Chloe Giordano Makes Backpacks for the Troops

By Sue Ellen Woodcock

Revere High School ninth grader Chloe Giordano was just looking for something to do, something that would carry her through school vacation week and really benefit someone else – like the thousands of troops serving around the world.

Chloe set up a Go Fund Me page back in November called “Bags to Give Back” and a Facebook page under the same name for her project, soliciting funds to help purchase the needed supply of body wipes, lip balm, sun block, note cards, pencils, food items like soup and oatmeal and more. Chloe even made sure each pack had a package of dog treats. She raised $1,000 and others donated items.

Her aunt Elizabeth Delatorre donated the actual packs for the items. Classmates at RHS also donation supplies.

Chloe, with the help of family and friends, stuffed new backpacks full of toiletries, decks of cards and food for Operation Troop Support out of Danvers, which sends care packages troops around the world. Chloe believes her backpacks were sent to Kuwait. She was also given blankets for donations and gave them to the veterans at the Veterans Hospital. She plans on sending another donation of backpacks for this summer.

“I felt I have to do something to give back,” she said as she stood with her parents, Jay and Melissa Giordano, in the Veterans Office off Broadway. “It was just random.”

“To have a high school student do this and bring them to Operation Troop Support over school vacation is amazing,” said Veterans Agent Marc Silvestri. “For some of these troops in places like Afghanistan this is all the mail they will get.”

Chloe’s mother seems to think Chloe was also inspired by what she saw at her great-great-grandfather’s funeral. There was a slide show in which pictures of him during his service in the Navy appeared.

“Seeing them gave a view of what people in the service go through,” said Melissa Giordano.