Red Bulls caught with their hands in the cookie jar

Photo By Sgt. J.P. Lawrence | Soldiers on Contingency Operating Base Basra were delighted and eager to tear open buckets of Sweet Martha's cookies and dunk them in fresh milk, all courtesy of a joint-effort with the Blue Star Mothers of America and the Exchange Clubs of Minnesota to send holiday treat to those deployed during the holidays.  

BASRA, IRAQ

12.29.2009

Story by Spc. Stephanie Cassinos Way 

Multi-National Division-South

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE BASRA, Iraq — Soldiers on Contingency Operating Base Basra were delighted and eager to tear open buckets of Sweet Martha's cookies and dunk them in fresh milk, all courtesy of a joint-effort with the Blue Star Mothers of America and the Exchange Clubs of Minnesota to send holiday treat to those deployed during the holidays.

A taste of home

Eyes lit up as Soldiers of the 34th "Red Bull" Infantry Division popped the lids off of the familiar buckets and told their counterparts who had never had a Sweet Martha about the famous cookies, and how a trip to the Minnesota State Fair just isn't the same without them.

Since many Soldiers were deployed to Iraq during the fair this year, they were grateful to sink their teeth into something unique to Minnesota and to share that experience with others.

Chief Warrant Officer Krystal Jancze, a Portland, Ore. native, initially turned down a box of cookies. When she realized they were from Sweet Martha's Cookie Jar, a wide grin spread across her face and she quickly changed her mind.

"She was really ecstatic about the cookies," said Sgt. 1st Class Angela Amundson. "She even warmed them up and had lots of milk."

"Real milk?"

After living so long without fresh milk, the concept really surprised most Soldiers, who stared in disbelief. "Is it still good?" they wondered. But after sipping on freshly poured cups of ice-cold milk, the general consensus was "Mmm .... I haven't tasted real milk for so long!"

Thanks to Kwik Trip and Carbonic Continental Ice of Burnsville, who had donated and packaged 300 gallons in dry ice, Soldiers were able to drink "real milk" in Iraq. It was an unexpected treat they were eager and grateful to receive. Especially during the holidays, when it is harder than usual to be so far away from home, it feels like a luxury to dunk a Sweet Martha cookie into a glass of real milk.

• Date Taken: 12.29.2009
• Date Posted: 01.01.2010 11:00
• Story ID: 43373
• Location: BASRA, IQ