[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 7271]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      ``OPERATION HOLIDAY CHEER''

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. THOMAS H. ALLEN

                                of maine

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 29, 2008

  Mr. ALLEN. Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to 
congratulate the Kiwanis Club of Gorham, Maine for acknowledging the 
courage and sacrifices of the children of Maine's military families 
through their program entitled ``Operation Holiday Cheer.''
  Kiwanis is an organization dedicated to service to children and youth 
through initiatives intended to improve the quality of life of children 
in communities around the world. Currently, Kiwanis has over 500,000 
members internationally, representing 96 countries with 34 clubs in 
Maine.
  On July 17, 2007, the Kiwanis Club of Gorham, later joined by the 
Kiwanis Clubs of Maine, launched Operation Holiday Cheer, a program to 
provide a holiday gift to each participating child of Maine's military 
families, including, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corp, Coast Guard, 
Reserves and National Guard. Over 9,000 children in Maine have a parent 
serving in the military.
  In executing Operation Holiday Cheer, the Kiwanis organization 
acquired, wrapped and distributed a holiday gift to each participating 
military child in over 140 cities and towns throughout the State of 
Maine. Included with each gift was a hand-written note thanking the 
child and his or her family which read, ``On behalf of the Kiwanis 
Clubs of Maine and the people of the State of Maine, we would like to 
offer you this token of our appreciation for your sacrifice. You are 
the child of a Maine military family and the bravery that you show 
every day by sharing your parent to help protect our country is being 
recognized and honored. You should be extremely proud of your service 
to our country and you should know that we, the Kiwanis and the people 
of Maine, stand proudly and beside you. We wish you and your family a 
Happy Holiday Season.''
  I extend my appreciation to the Kiwanis Clubs of Maine for their 
thoughtfulness in bringing some cheer to the lives of thousands of 
Maine children whose parents are serving our country. As they seek to 
expand this program throughout New England and to New York in 2008, I 
wish them all the best.

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