Birmingham’s Mountain Brook Elementary And Porter Capital Corp. Sending Over A Thousand Needy Items To Marine Troops In Iraq

(Birmingham, Ala.)—Marc Porter of Porter Capital Corp. wanted to send well wishes to the marines in Iraq and ask his company’s marketing coordinator, Janet Peacock, to encourage her son’s 5th grade classmates at Mountain Brook Elementary to get involved by collecting items needed by the troops during the war. Porter’s small idea grew from more than 65 school children who were excited to get behind the effort to over 30 businesses as word soon got out. The result is over 1,500 items being shipped to Marine units in Iraq from Flava 205 and Grits T-shirts to Royal Cup coffee, Dreamland Barbecue Sauce and tooth brushes from Inverness Family Dentistry. And from Golden Flake-“one ton” of pretzels will be sent. School children, parents, business owners and individuals have all rallied behind the effort sending well wishes from Birmingham, Ala., and showing our city’s patriotic spirit.

The Birmingham patriotic care packages for the troops will be assembled and prepared for shipping by the school kids who started this important effort on Thursday afternoon, April 24, from 3:30 - 5:00 at Porter Capital Corp. located at 2112 First Avenue North, 322-5442. A specially designed six-foot long “thank you” card is being made and signed by well-wishers during this send-off celebration.

Other items, especially requested by the troops that were donated and will be included in the Birmingham care package, are sun screen, beef jerky, dry fruit, phone cards, AA batteries, cookies, raisins, snacks, Christian music CDs, walkman, underwear, tooth paste/brush, peanuts, fruit, baby wipes, disposable razors and shaving cream from jar, disposable cameras, pop tarts, and Pepperidge Farm items.

Businesses sponsoring the “Treats for the Troops” project by making donations include Porter Capital Corp., Cathedral Church of the Advent, CapitalPartners Leasing, Golden Flake, The UPS Store, Laura Kathryn’s, Jim Skinner Ford, Village Sportswear, Press Tech, Royal Cup, Pella Window & Door Company, Paper Works, Momentum Business Solutions, Scripture Candy, Marguerite Conceits, Ford Rushton, Flava, Deerfoot Baptist Church, Grits, Tidmore Flags, Communication Arts, Becky Dickinson Design, Union Planters Bank, First Commercial Bank, Dreamland, Inverness Family Dentistry, Meg Holmes, Paul Simmons, Sharon Brakefield of Bud’s Best Cookies and Sonny Culp of Graham & Company. Schools involved include Mountain Brook Elementary (all 5th grade classes) and Shades Cahaba Elementary’s (Mrs. Gilchrist’s 2nd grade class) in Homewood.