In honor of Veteran’s Day, 42 employees joined Host’s service team on Tuesday, November 13 to help Operation Gratitude with its mission to thank every American who serves. Operation Gratitude seeks to lift the spirits and meet the needs of the U.S. Military and First Responder communities by sending individually addressed care packages.

Volunteers worked in two, one-hour shifts assembling items to be included in the packages. Employees could write letters of gratitude to troops, first responders and veterans; make paracord “survival” bracelets; or assemble Battalion Buddy bears for the children of deployed military. We also collected leftover candy as part of Operation Gratitude’s annual Halloween Candy Give-Back Program.

Volunteers also had the opportunity to meet a current veteran and learn more about the sacrifices military members and families make through their service and deployments.

In the end, we collected 30 letters of appreciation and assembled 84 Battalion Buddy bears, tied 100 paracord bracelets and donated 60 pounds of candy.

Learn more about Host's Corporate Responsibility program.