Marine Families Get Some Holiday Cheer

Veteran Marine volunteers and Jensen's Finest Foods employees loaded food today for holiday meals for 140 families of Marines deployed in Afghanistan.

Matt Zack, Jensen's vice president, will drive the company's refrigerated truck to the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms this morning to deliver the food, enough for more than 1,120 individual meals.

The food will be distributed to families in the 7th Marine Regiment Battalions, Jensen's spokeswoman Sheila Grattan said.

"We know Christmas is lonely and difficult for these young military families with their loved ones away serving our country. This is our way of saying thank you for all they sacrifice and making sure they have everything they need for a wonderful Christmas dinner,'' said volunteer Jim Sullivan, who spearheaded the effort with Zack.

Sullivan, a Marine veteran, is past president of the Desert Cities Mitchell Paige Medal of Honor Chapter of the 1st Marine Division Association, whose Marine veterans volunteered to collect money -- which totaled $7,000 -- at Jensen's markets in Palm Desert, Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage.

Jensen's cashiers will collect tax-deductible donations through Christmas Eve, Grattan said. Suppliers provided food at discounted prices and Jensen's staff prepared all of the sides, pies and instructions for cooking turkeys, Grattan said.

Sullivan and other volunteers will meet Zack at the Marine base and coordinate the distribution, Grattan said.

City News Service contributed to this report.