SEMINOLE, Fla. — “You never know who is watching”.
That is something I say all the time: Reporters go out and do their work and send their stories off on television -- and it’s really hard to say who may be touched by that work that day. When I met Graci Tubbs this spring, I got immediate feedback.
I got a text message from her mother, Kadi, moments after we aired her daughter’s story. A $500 donation had come into Operation: Military Matters. I was so pleased. We don’t do stories to generate donation dollars for people, even if they are delightful teenagers working to keep her non-profit humming.
It is nice when the community shows an interest in helping those who could use a hand.
Operation: Military Matters sends care packages overseas to soldiers fighting for our freedoms. It’s something Tubbs has been doing for about three years. Her care packages include everyday items that are taken for granted by most of us back here on home soil. Things like beef jerky, gum, and clean socks really do uplift a service member, though.
Shipping those items can get expensive. Kadi says it’s up to $30 per box.
That said, a $500 donation really makes a difference. Tubbs set a goal to pack 100 boxes per month in 2019. She smashed that with a total of 1,950 boxes in 2019. Her lifetime total is up to 3,200. The outreach has grown and grown and makes a real-world difference for soldiers she’ll likely never meet.
Tubbs is an incredible example of someone learning the art of giving.
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