Canton residents ‘Helping Heroes’

~ Benefit to help raise funds to send care packages to troops fighting oversees will be held next month ~

Of all the things Canton resident Mike Wagner received in his care packages during his nine-month tour of duty in Iraq, he appreciated his supply of baby wipes the most. For a soldier serving in a war zone, sometimes it is having access to the most basic of household goods that can make all the difference.

Mike and Sheryl Wagner

Wagner, who served with the Marines in Iraq from February to November of 2003, was part of a unit that secured the Mosul Airport. He dug fighting holes around the airport and literally slept in the ground. There was no running water and the troops were allocated only six bottles of water per day, hardly enough to stay hydrated in the scorching Iraqi sun, let alone to bathe with as well.

“The baby wipes to me were critical because that’s how I cleaned myself and how I kept up with my hygiene,” he said. But while these care packages are appreciated, they are expensive to ship. Wagner estimated that postage could cost anywhere from $50 to $100 for the average package.

So Wagner, along with his wife, Sheryl, and family friend Pam Berman of Sharon, are teaming up to raise funds to send care packages to the troops that are still serving overseas in Iraq and in Afghanistan with an event called Helping Heroes: A Benefit About Giving Back. This dinner-dance will be held on Saturday, May 8 at Christina’s on Route 1 in Foxboro.

Sheryl Wagner, who is the granddaughter of Don and Marilyn Rodman, said that they started out with a goal of raising $10,000, but she thinks that they now could hit the $20,000 plateau. According to the event’s website, “100 percent of [the] proceeds will go directly towards packages for the troops.”

The benefit will take place from 7 p.m. to midnight and feature entertainment from D.J. Ron Burr as well as a silent auction. Tickets are $100.

In planning for the event, the Wagners and Berman came across a statistic that “47 percent of servicemen and women serving overseas do not receive any correspondence from home.”

“Especially where the war has been going on so long it is important to keep letting them know that they’re appreciated and that people care,” Sheryl said.

“I think that showing support [for the troops] helps get them through such a difficult time away from family, away from friends, away from the comforts of home,” Berman added. “They’re doing it to protect us and make us safe, so I think there’s no more of an important cause.”

The idea for the fundraiser came from a simple act of good will. The Wagner and Berman families heard about Local Heroes, a non-profit in Wilmington that has sent over 10,000 packages to the troops over the last five years, and decided to hold a drive to collect items to send overseas.

They were able to fill a Ford Flex (crossover vehicle) with about 50 care packages and drove the goods up to Wilmington. Mike said that the Local Heroes organization spends about $50,000 per year to ship these care packages.

Inspired by their work, the Wagners and Berman decided to hold a fundraiser to help this group. And so the money raised at the Helping Heroes Benefit will be given to the Local Heroes organization to help them continue to ship these care packages.

“The reason my wife and I are passionate about doing this charity event is the one thing that kept me focused when I was over there — the support I received from my family from back home,” Mike said.

“Getting these care packages and these letters from all these loved ones from back home supporting you makes you stay focused on your mission because you know that if you get your mission done, and survive, you’re coming home.”

For more information, or for ticket sales and sponsorship information, call 508-698-4045, or send an e-mail to helpingheroesbenefit@hotmail.com or visit helpingheroesma.org

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