POTTSVILLE, Pa. -- Employees at America's oldest brewery took time out of their day to help those who protect our country. Workers at Yuengling put together care packages for servicemen and servicewomen who won't be home for the holidays.
"We started doing this first thing in the morning, and the guys were coming up during their shift, during their break, walking through here. I told them to do as much or as little as you can, and the turnout, first thing in the morning, was very overwhelming for me. I'm very proud of our team," Debbie Yuengling said.
Every year, Operation Gratitude sends hundreds of thousands of care packages to servicemen and women who are deployed overseas. At Yuengling Brewery in Pottsville, here helped put together 500 of those care kits.
"The military means a lot to Yuengling because as America's oldest brewery, we do a lot to give back to our country and the servicemen. They support us, and we want to be able to support them," said Yuengling employee Stephanie Hemmann.
"Being able to help kind of makes them feel at home makes us feel at home, and it connects us to those people who might not be able to spend this time with their families. We want to give back to them and make sure they feel some love during the holidays," said Yuengling employee Stephanie Kibler.
Items in the care packages include essentials like Chapstick, mouthwash, floss, and deodorant. Personalized letters are also included in the Operation Gratitude care packages.
But for this mission from Yuengling, no beer.
"It's hard to be away from your family this time of year, and I can't imagine how difficult that must be for a lot of them, so any way we're able to give back, especially as a group and show our support that way is awesome," said Yuengling worker Skye Leppo.