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Operation Christmas Basket: A bit of home for the holidays
By Ahmad Al-Khaled
KUWAIT: In 1994 Sheila and Lionel Gittens, residents of Kuwait, lost their son Donny to complications from a kidney ailment. Later that same year, large numbers of US servicemen and women were stationed in Kuwait to deal with the ongoing threat Iraq posed as Saddam Hussein continually challenged UN forces and was not cooperative with UN weapons inspectors. The Gittens were moved by the strength of heart and dedication to serve, they witnessed in the young service men and women who had come to Kuwait. They, along with the help of other local expatriates, organised a Thanksgiving dinner for 3000 service members in memory of their son Donny, and Operation Thanksgiving Kuwait was born.
The next year, Operation Thanksgiving became Operation Christmas Basket and 11 years later, an ever expanding tradition has evolved. Since its inception, Operation Christmas Basket has wrapped over half a million individual Christmas gifts and distributed almost 122,600 gift baskets to US military and Coalition Forces stationed in Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq.
3 comments:
Some info is missing here. Seems two people are taking the credit for what a whole lot of others in Kuwait helped put together as well. We were not in it for the adoration, just that it got done, to serve the soldiers, but these two people who are taking full credit for Operation Thanksgiving are getting away wih a whole lot of the loot raised. Yes, you Sheila and Lionel Gittens! After the first of the donations started to show up, is when you were able to afford to open your first office in Kuwait to set up your private practice as entreprenuers.
Don't forget the medical insurance scam that they ran through the American Business Council in Kuwait which left people without medical insurance when they profited. The Embassy was advised but did nothing.
Wow how we remember how nice the Gittens were when they first arrived in Kuwait, and how we remember how many people they ran over to get to "the money"!
Anyway, if you look in the dictionary you will see a word that describes this couple.
God Don't Like Ugly ! They may be enjoying all their riches and laughing at everyone all the way to the bank, for now, living tax free in Kuwait, but in the end they must realize you can't take any of your diamonds and pearls to Heaven!
We can only pray for them.........
Gittens = "Constituants" = Beware!
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