{"id":14793,"date":"2012-12-12T15:36:01","date_gmt":"2012-12-12T22:36:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/?p=14793"},"modified":"2012-12-12T15:36:01","modified_gmt":"2012-12-12T22:36:01","slug":"first-lady-assists-marines-at-toys-for-tots-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/?p=14793","title":{"rendered":"First Lady Assists Marines at Toys for Tots Event"},"content":{"rendered":"

First Lady Assists Marines at Toys for Tots Event<\/strong>
\nBy Paul Bello – 12 Decemebr, 2012 – Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling Public Affairs<\/p>\n

JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, Washington, D.C., Dec. 12, 2012 \u2013 First Lady Michelle Obama arrived here yesterday carrying a big red bag filled with presents — courtesy of White House staff members.<\/p>\n

Click photo for screen-resolution image
\nMarine Corps Staff Sgt. Joel Vazquez escorts First Lady Michelle Obama as she arrives with a sack full of toys at the Toys for Tots Distribution Center at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C., Dec. 11, 2012. White House photo by Lawrence Jackson
\n(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.
\nThe gesture comes as the Marine Corps ramps up efforts nationwide in support of its Toys for Tots campaign.<\/p>\n

As she has for the past four years, Obama joined several Marines inside JBAB\u2019s Naval Marine Corps Reserve Center where they listened to Christmas music, shared some laughs and volunteered to sort toys and clothes into boxes for those less fortunate. The gifts will be handed out to underprivileged children living in the Washington, D.C., area.<\/p>\n

\u201cToys for Tots started with a military family. A Marine reservist and his wife decided to make the holiday a little better for children in need,\u201d Obama told those gathered for the occasion. \u201cSince then, Americans and military families like all of you have spent countless hours bringing gifts and holiday cheer to children all across this country. This is just one example of how military families go that extra mile to serve our communities. I\u2019m proud to be here with all of you today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Obama and Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, launched the \u201cJoining Forces\u201d program when they arrived in Washington as a way to honor, recognize and support veterans and military families everywhere. Obama said the program\u2019s goal from the start has been to serve the military as well as they\u2019ve served the nation.<\/p>\n

Recently, Obama invited military families to be the first to view the official White House Christmas tree, which is trimmed with ornaments decorated by children living on U.S. military bases around the world. Additionally, guests to the White House are participating in Operation Honor Cards where people send notes of thanks to service members representing all branches of the military.<\/p>\n

Pete Osman, president and CEO of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation and a retired Marine Corps lieutenant general, thanked everyone in the community for their generosity, particularly in a difficult economy and those who are still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Sandy.<\/p>\n

He also thanked Obama, who he said has been the campaign\u2019s biggest supporter over the years. According to Osman, she has always kept her word on coming back to volunteer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first lady literally rolls up her sleeves and helps us sort toys. I\u2019m convinced the success of the Toys for Tots program is a result of the help we\u2019ve gotten from her,\u201d Osman said. \u201cWhen Michelle Obama leads, the American people follow. And they\u2019ve certainly followed her on this one.\u201d<\/p>\n

Osman said there are more than 700 local Toys for Tots campaigns nationwide this year. Toys will continue to be collected right up to the holidays and anyone can volunteer to help out, he said. …source<\/a><\/p>\n

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First Lady Assists Marines at Toys for Tots Event By Paul Bello – 12 Decemebr, 2012 – Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling Public Affairs JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, Washington, D.C., Dec. 12, 2012 \u2013 First Lady Michelle Obama arrived here yesterday carrying a big red bag filled with presents — courtesy of White House staff members. Click photo more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[247],"tags":[3805],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14793"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14793"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14793\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14794,"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14793\/revisions\/14794"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}