The Manchester Enterprise
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Virginia Senate honors former local woman
Linda Krueger-Sparrow has sent hundreds of packages to troops
By Edward Freundl, Heritage Newspapers
PUBLISHED: February 1, 2007
For more than three years, Linda Krueger-Sparrow of Abingdon, Va., has put her personal convictions to the test by fighting the war in Iraq.
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The former Pleasant Lake resident wears no uniform, holds no rank and has never set foot in the Mesopotamian desert. But she is there –– a little piece of her spirit packed inside every single one of the hundreds of packages she has sent overseas from her home in southern Virginia.
Never once has she sought any kind of accolade, but her sacrifice and dedication is so absolute that the Senate of the Commonwealth of Virginia voted on a formal commendation to honor her service to the country's troops.
"It's been a wonderful experience. I encourage everyone to get involved with their local military," Krueger-Sparrow said recently during a visit to the Pleasant Lake home of her sister, Beth Heuser.
"Never did I think I was going to get this," she said. "I was doing what I believe in, which is supporting our troops."
In all, she has been responsible for sending about 1,000 packages to the troops, as well as having $45,000 to $50,000 donated for contents and postage.
"She's always been one to get people motivated. She's well aware of what people can do to support each other," Heuser said.
"All her life, she's always liked to help people in need."
And it all started with one box, sent to a relative with Manchester connections. Shawn Cathey, a great-nephew to Krueger-Sparrow and Heuser, was among the first wave of U.S. Army soldiers sent into Iraq.
He also is a fifth-generation descendant of A.J. Waters, the original owner of the "Castle House" on Duncan Street in Manchester.
Although the troops had most of the military equipment they needed, Krueger-Sparrow said, Cathey was soon writing home about the details that apparently had been overlooked.
"He told us there was nothing available for them as far as necessary services," she said.
"The first thing his dad asked for was washboards that would fit in their backpacks."
The soldiers needed them so they could wash the ever-present sand out of their clothing, she said, and they had to be metal because the sand would eat up fiberglass.
Soon came requests for other small items, such as personal-care articles, batteries, canned food –– just about anything they could fit in their field packs or the numerous pockets of their uniforms.
"The real big items are candy, Certs, cough drops — anything to keep their mouths moistened," Krueger-Sparrow said.
"Every box gets shared with several people, and everyone takes only what he needs or what their buddy needs."
Krueger-Sparrow said she was amazed by the response when she approached the community to help her fill these needs.
"I thought, 'I'm just one person, what can I do?' But the spirit was there," she said.
She only had to ask, and physicians, dermatologists, optometrists and other healthcare providers donated many items, all small and in individual packs.
"Before long, I had boxes stacked floor to ceiling, even in my bedroom," Krueger-Sparrow said.
When the Army Reserve unit headquartered in Abingdon was activated in 2004, Master Sgt. Janet Torbett gave Krueger-Sparrow a list of soldiers' names several pages long.
"She told me to bring the stuff in and raise money for postage, she'd keep it in locked storage and the reservists would pack and ship the boxes and do the Customs paperwork," Krueger-Sparrow said.
The process has worked efficiently to send out boxes about every two weeks for a year and a half, and people stepped up to get the job done when she couldn't.
"During all this, I broke one shoulder and then the other. But people always seemed be there for me," she said.
Krueger-Sparrow's "can-do" attitude is nothing new, her sister said.
"My sister is absolutely a genius in getting people to donate things to her," Heuser said. "She used to work for the American Lung Association, so she knows about how to raise funds."
Krueger-Sparrow simply sees it as something she needed to do to show her support for the military, especially in a community like Abingdon.
"In a small town like where I live, a lot of these people (reservists) were an integral part of the community and they're taken away," she said.
"I've never heard them complain; instead they say, 'This is my job, this is what I do.'"
Krueger-Sparrow said she never held any fund-raising events, but simply asked people for money, and has received overwhelming response from a wide range of sources.
"A Realtor friend sends me $500 every time she sells a house, a retired minister's wife has been sending me $50 a month for 3 1/2 years, I've gotten $100 from the senior center and a 9-year-old child gave me $2.14," she said. "How can I not do this when I have that kind of support?"
Virginia state Sen. William Wampler presented the commendation to Krueger-Sparrow in a surprise ceremony Dec. 3 at the Reserve Center.
Krueger-Sparrow said she is humbled by the recognition she has received.
"I don't see this as any big deal," she said.
"If there's any message I want to tell anybody, it's that one person can make a difference."
Edward Freundl is a reporter for Heritage Newspapers. He can be reached at 428-8173 or efreundl@heritage.com.
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