Oak Lawn Scout prepares care packages for overseas soldiers for Eagle project

Chicago Tribune

24-04-2025

Since his childhood, Will Martin has been around people who cherished our overseas soldiers.
There's been Jacky Connelly, who began collecting and sending comfort food to soldiers years ago with the help of families at the Oak Lawn Park District.
Lisa Martin took a kiddy krayons and stories class from Connelly there decades ago, first with her daughter, Madison and then with Will, and they all helped with the effort.
Now Will Martin, a senior at Oak Lawn Community High School, is collecting and packaging donations himself, with the help of Connelly, as his Eagle Scout project with Worth Boy Scout Troop 668.
Connelly coordinates Mrs. Jacky's Soldiers, made up of volunteers who send the care boxes, and others who help collect donations and postage to mail them. They recently began their 23rd year of the effort.
Will started collecting about a month ago and has 10 boxes filled with snacks, such as mixed nuts, granola, gum, tuna cans or packets and Ramen. He lists all the items on his project Facebook page, including the need for socks, hand sanitizer and ear buds.
There are collection boxes in Oak Lawn, Worth and Crestwood at schools, village halls, a church, fitness centers and libraries, with locations also listed on his page.
'I just go to the bins and look in them and see if anything is in there and bring it home in one of these boxes,' said Will, pointing to the piles of boxes in his living room.
Connelly said they will pack the donations with the help of fellow Scouts, volunteers, friends and families and store them in the basement of St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Worth.
'We know these care packages are sometimes what can get people through,' Lisa Martin said. 'A nice little remind of home.'
Martin said one of her favorite memories of those early Park District classes with her children was making cards and having them color pictures to send overseas.
Connelly started the collections because her dad served in World War II and was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star. She said her mom sent letters and packages to him almost daily and her dad said that kept his spirits up.
One of the first collections was in 2003 for the mother of one of her tot program students deployed to Iraq.
Recently when she was mailing packages at the post office, a man whose son was serving in the military overseas asked her how to go about sending a package to him. He later called her with his son's name and address and she sent his troop packages. The son sent her a touching thank-you note with a medal made by him and his comrades.
Connelly sends packages every other week to Kuwait, Germany, Romania, a ship in the Red Sea and other locations.
Connelly also teaches an after-school craft program at St. Gerald School in Oak Lawn, where they make crafts for soldiers.
'It's very important to instill giving back,' said Connelly. 'For the soldiers, it means everything to get these boxes.'
She also said it was important for youth like Will to be involved.
'It's wonderful. It's like full circle,' said Connelly. 'It's thrilling to see Will doing such a wonderful project and giving back.'
The collecting and packaging is just one of the activities Will said he has enjoyed as a Scout. He's been in the program since first grade and loved archery at a Boy Scout camp, where he made arrows, and boating. He earned merit badges for both.
He plans to study graphic design at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, building on a class he's taken for four years at Oak Lawn Community High School.
Eric Kallenborn, who has Will in his college writing and comic creation classes, said he has left his mark on the school, too.
'William stands out not with volume, but with quiet confidence, thoughtful contributions and genuine kindness,' said Kallenborn. 'His leadership, creativity and calm presence have made a lasting impact on our school community.'