Bonds of Courage

The Bonds of Courage ... what don't they do. We support them and in turn they support all of us. It isn't just the great things they do for our troops,the care packages, the get togethers, the Christmas Party, with an awesome Santa, the feeling of family but, you always learn a little something about the true people who they help. My wife's Pre-school class wrote and colored cards to the soldiers. Danielle Bracco, the B of C stud dog, made sure a uniform solider picked them up ...I'll tell you the hugs were flying !! The kids saw first hand how important their love was. I run a youth rugby program and each week of our schedule we collected care package items for our deployed soldiers. We had a big focus on our lady heroes and their needs , which are often overlooked. I can't tell you how it makes you feel to see a 10 year old boy dropping a box of tampons into the collect box. Not all of soldiers are GI Joes, many are GI Janes. One of the best things about the B of C is that they never forget what may seem like a little thing, a bus pass, a clean mattress, a letter, a hand shake. Danielle Bracco is everything and everywhere for everyone but, she can always use another hand and another dollar

I reached out to Danielle Bracco when my son was deployed to Dijibouti, Africa last year without his wife , for a 1 year deployment. I work as a school nurse in Summit and had a school of children and families who were anxious to donate to support the troops in Africa. Danielle responded so quickly and positively with an enthusiastic yes to sending boxes to all thle troops at Camp Lemonniere in Africa. The students and their parents came forward with many, many boxes of supplies for the troops - which Danielle and her supporters by providing boxes and actually picked up the many, many boxes for all those in need in Africa. My son and his troops were absolutely overwhelmed by the generosity of the Summit Families!!! Without the support from Bonds of Courage and Danielle Bracco, this donation would not have been received by these troops!!! It was a tremendous boost to the motivation and morale of everyone involved just to know that people who did not know them - supported their efforts!!!! Thank you Bonds of Courage!!!!! You made a difference in the lives of many of our troops !!!!!! Andy and Monica Cattano

Bonds of courage is an amazing organization which helped my family out tremendously. A few years back we were paycheck to paycheck and couldn't afford much of anything for Christmas for the kids. Danielle and Bonds of Courage organized a Christmas miracle for us, for which I will be forever grateful. This organization raises the bar for what it means to have service members backs and will go to the ends of the Earth to accomplish their mission.

I have two step children that have been in the Navy for 6+ years. Summit Supports Our Troops has been great to them and very nice for us as a family as well. My step children received care packages, savings bonds, letters and photos from chldren/students in town, feild passes to a Jets game, and much more. My step daughter even had a personal visit from Chris Truhe during one of her cruises! This organization really brings a piece of home directly to our children and truely makes them feel valued and important within the community.

This exceptional organization reminds us daily of the importance of remembering and honoring the men and women who serve in our armed forces. With their help, the soldiers receive reminders of how appreciative we are for all that they do each day to preserve freedoms everywhere. Each year when my fourth grade class decides what special charity or nonprofit they want to raise money for, SSOT is among the top choices. They are actively involved in our community, reaching out to remind us of the importance of their important mission.

what is remarkable about this organization is its enthusiastic commitment has continued for so long. They are a constant reminder of our service men and women overseas.

I became involved in S.S.O.T. after my son joined the Marine Corp. It warmed my heart the first time I volunteered for a packing to see so many people, unrelated, of all ages, many of whom did not have a family member currently serving our Country. The emotions I felt that day through watching members of my community joyfully turn a good deed toward young people like my son, who have given so fully to their Country; cemented my commitment in supporting this organization.

This year, my 5th grade Girl Scout troop wanted to collect DVDs and CDs to send to the U.S. Troops. When we turned to Summit Supports Our Troops for assistance, they jumped in wholeheartedly to help us. Not only did they supply us with collection kiosks, but they came to pick up the collection and sent them to the deserving U.S. troops! In addition, for a few years now, SSOT has given all the Girl Scout Troops in Summit a way to send the hundreds of GS Cookie boxes the scouts have solicited for the U.S. Troops during the cookie selling season! Just think how special it must be for all those soldiers to receive and enjoy a "taste of home"!

