Airman's Cookie Drive begins

The annual Holiday Cookie Drive for personnel at Mountain Home AFB has kicked off. The goal this year is to collect 600 dozen fresh-baked cookies.

The cookie drive provides a "taste of home" for Airmen in the dorms, as well as bags of wrapped holiday chocolates and candy canes to be sent in holiday stockings to deployed members.

Local school children will be making homemade holiday cards to accompany each holiday stocking that will be mailed overseas.

"The cookie drive is an excellent way to give our young Airman a sense of home," said Megan Bird, Cookie Drive coordinator. "For some Airmen, this season will be their first time away from their families for the holidays. We want to let them know we appreciate their service and sacrifice."

Anyone who would like to bake cookies for the drive can drop them off at the Mountain Home Chamber of Commerce office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4, or on base from 7:30-9:30 a.m. Monday, Dec. 7 at the commissary. Donors to the base location will be met by volunteers who will accept the cookies and prepare them for packaging. Curbside cookie drop-off is also available and donors will not have to get out of their cars.

Volunteers are also needed to package the cookies, cards and holiday stockings. For more information, email mountainhomecookiedrive@gmail.com or call Megan Bird at 696-0057 or Lori Lee at 832-9600.