Trick Or Treat For The Troops

For the third year, Eastern Montana Glasgow Head Start will trick or treat for a cause. A group of Head Start kids will go out into the community to collect items for the troops on Halloween in hopes to make a soldier's day a little bit brighter.

What started a few years ago as a way to support local units overseas has continued. Head Start site coordinator Pam Ost explained that it was ta teacher, Kerry Henches, who thought it would be a good opportunity to dress up and pay it forward by giving treats to others in the community.

As time has passed, many of those troops have come home, but the efforts to collect items for other troops continueds.

The local Head Start program has been working with a group in St. Marie, the St. Marie Auxiliary, who keep track of local troops and also send care packages to troops deployed overseas. Ost said locally there are only two or three soldiers deployed, but the leftovers are boxed up and sent to the Veterans Affairs hospital and go toward the Wounded Warrior Project.

“It's something we felt locally, even though they came back, we still have soldiers that need treats,” Ost said.

The kids will load up on a local transit bus and visit businesses and residents and collect items they placed on a list. Soldiers accompany the kids as they make their rounds and Ost said that it's a great opportunity for the kids to interact and talk to the soldiers about what they are doing and why. This year 19 children are enrolled, but an average of 17 kids have been trick or treating for the troops.

Collection boxes are dropped off around town. The boxes are decorated by the kids and they collect various items, such as hygiene items, non-perishable snacks and food and sometime some treats, such as candy and trail mix.

Boxes can be found at the Head Start entrance next to the DMV, at The Glasgow Courier and a few other businesses around town.

Ost also said that this month the parents and volunteers take part in a steak fry at the VFW to help raise funds for the program. The VFW will host their event on Friday, Oct. 24, at 5 p.m. A portion of the funds will go toward the organizing, along with the tips they receive. The funds go toward the committee funds, which are used for items in the classroom.