I along with my church youth group have worked with Summit Supports Our Troops for the past several years. Specifically, we have helped with packing for "Take our Troops to the Movies." This is a fabulous organization where every little bit of help is appreciated. The kids and I always feel great after having worked with SSOT and helping our troops.

Our son's good friend is a Marine that has served in Iraq twice and is currently in Afganistan. He has told us how greatful he is for the letters of support and the food care packages.

Great organization helping a lot of men and women who proudly serve our country with big plans to help many more people in the future. I am very proud to be affiliated with this organization.

This organization provides a very direct connection between the donor and the recipient. It is also very active in our community and engaged in spreading the message of support for troops as human beings and neighbors, regardless of political persuasion. I am delighted to be a small part of such a worthwhile endeavor. I believe the organization deserves recognition for putting people first, for uniting neighbors, for putting a face in front of the message of solidarity for our troops.

What a wonderful organization!!! Every community should have a group that "Supports Our Troops". It is a tribute to the volunteers and the community of Summit to show our troops that we care and keep them in our hearts and prayers.

SSOT is the only organization in our area (that I know of) that is directly supporting our troops overseas. Sending care packages and raising awareness in our community of the fact that we have men and women in harm's way in far off places who want to hear from us is a vital part of this organization's charter. Having read some of the many letters received by SSOT from the troops that have gotten care packages from them, I realize what a wonderful service this small organization is performing.

When I was on combat duty as a combat infantrymen in the Korean War, this type of support was not available. The only thing we had was the USO and the Red Cross. The impact of this organization is appreciated in a very special and different way by us veterans. We know what it is like to be forgotten. I have directly observed the service that Summit Supports Our Troops provides to our troops. I am the father of one of the soldiers who continues to receive support, after serving 2 tours in Iraq, and now as a veteran and a National Guardsman. He told me that he and his buddies went wild from the over the top generosity of these volunteers, donors, and many communities who have gotten involved with this effort. It started with "one soldier, one family, and one community" and has touched people across the country.

I have had the priviledge to work with Chris and some of her amazing staff. What has been sent to our servicemen overseas reflects on their hard work and and the support of the entire Summit community.I wear my baseball hat where ever I go.

Chris and her team have brought awareness to the needs of our soldiers. She has made contributing to SSOT an easy way to feel that an individual can help and make a direct difference. God bless her!

I'm very impresssed with Summit Supports Our Troops efforts to 1) support troops serving overseas -- e.g. send them food or toiletries (or school supplies for e.g. Iraqi school children) and 2) educate the public (including school children in our country)about our troops.

The best thing about SSOT is that they enable other local nonprofits to directly impact the soldiers. I've worked with them through the girl scouts -- our 2nd grade troop got back a signed photo from an air craft carrier that really inspired them. They do a great job!

Summit Supports Our Troops came into our lives when our son-in-law married our daughter. At the time, he was a career Marine. He since has retired. When he was deployed to Qatar as an aviator, he began receiving packages from SSOT. Being a North Dakota boy, he had no idea where these wonderful packages were coming from until he told his wife about them. She laughed and said they are from her hometown. He was shocked that our daughter’s hometown would send him and his squadron such needed and appreciated boxes of goodies. Sine then, I have become active in the organization and truly believe in its mission. Dr. Chris Truhe is a tireless leader who is devoted to this group. She has been an inspiration to so many of us troop parents, community organizations, scout troops, and the town of Summit. She makes our local sons and daughters so proud of their hometown. It is with deep gratitude that we continue to support this organization. Sandra and Art Williams

It was my pleasure to work with this organization last Memorial Day. The elementary schools in Summit attend a Memorial Day celebration. Last year we decided in addition to honoring veterans, we would also like to do something for those currently serving. SSOT gave us the opportunity. A list of most needed items was circulated to the 5 elementary schools. The children were to bring their contributions to the outdoor program along with a card and/or letter. The response was overwhelming. We had a 6 X 8 ft. trailer to collect the items... it was overflowing!!! It was a wonderful way for the children and the community to get involved... to DO SOMETHING to help those who are serving us! Dr. Chris Truhe was a tremendous help and resource, she made it possible. SSOT gives the 'ordinary citizen' a chance to thank those keeping us safe. It is an excellent way to let our children connect with those serving us.

