BEALE AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. –
"Let's roll!" takes on a whole new meaning when you see the custom-painted Humvee driven by Deborah Getz, founder and president of Never Forget Our Fallen, a non-profit organization benefiting military families. The pictorial military graphics decorating every panel of the Humvee are a memorial to her youngest son, Army Ranger Kristofer Thomas, and the men he was flying with when their helicopter crashed in Afghanistan in 2007.
Getz recently paid a visit to the 940th Wing, driving up to the headquarters building in her rolling memorial to collect boxes of toys donated by Reservists during the wing's annual Angel Tree Project toy run and canned food drive. The toys collected by Getz will be distributed at the third annual Military Children's Christmas Party in Roseville, December 21. The party, hosted by the Never Forget Our Fallen organization, is to honor military children who have a parent deployed or whose parent was killed in action.
As members of the wing filled her car with boxes of toys, Getz shared her story with Col. Jeffrey Mineo, 940th Wing commander. To keep her son's memory alive, she said she became a Proud Gold Star Mom and left her full-time job to create the non-profit organization, Never Forget Our Fallen.
"I believe it is my duty to help our communities not forget the sacrifices that our servicemen and servicewomen have made for the on-going freedom we so cherish in this country," Getz said.
Tech. Sgt. Laurie Pieper, Airmen and Family Readiness technician, learned of this grass-root organization's toy drive and its goal to collect 2,000 unwrapped toys for children of military families. Sgt. Pieper offered to support Getz's effort through the 940th Wing's Angel Tree Project.
Col. Mineo said, "I cannot think of a better organization to donate toys to than one whose goal is to support military families."
For more information about the Military Children's Christmas Party, visit www.neverforgetourfallen.com.