Nellis spreads cheer through cookies Published Dec. 28, 2010 By Senior Airman Michael Charles Nellis Public Affairs NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. -- Throughout the year, the Las Vegas community comes together to support the men and women who serve in the Air Force and the holidays are no exception. Single Airmen living in the dormitories at Nellis and Creech Air Force Bases recently returned rooms to find a taste of home courtesy of the 2010 Holiday Cookie Drive. More than 100 volunteers, including leadership and spouses from the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center and wings at both bases, gathered Dec 14 to package more than 10,000 donated cookies for 880 local Airmen and 130 who are currently deployed overseas. The donated baked goods, which included more than 5,000 cookies from the community and 5,000 from the Nellis Commissary, were first delivered to the Nellis Chapel where volunteers packaged the treats complete with ribbons and cards from local elementary students. The packages were then delivered to every Airman living in the dormitories by the Nellis and Creech First Sergeants. Cookies will also be bagged and delivered to on-duty Nellis and Creech Airmen on Christmas Day. ""Hundreds of people came together to bake cookies for our airmen and show them how much we appreciate what they do and who they are, said Donna O'Shaughnessy, Nellis Cookie Drive coordinator and wife of 57th Wing commander Brig Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy." The annual event, which was implemented locally years ago and is also hosted at other bases around the Air Force, is a combined effort to bring the presence of family to Airmen during the holidays. In addition to donating cookies, the Nellis Commissary also donated recyclable bags, trays, candy, food and coffee for the volunteers and donated cookies came from numerous sources throughout the Las Vegas community. Kitty Hawthorne Ward Elementary School, Lomie Heard Elementary School, Pioneer Services and the Nellis Civil Air Patrol made cards and donated candy for deployed Airmen which will be sent overseas with the cookies. "I know a lot of these airmen are away from their family over the holidays and just to get together and bring these cookies and to show them that they are being appreciated," said Anges Cronin, cookie drive volunteer. "We just want to let them know that we care about them." "It's hard being away from family this time of year," said Airman 1st Class William Ross, 99th Force Support Squadron personnel specialist. "Cookies are a symbol for the holidays and for those getting them it makes them feel like they are a little closer to home for the holiday season."
