On February 4, Newtown Community Center sponsored a Valentines for Troops program under the direction of NCC Program Coordinator Maria Neufeld.

Art supplies were provided to the participants who eagerly created Valentine’s Day wishes for active military troops.

Dozens of Valentine’s Day cards were created, to be sent to active-duty troops stationed overseas or in the United States. The participants were very excited since some of them had close connections to individuals who are serving in the military.

The local initiative was begun in January 2005 by Carole MacInnes, who was a second grade teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and Donna Monteleone Randle, a US Army veteran and Post Commander, American Legion Post 202, which serves Newtown and Brookfield.

In 2005, MacInnes was going to teach her students to write letters and she asked Randle, whose son was in the class, to help her identify local individuals who were serving in the military so that the students could write letters to them. That January, 50 letters were sent out by the students and many of them heard back from the recipients.

Each year since then the local initiative has grown larger and with the support of military personnel who serve as Military Points of Contact. There are now four individuals serving in that capacity, and the Newtown Valentines for Troops effort continues to support active military personnel with messages of encouragement and remembrance.