Senior Takes Command on Military Donation Drive

Manteca High School senior Kiersten Melan initiated a collection drive to support military troops as a way to give back to our brave men and women who serve.

Knowing he wanted to initiate a project that supported a greater purpose, he thought to himself, “What better way to serve my community than by giving back to those who are serving our country?” Kiersten shared.

Last year, Kiersten considered joining the military himself.

“When I went to all of the recruiter offices in Manteca to learn more about joining the military, I asked every recruiter what they thought about care packages,” shared Kiersten. “I learned that most service members love Gatorade chewables and deodorant.”

According to Kiersten, it was easy to get people involved. He shared his initiative with the Manteca High community by broadcasting through the school’s morning announcements.

Ms. Nina Norton, Kiersten’s History teacher, was instrumental in the initiation of this project and explained that Kiersten made a great effort to get staff and teachers involved by asking them to place donation boxes in their classrooms or offices.

“The support for the military is very high at MHS, and the response by our MHS family was strong,” said Ms. Norton. “Kiersten was responsible for giving our students and staff an opportunity to say thank you to the soldiers.”

Kiersten ordered free boxes from the post office and found boxes laying around. He taped a list of suggested items onto each box.

The Manteca high community collected six boxes in varying sizes to be donated to the military troops. “Six boxes might not seem like a lot, but I’d say the amount we collected would be enough to make anyone’s day,” expressed Kiersten.

Kiersten initially thought he would send the packages directly to Iraq and Afghanistan. But looking at the USPS rates, he knew he had to be resourceful. Until one day, he came across a flyer when volunteering at Doctor’s Hospital in Manteca.

“I saw this flyer that advertised care package donations. I took one look at the name “Palmer” on the flyer and I knew I was set,” said Kiersten. “When I was a 5th grader at Joshua Cowell in 2011, my classmate Genevieve Florez and her mom who was a teacher, had the brilliant idea of creating an event known as Patriot Day.

Our principal at the time, Ms. Bonnie Bennett, touched bases with Chuck and Teri Palmer from the Cpl. Charles O. Palmer II Memorial Troop Support Program to make Patriot day happen. Charles Palmer was a United States marine who died protecting his country, but he was also one of Mrs. Bennet’s former students.”

Mr. and Mrs. Palmer sponsored Patriot Day where every student was encouraged to donate an item to be shipped to active duty service members. Kiersten remembered being one of those students who helped Mr. and Mrs. Palmer package the many boxes of donations during recess.

The six boxes will be sent with the help of Mr. and Mrs. Palmer.

Among the many items donated, Kiersten shared that his favorite were hand-made letters. He described the letters as not being boring, penciled words on binder paper but artsy, colorful, and festive. “I’m not a soldier, but reading the messages found in each letter brought me a sincere sense of gratitude for the men and women who make sacrifices for our nation. I remember talking to one recruiter and he said that reading letters during deployment made him feel appreciated and that the country had his back,” shared Kiersten.

“It was the generosity of the community that allowed for this to happen. Without them, we’d just have empty boxes. I’d like to give a big thanks to everyone who was able to write a letter or donate an item. Our JROTC was especially generous in this event. “