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LENDING A HAND …Sergeants Derek and Cat Kania of the 180th Fighter Wing engage the Swanton Community to help our deployed soldiers. (PHOTO BY BILL O’CONNELL, STAFF)
By: Bill O’Connell
We are all painfully aware of the disruption of our lives caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the shortages of daily necessities that we usually take for granted, like the most discussed and most inexplicable, toilet paper. Many of us are still experiencing random empty shelves in the grocery stores or “Out of Stock” messages when ordering on-line or long delays with almost anything coming by way of the United States Postal Service.
Now imagine being a member of a Military Guard or Reserve Unit and suddenly deployed halfway around the world to a remote location where those “necessities” are considered luxury items and everything must be rationed until the next shipment of supplies comes in, if it comes in.
As difficult as it is to leave your family, your home, your job for six months or more, the shortage of supplies is what many members of our military are facing today, adding another burden to already stressful situation.
Several units of the 180th Fighter Wing (180FW) at Toledo Express Airport have recently been deployed overseas and have experienced these shortages. To further complicate the circumstances, the units were first quarantined for 14 days in one location before being deployed to their final destination.
When alerted of the situation, Swanton resident and 180FW member Master Sergeant Derek Kania, the Unit Deployment Manager for the Wing’s Security Unit, began to look for other sources of much needed supplies he could send to his fellow soldiers. Along with his wife and fellow 180FW member Master Sergeant Cat Kania, he turned to the always generous and caring residents of the Swanton community for help.
As usual, the response was overwhelming. Hoping to raise a small amount of cash to purchase the requested items, a donation can was placed in the Swanton business they own, CK Sweets, a bakery and coffee shop. “Cat and I thought we would get change from transactions. We were thinking maybe $150. But that was it,” explained Derek.
“But we had individuals come in and drop in $50 bills and $100 bills. We had the (Swanton) Legion Riders and the Sons of the Legion drop in hundreds and hundreds of dollars. It became an overwhelming support for our guys. What started out as being support for the nine people from the squadron that Cat and I are part of, coincidently turned into “We’re going to support the rest of the 180th Fighter Wing as they deploy,’ because there are more out there in different locations.”
Veterans of many deployments themselves, the Sergeants Kania are keenly aware of the hardships deployed soldiers and their families face and sought to minimize the impact these separations had by making sure each of the units had everything they needed.
“Between Cat and I we have ample amount of experience deploying and what things are needed and how to get things done,” said Derek. “When you’re overseas and you first get there, you’re filled with emotion. Because that’s when it hits you. ‘I just left my family. I’m not going to see them for six months or longer. I don’t know anything about this environment.’ Cat and I have our own experiences and we use that to our advantage.”
Sergeant Kania, having served almost 18 years in the military, explained how important it is to give our fighting soldiers everything they to complete their mission but also things that remind them we are always thinking of them and appreciate their sacrifice.
“When you get your first package in the mail and they call your name, it doesn’t matter what it is. It could be a big box with one beef jerky stick in it and you think it’s awesome that you got something,” he said. “Looking at a USPS box just feels good. It’s coming from the United States. It’s coming from home. So, we always want to keep those ‘care packages’ going.”
To date, the program has shipped approximately 200 pounds of items overseas, which may not seem like a lot, but, then again, toilet paper, salt and pepper, flavor packets and the like do not weigh very much but have a positive heavy impact on the morale of our troops. For now, the Kanias have suspended the program because they deployed units have what they need. Derek and Cat deeply appreciate the way the Swanton community came through for them and their fellow soldiers, especially in this struggling economy.
Bill can be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com.
