drums.

Phil White, president of Better Packages, said, “We at Better Packages have been supporting our soldiers overseas for many years by making sure that donations get to their destination safely and securely by using our water activated tape.”

Better Packages has participated in similar efforts in many parts of Connecticut and in Indiana and Ohio.

The soldiers receiving the drums are all from Connecticut and the majority is from the National Guard.

The “Drums For Troops” initiative was created by Jack Lardis of Oil Drum Art and members from the Valley Arts Council in Derby. The council committee members are Jill Nichols of Trumbull, Betty Barriga of Seymour, Tracy Mariano of Naugatuck, and chairman Lardis of Beacon Falls.

A “Drums For Troops Presentation Ceremony” took place on May 20th in the Woodland Regional High School Auditorium, Beacon Falls, CT. Over 250 students and their families, teachers, school staff, valley artists, the Connecticut National Guard, local veteran’s clubs, donating sponsors, and the general public attended the ceremony.

“Drums For Troops” Chairman Jack Lardis introduced the program and keynote speaker State Representative Theresa W. Conroy whose constituency includes Ansonia, Beacon Falls, and Seymour. Dr. Arnold Frank, Principal of Woodland Regional High School was the next speaker followed by Colonel John R. Whitford of the Connecticut National Guard. Then Lardis presented the 19 painted drums symbolically to Colonel Whitford because the drums were returned to the Valley Arts Council for fulfillment. Attending students, teachers, and artists were asked to step forward and stand next to their drum art for a group photograph.

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