FREDERICK POLICE DEPARTMENT
100 West Patrick Street
Frederick, MD 21701
301-600-2100
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 16, 2007

FREDERICK POLICE SUPPORT US TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN

Recently the Frederick Police Department and Frederick Fraternal Order of Police Lodge held their annual picnic. This year’s theme was "Support Our Troops."

Picnic activities included the gathering, purchasing, sorting and assembling of individual “care” packages for US troops deployed in combat zones. Children wrote notes to soldiers and assembled packages containing puzzle books, novels, writing paper, pens, personal hygiene items, and even DVD movies -- items intended to help fight the boredom of deployment and isolation of separation.

Civilian and sworn members of the Fredrick Police Department purchased and contributed items. Wonder Book and Video contributed three crates of novels, light reading books, and DVDs to this effort.

“Our goal is to get items into the hands of US troops stationed in far-flung areas, those combat zones that lack access to Post Exchanges and/or urban areas. We intended these items to go to “Non Green Zone troops,” said Bill Douwes, Frederick Police Department Public Information Coordinator.

The Frederick Police Department has a number of reservists who are periodically deployed. Also, many agency members have served in the Armed Forces of the United States from Vietnam to Iraqi Freedom. With this experience we are very aware that one of the many battles combat soldiers fight is the battle of boredom and isolation. We want these personnel to know that we thank them and support them.

With the help of Fort Detrick’s Army Community Services Command, sixty-one (61) packages are being shipped to a command of US Army combat troops serving in the mountainous regions of Afghanistan along the Pakistani border.