Volunteers looking for cash to ship Christmas gifts to Utah troops

SANTAQUIN, Utah County — From her sewing machine and by word of mouth, Ann Jensen helped get 1,100 Christmas stockings filled with goodies to soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The 71-year-old Santaquin woman is doing it again this year, this time with handkerchiefs — 1,600 of them.

But it may be for nothing. Letters to Soldiers, the nonprofit group that put the packages together the past three years, hasn't been able to raise the money for shipping. Founder Denise De Vynck said she has raised just $1,000 for shipping — roughly $15,000 short. Each package costs $10 to ship.

Still, Jensen continues to move forward, hoping for a miracle.

A volunteer for the grass-roots organization bent on remembering the troops during the holidays, Jensen last year recruited some 20 other women who like to sew. That number soon grew to about 50, all in south Utah County.

It all started for Jensen two years ago when she met De Vynck at a military display at Cabella's, an outdoor store in Lehi. Jensen volunteered to take fliers for De Vynck to area fabric stores to recruit volunteers to make the stockings.

"I was absolutely flooded with the response," Jensen said.

Women and youths in south county wards of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints took the on challenge as a service project, dubbing it Operation Ensuring Christmas. Together, with a group of volunteer seamstresses in Brigham City, they came up with enough Christmas stockings for the Utah soldiers on their list, De Vynck said.

Meanwhile, the Brigham City group also kept going after the project was completed, making enough stockings to fill the needs for this year's Christmas. So the Utah County group switched to making hankies.

"These guys are in the dirt so they don't need white handkerchiefs," Jensen said.

The handkerchiefs Jensen is making use dark-colored cotton cloth, measuring 22 inches square.

Other volunteers will provide popcorn balls for the troops, to be made fresh in October, and the Brigham City volunteers plan to provide brownies for the soldiers, De Vynck said.

Last year, the army of volunteers gathered at Payson High School to put the packages together. This year, the location for the assembly has yet to be announced.