This is an amazing organization that supports our Troops. The heartfelt thank you notes and letters that have been received from the 95+ Troops who are supported, and the 12,000+ in their units are phenominal. The fact that total strangers are providing items to these brave men and women has made a huge difference to many of them. The outpouring of support from the community, and those surrounding communities, has been astonishing as well. From sending basic necessities such as toiletries, to "movie-night packs", to headlamps so the Troops can perform duties when there is no lighting, to any request from a Troop, the support never ends. This is all possible due to the unending commitment of the founder and president of the organization, Dr. Christine Truhe; a military mother herself. Her commitment to these greatly needed services to the Troops, along with the personal relationships she attends to and nurtures with the individual Troops has made a huge difference in moral and her commitment does not stop there. Not only does she attend to the Troops, but also to their stateside families as well. All of this has reminded Troops of how truly appreciative the folks back home are and enforces that they will not be forgotten. Dr. Truhe contiues to provide whatever support these men and women need when they return home and begin their civilian lives, a critical and important function of Summit Supports Our Troops.

This organization demonstrates in tangible ways the deep gratitude that the American public feels for the men and women of the military. It has delivered messages and items from over 2000+ people in 6 years to each one of 96+ troops who distributed items to 12,000+ people in their units! This from an all volunteer group. Pretty fabulous, I'd say. I started this organization Memorial Day 2004 when my son got his orders from Iraq. But it grew through all the many civilians who quickly said, "Yes, I'll give my time for our troops." and "Yes, Here is some of my families resources, get them what they need." As I've gotten to know the men and women of the military I learned what honorable, courageous, patriotic, hard working individuals protect our country. They know each day that they are serving us. When civilians do their part we are a stronger nation.

We need this organization for our troops. Both the veterans of all the wars and those soldiers currently serving. It's a good place to start when you or your soldier needs help. We haven't had to take advantage yet, but our son is on his first deployment. He'll be home in April, hopefully. And it's good to know there is support.

Our Experience with Summit Supports our Troops was very personal and deeply profound: Our family and friends truly appreciate and admire the exemplary work of SSOT on behalf of our deployed troops, veterans and their families. It is evident to the surrounding communities of Summit how very important the organization's mission is to our troops. However, as parents of a United States Marine, the personal support and efforts to connect military families to one another and recognition of our deployed servicemen and Veterans, has been invaluable and very personal to us, especially during the extremely difficult time of our son’s deployment to Iraq. As a family, we have been honored to serve as volunteers, ambassadors and ultimately, recipients of the support, love, friendship and important mission of Summit Supports our Troops. Having this exemplary organization available to us and by our side has, and continues to truly provide us with strength, support and enormous pride. Our son’s deployment was bearable knowing an organization such as SSOT was by our side recognizing our son’s service and the commitment of his fellow Marines, by writing letters and sending communication and packages to his entire unit in Iraq. This recognition truly provided these servicemen and women with the emotional support from home they needed and got them through extremely difficult times and kept them motivated and focused. At home, having this organization available as a resource to connect our family with others who shared in our experience provided us with much needed emotional support . Being able to work with this organization provided me with a much needed focus, as I found comfort in being proactive during my son’s deployment. We have been delighted and honored to attend events hosted by SSOT, such as the Family Breakfast and A Tribute To Our Troops, it was truly wonderful having our son honored, along with other servicemen and women. In addition to sharing that privilege, it was a delight to meet and connect with other military families who have either already shared the heartache, fear, and pride of having a loved one deployed, or those who are about to experience that difficult period. It was our pleasure to be able to offer advice and support to families who are about to face the same arduous task of waiting for their child to return home. We truly appreciated SSOT for hosting these events, which connects military families, we all share a bond and need one another. As difficult as our son’s active duty was for our family, the support and friendship we have received from the SSOT family and friends, new and old, has given us much joy and needed strength. We are committed to supporting this outstanding organization forever!

Summit Supports Our Troops is a brilliant example of the impact that a caring community can have on important issues. Through the dedication of the group's leaders and the support of schools, business, and civic organizations, SSOT has supported over 11,000 soldiers, veterans, and families. As troops say, the heartfelt outreach of SSOT reminds them what they're fighting for!