Marines receive way home for Christmas

Marines receive way home for Christmas
December 16, 2011 1:47 AM
HOPE HODGE - DAILY NEWS STAFF
For Sgt. Mendio Martz, the check meant a tray of his mom’s cheesecake waiting for him at home in Schaumburg, Ill. For Pfc. Brad O’Keefe, it meant a chance to see his girlfriend.

Wounded troops from Camp Lejeune crowded into Military Relocator on Lejeune Boulevard Thursday morning by the hundreds, hoping they could soon tell their loved ones that they would be home for Christmas.

The Military Order of the Purple Heart held their annual Wounded Warrior Christmas Leave Fund giveaway all morning, writing checks to wounded troops hoping to spend the holiday season with their families. Onslow County Chapter Commander Verl Matthews said the project’s coffers were lighter this year, with only about $230,000 to give away, and the gas mileage and flight allowances they gave to troops were lower.

But for Marines and sailors who thought they wouldn’t be able to spend Christmas at home, the giveaway amounted to a Christmas miracle.

Mertz said he was one of four or five wounded troops who came to the event from Lejeune’s 1st Battalion, 10th Marines. Check in hand, he said he was thrilled to be able to visit his family for the first time in two years.

“It’s nice to know I have some extra cash to make it home and I don’t have to worry about making next month’s rent,” he said. “Now I can go down and enjoy it and have fun and relax.”

Cpl. Chase Chancellor, a Marine with Wounded Warrior Battalion-East, said the drive home to Phoenix City, Ala., would have cost him around $400.
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