<http://schema.org/articleBody>
" Late in 2007, Karin King of Land O&amp;#039; Lakes, Florida, received a letter from a close friend stationed in Iraq asking for homemade baked goods for Christmas. &amp;quot;I guess he needed something to comfort him around the holidays,&amp;quot; says Karin, age 47. Since her father-in-law had been a medical director in the military, Karin felt compelled to do something special for her friend. &amp;quot;I&amp;#039;d never baked cookies, but I gave it my best,&amp;quot; she says. When Karin was finished, she boxed up the chocolate chip cookies and mailed them to her friend&amp;#039;s base.   A desperate need. The soldier shared the goodies with his unit, and along with thank-you notes to Karin came requests from other soldiers for the simplest of necessities: toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, razors, shampoo and more. &amp;quot;I was shocked that so many servicemen and -women didn&amp;#039;t have the most basic things,&amp;quot; Karin says. So she and her husband, Jim, started buying toiletries and boxing them up. Because it was just a few months after Halloween, Karin used leftover candy to pack the boxes. &amp;quot;It was a way to save money on shipping supplies,&amp;quot; she explains, &amp;quot;but the soldiers wrote back to tell us how much they enjoyed getting the sweets they couldn&amp;#039;t find overseas.&amp;quot;   As a result of the response, the Kings set up Treats For Troops, a nonprofit that sends toiletries, baked goods, candy and more to remote military camps, hospitals and bases.   Bumpy road. Over the following months, more soldiers began writing to Karin asking for help, and soon, even the families and friends of servicemen started mailing in requests. During its first few months TFT struggled; the Kings paid for the supplies and shipping and could only send two or three packages per week. &amp;quot;I wanted to do more, so I emailed my friends for help,&amp;quot; Karin explains. Word slowly spread, and volunteers started donating leftover Halloween candy and baking cookies.   A year later, Karin approached Support The Troops Inc., another Florida-based group dedicated to shipping packages to members of the military, about forming a partnership. They eagerly agreed. &amp;quot;Support The Troops was a godsend,&amp;quot; Karin says. &amp;quot;I still get the supplies and do the baking, but they pack the boxes and pay for shipping.&amp;quot;   Delivering hope. Together, Support The Troops Inc. and Treats For Troops now send about 24 tons of care packages\u20141,200 boxes\u2014every month to more than 300 military locations in Africa, Korea, Afghanistan and Iraq. Last year alone, the group collected more than 15,000 pounds of leftover Halloween candy and enough donations to cover the $65,000 monthly postage bill for the year. Karin&amp;#039;s dedication has earned her the U.S. Army Freedom Team Salute Certificate of Appreciation. Says Karin, &amp;quot;This is the least I can do until all of our soldiers come home.&amp;quot;   You can help! Send bath supplies and Halloween candy to Treats For Troops, 29807 State Road 54, Wesley Chapel, FL 33543. Visit TreatsForTroops.Info for more information. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/life/real-women/a5923/reader-spotlight-treats-for-troops-123832/>