Yellow Ribbon Girls Need Your Help: Adopt A Soldier

40,000 boxes. That’s how many shipments have been sent by locally organized Yellow Ribbon Girls.

Yellow Ribbon Girls is made up of hundreds of volunteers that work tirelessly all year round to provide our troops with the comforts, treats, and reminders of home.

This year, they need your help more than ever. Because of Coronavirus restrictions, nearly all of the group’s fundraisers have been canceled or postponed. The group sent 300 Christmas Care Packages last year. Their hope this year is to send between 150 and 200 packages. Each package contains Christmas decorations, holiday treats, basic supplies and gifts. In order to reach and hopefully surpass this goal, the organization is hosting an Adopt A Soldier program. For $50 you can adopt a soldier who sacrifices so much and help make a Christmas away from home a little bit better.

Bonnie Phillippi, one of the organization’s founders, said The Yellow Ribbon Girls are grateful for all the support from our community over the last 18 years.

“We know that this is a trying year for all,” Phillippi said. “This is the first time we have had to consider downsizing our mission. Soldier Christmas 2020 will be challenging. We will ship everything we have, using every dollar, postage, and funding we have. Will it be 300 BIG treasure boxes?  That depends on you.”

For details about how to Adopt A Soldier, view this Adopt A Soldier Form.

History of the Yellow Ribbon Girls

The organization started in 2003 when Captain John Stich (now a retired Lt Colonel living in Wayne Township with his wife and two daughters) was deployed to Kuwait. He asked his family to get involved in keeping soldiers in the hearts, minds, and prayers of those at home.

“We made yellow ribbons and gave them away—thousands of yellow ribbons,” said Bonnie Phillippi. “When people picked up some ribbons to post in the yard or the smaller ones to wear, many gave donations or shared information on their deployed loved ones.”

Phillippi explained that when Shock and Awe happened in March of 2003, the local schools announced that supplies for the troops were needed.

“Our community responded in a big way with boxes and bags of supplies,” Phillippi said. “The school staff contacted us. The Yellow Ribbon Girls had names to ship to, funding for postage, and the school collection provided the supplies. We shipped a dozen boxes. Then we shipped a dozen more. For the first six months we packed and shipped with a small group of family and friends from my living room in North Sewickley.”

Phillippi said the public thought this would be much like Dessert Storm, over in a few months, but when more troops deployed and more ribbons were distributed and more donations were given the Yellow Ribbon Girls needed more space. That’s when the operation moved to the United Brethren Church in Ellport—now known as Ellport Community Church.

Phillippi said that although all of her military family members have left active duty, the family continues the organization’s mission.

“We continue on out of appreciation for all helped support of our family members and to support those currently deployed,” she said.

Yellow Ribbon Girls ship between 80 to 100 care packages each month. Back in 2003-2006 the group shipped up to 200 packages of supplies and treats monthly.

Items Needed For Donation Throughout the Year

Different locations need and request different items as their most important supplies, Phillippi said. A complete list of needed items can be found Here (insert link to donation items), and here are some examples:

• In the heat of summer, freezer pops, deodorant, hard candy, and beef jerky
• As it cools down, small blankets, socks, hot cereal, hot beverages and beef jerky
• Girl Scout Cookies, homemade cookies, and all types of candy are also a hit
• Holiday decorations and treats are always enjoyed

“We have had soldiers thank us for ramen noodles, tooth paste and a clean washcloth,” Phillippi said.

Phillippi explained that it’s the personal stories and appreciation that keep the group moving forward.

“One of the ladies we shipped to while she was in Afghanistan stated in her thank you that she liked yellow and was excited to receive a yellow pillow case,” Phillippi said. “From that time to the end of her deployment she was known as ‘the yellow girl.’ Every item in her care package that could be yellow was.”

She said the organization received a two-page letter of thanks for a clean new washcloth and that the soldier stated he could not wait to walk the 1/4 mile to his shower facility that day.

Phillippi said Yellow Ribbon Girls also provide Christmas stocking for the troops and that just last year the group filled and shipped almost 5,000 stockings—more than half of them were handmade.

The stockings are used to spread joy.

“One soldier asked for four stockings,” Phillippi said. “He placed them on his roommates beds on Christmas morning.”

Another unit, she said, placed the filled stockings outside the doors of each soldier. Then stood back and took pictures. “What joy,” Phillippi said. “Surprised faces!”

Other soldiers have put on their Santa hats and filled their pillow case with wrapped gifts and delivered the gifts to wounded buddies in hospital tents.

Another soldier traveled ten hours to meet and present the Yellow Ribbon Girls with a flag flown in our honor. Many soldiers pay it forward too.

“Many local soldiers and their families have donated and volunteered with us over the years,” Phillippi said. “Some have held collections or fundraisers.”

How You Can Help

• Adopt A Soldier by clicking this Adopt A Soldier Form
• Donate items for care packages at The Color Center, Ellwood City or Ferrante Interiors, Wampum
• Become a volunteer:
  • Some volunteer hands on.
  • Some create afghans, scarves, bottle covers and other items at home
  • Some make cards to be sent to the troops to send back to their families
  • Some organize supply collections
  • Some donate postage funding
  • Some create stockings and pillow cases
  • Some bake cookies
  • Some make crafts
  • Some create raffle baskets to raffle
  • Some donate cards and motivational literature
• Volunteer
  • The group gets together two days a month to pack. Due to the current guidelines they  have to limit how many can volunteer on packing days, but interested participants are encouraged to email group organizers at yellowribbongirls@yahoo.com to see if a volunteer spot is available.
• Donate funds
  • Donations can be sent to:
    Yellow Ribbon Girls
    P.O. Box 248
    Ellwood City, Pa 16117

“We are blessed with an amazing circle of support,” Phillippi said. “We need everyone. Each donation is important. They all add together to fill one care package after another.”

To learn more about Yellow Ribbon Girls visit their website  or follow them on Facebook.