Operation Teddy Drop
Teddy Troopers are
parachuting into various areas around Baghdad, on a one-way
mission. The stuffed animals with makeshift parachutes float into
the hands of waiting Iraqis below. Operation Teddy Drop is a
humanitarian mission geared to give teddy bears to Iraqi
children
Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Randy M. Kirgiss, started the
airborne mission as a way to impact the lives of Iraqi children. He
began the operation in mid-April.
"I got the idea from a lot of my friends who conducted
humanitarian missions on some of my previous deployments," Kirgiss
said. "In Bosnia, I saw school supplies donated; in Kosovo, teddy
bears were given out. I wanted to model something after the Candy
Bomber who parachuted bags of candy to kids. It was from this idea
that Operation Teddy Drop began."
Kirgiss needed and received support from his chain of command
and his unit, and from friends and family to help him gather the
stuffed animals. In conjunction with his official missions, Kirgiss
brings boxes of stuffed animals with makeshift parachutes along
with him. When he sees a child down below, he instructs a
crewmember to drop a Teddy Trooper.
"There is a mission to be done, but dropping bears doesn't take
away from that mission," Kirgiss said. "We have the assets to do
both our mission and execute Operation Teddy Drop effectively."
Kirgiss initially told a group of eight friends and family
members about the operation. The original network of eight grew
immensely, and Kirgiss began to receive donations from everywhere
around the States -- receiving old parachutes and boxes of teddy
bears. Kirgiss is even getting a donation from a well-known teddy
bear manufacturer.
"Originally, I just wanted my friends and families to look into
their kid's closet to find old teddy bears to donate," said
Kirgiss. "When unit members started talking and my friends started
talking, through word of mouth it just got out, and now I get
donations from everywhere."
Kirgiss spends most of his free time, usually at night, making
the parachutes for the Teddy Troopers. The airborne recruits come
in all shapes and sizes, so specialized parachutes usually have to
be made. Using material from old, donated parachutes, Kirgiss makes
the parachutes that are best suited for his troopers so they can
complete their "mission." It takes Kirgiss approximately three
minutes to make each chute, he said.
The unit's largest recruit jumped May 21st as part of the
largest drop in the unit's short history. "We received eight boxes
of donated stuffed animals one day. The boxes stacked to my
ceiling," Kirgiss said. "The following day we dropped (more than)
200 stuffed animals, including the largest one we have ever
received -- a bear that was about 3 feet tall and weighed around
six pounds. I needed to make a special chute for that trooper."
Kirgiss tries to get the plush toys to all kids, but his main
aim is to get them to the poorer Iraqi children in the
countryside.
"It can be a safety hazard to drop them in the city. We don't
want kids running into the streets to get them," said Kirgiss, also
the safety officer of the company. "When we can, we try to send the
bears to urban and poorer areas, and for each kid we see we send
down a bear so there is no fighting among the children."
Sending these Teddy Troopers on their mission is very fulfilling
for Kirgiss. He said he enjoys seeing the smiles on their faces
when they get hold of their new stuffed animals. "It's a great
thing to see, even from 200 feet above," Kirgiss said. "When we see
those kids wave and we send down a bear, most kids will not know
what it is at first. Some hide behind their parents, some stay back
in hesitancy, but once they see that parachute open, they know what
it is and go running toward it. Some even catch them before they
hit the ground."
More than 900 Para-Bears have "jumped into action" since the
start of the operation.
It is Kirgiss' hope to continue the humanitarian mission for the
duration of his deployment and hopefully pass on the operation to
the next aviation unit that comes to Taji. For Kirgiss, it is a
personally gratifying experience to be a part of the operation --
an operation he hopes will have an impact on the future.
"It is something I find very fun and constructive," he said.
"Talking about it also helps me stay grounded to my two young
children. I can't help but think that somewhere down the line we
might be influencing the future decision makers of Iraq. This
operation is only a small way to show that we are human and
compassionate. We are soldiers, but we are humane as well." (Thanks
to Spc. Derek Del Rosario)