Students at LaFayette Kids World in Tyrone collected items to send to U.S. soldiers that were fighting in the Middle East. The biggest box was sent to Randy Hansen, a Peachtree City resident fighting with the Georgia Army National Guard unit as a member of the Echo Troop 108 Cavalry.

For two weeks students and their parents filled boxes with items such as hot cocoa, cards, insect repellent and more and Hansen, upon receiving these gifts, shared them with his colleagues. Hansen returned stateside for a two-week leave and visited the students Thursday afternoon to thank them for their gifts and to answer questions they had about what he and other members of the military are doing in Iraq.

Initially stationed in Al-Mahmudiyah, an agricultural town south of Baghdad, Hansen, who serves as a crew member on a tank as well as a gunner on a Humvee and a member of the infantry, is presently doing convoy escort duty in Al-Tallil, which is located near Nassiryah. He will return to Iraq Monday for another four months of service before returning home.

Hansen passed around pictures he had taken while stationed in Iraq and answered a wide variety of questions from the children. Among the questions asked were, “Where do you eat?” “Where do you sleep?” and “Have you ever been hurt in the war?” Hansen answered their questions candidly and was very appreciative of their concern and their love. He added that the gift of the hot cocoa was very well received by the members of his unit.

After his presentation, the students presented his wife and mother-in-law, who were also in attendance, with bouquets of flowers and gave Hansen a teddy bear dressed in military fatigues. One little girl expressed her thanks by shouting, “Thank you for protecting our country,” while several others added that their parents or grandparents have also served in the military and fought overseas.

Amber Moore, one of the employees at LaFayette Kids World, stated that they stressed to the children how important it was to give of themselves, adding that they were all excited about the visit from their special guest. “It was like a celebrity was coming,” she said.

Hansen’s visit was a way for the younger kids to meet a soldier up close and personal, while the older kids in attendance got to talk about the war in a way that brought the seriousness of the situation home, while taking away some of the fear and the mystery. Hansen also discussed his life outside of the military, which let the children know that the people fighting overseas had children in school back in the United States and also had regular jobs when they were not fighting.

Hansen promised to send some more pictures back to the students and everyone enjoyed a brief party afterwards.

It was a homecoming that will be in Hansen’s memory as he serves the rest of his term in Iraq over the next few months.

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