American Legion: COP Keating relief effort reaches Virginia

Representatives of The American Legion, Target Corp., and Computer Science Corp. met in northern Virginia Oct. 29 for the final U.S. leg of a nationwide drive to put smiles on the faces of 56 soldiers who were forced to destroy all their possessions when enemy insurgents attacked them in Afghanistan.

\”This is extraordinary,\” said Assistant Deputy Secretary of Defense Gary J. Mostek, as DVDs, video games, laptop computers, cameras, memory cards, books, magazines and other items were sorted at American Legion Post 28 in Triangle, Va. \”Coming so close to Veterans Day, it really shows the strength of the bond among comrades in arms. There are no politics here.\”

The goods, soon to be shipped overseas to troops who survived the deadly Oct. 3 attack on Combat Outpost Keating in eastern Afghanistan, were purchased after more than $50,000 was raised in cash donations through an American Legion blog site, The Burn Pit. Target Corp. matched the donations with another $50,000 in merchandise and gift cards. Computer Science Corp. of Connecticut (CSC) chipped in with 56 laptop computers.