The U.S. Military is honoring a California woman who sent more than 7,200 care packages to troops and soldiers overseas.
Wednesday, Maxine Russell was presented with an American Flag that flew in Afghanistan, along with a proclamation, during a ceremony at the First Marine Division Headquarters at Camp Pendleton.
Russell has been making personalized packages with snacks, drinks, personal items and letters for more than 25 years.
“It's very special because we have a lot of military in our family and the Marines have been so kind," said Russell, who told NBC 7 she does not like to be in the spotlight.
“It just validates what I'm doing, even though it's a small part, that makes a big difference,” she said.
That flag also means a lot to Russell, as many of the packages she has sent over the last decade and a half were delivered by a helicopter drop there.
Many of the soldiers under retired Army Lt. Colonel David Kramer’s command received the packages.
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“It's a piece of home, and you miss that, it makes you feel a little more human for a little while, while you open up the package,” Kramer said.
The care packages all started when Russell's husband was deployed during Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990's.
Since then, her home has been filled with snack, personal items, and goodies - all ready to go.
The most popular items, she says, are healthy things like unsalted almonds and protein drinks.
The Commanding General of the 1st Marine Division, Major General Daniel O'Donohue, said the deliveries mean more than just getting something to munch on. The packages, especially the letters that come with them, mean so much more.
“You know that you're fighting for something, you understand freedom and it's got a face to it, and that's been Maxine for us,” O'Donohue said.
Russell’s mission only became more meaningful a decade ago, when tragically, she lost her son.
Darren was a San Diego State graduate who had been teaching in China when he suddenly died. She says Darren used to help her put the packages together in the early years of the project.
Today, she says making the packages helps her connect with him.
"It keeps his memory alive in a positive way,” she said.
Care in the form of packages isn’t the only thing Russell, a therapist and grief counselor, does for the military. She also cares for the troops as a volunteer counseling the military, veterans, and families, as well as giving support to those with Post Traumatic Stress.
She is a woman on a mission to help the military, here at home and while they are deployed many miles away.
