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 Staff Sgt. Joseph Facilla (left) and Sgt Mark Finney open a box they received from their sponsor at a forward operating base in Southeastern Afghanistan. KHOST, Afghanistan (Army News Service, Dec. 17, 2002) - The soldiers at this forward operating base have never met Elaine Harmon, but they know she always ends her letters with "Hugs, mom." Infantrymen from Company B, 3rd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, deployed to Afghanistan from Fort Bragg, N.C., look forward to the comfort Harmon sends them in large packages. "She sent a box to our sergeant major who gave it to us," said Sgt. 1st Class Wylie Hutchinson, from Chino, Calif., "and we've been writing her ever since." He said Harmon sends them packages in themes. For example, for the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks, Harmon sent them flags. On Halloween, she sent them items like pumpkin plates, napkins, cups, candy, movies and popcorn. "She must have spent more than $1,000 on us," Hutchinson said. Harmon, from Lawrenceville, N.J., makes them feel appreciated said Sgt. Mark Finney, from Phoenix. "She's great because she gives us a time out," he said. "She thinks we're heroes." In addition to the regular packages they receive, Harmon elected to do more for the troops. "The single guys got letters from older women," Finney said. Harmon also sends individual packages to soldiers on their birthdays. "I get more from her than my family," Finney said. In return, he said his company will present her with a gift for all her hard work. "We're getting her a plaque with an American flag enclosed," Finney said. "We took the flag on every mission."
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