Middle school students send goody bags to the troops

Seventy-five students from East Brook Middle School in Paramus gathered Saturday to send packages to troops overseas as part of Operation Goody Bag.
Jane Cosco, a teacher at the middle school, started the program five years ago to honor Americans in the service.
?Our first shipment was 1,700,? Cosco says. ?Through inspiration it grew to 100,000.?
The students write poems and letters to troops and then package the notes with candy and other goodies. Some of the bags had been hand-delivered in the past to Americans stationed in the states, though Saturday?s shipment of 4,000 packages will be mailed to troops serving overseas.
The students gather every Wednesday to write letters and stuff goody bags. They say they enjoy making the soldiers feel proud of their roles as American heroes.