This month, thousands of U.S. troops serving oversees will receive holiday cards thanks to the efforts of Operation Greeting, a program started by Jamie Turner, a North Georgia resident and operations manager at Ombudsman Educational Services.
ESA Operation Greeting Program Sends 10,000th Card to Troops Overseas
Educational Services of America Students, Staff Participate for Fourth Year
CALHOUN, Ga. (Dec. 21, 2012) — This month, thousands of U.S. troops serving oversees received holiday cards thanks to the efforts of Operation Greeting, a program started by Jamie Turner, a North Georgia resident and operations manager at Ombudsman Educational Services.
Turner started Operation Greeting in 2009, and in just four short years the program reached its goal of sending 10,000 cards to U.S. troops. During the holiday season, students and staff from Educational Services of America (ESA) and its two divisions, Ombudsman and Spectrum Center Schools and Programs created handmade cards to show gratitude and support to servicemen and women who are away from their families during this special time of year.
“My father served 20 years in the U.S. Navy, and there were more than a few years that he was not able to be home for the holidays,” said Turner. “Those memories inspired me to create and manage the Operation Greeting initiative.”
Another motivation for organizing the effort was to identify a way for ESA’s students and staff to participate in , a national effort that encourages and promotes sending care packages to troops. Operation Greeting allows ESA and its divisions to support this outreach effort.
“The Operation Greeting program provides community service experience for our students, and more importantly, support for real American heroes – our U.S. servicemen and women,” Turner said.
Ombudsman operates 25 centers in North Georgia and 44 total centers throughout the state.
About Educational Services of America
Educational Services of America (ESA) is the nation’s leading provider of K-12 alternative and special education schools and programs for students who are at risk of dropping out and for students with special needs. We partner with more than 230 public school districts in 21 states to serve 12,000 students each year in more than 160 schools and programs. For more information, visit www.esa-education.com.
About Ombudsman Educational Services
Nationally, more than 80 percent of Ombudsman students graduate, earn credits or return to their district school closer to or at grade level. Ombudsman has educated more than 140,000 students since its founding in 1975 and partners with more than 130 school districts in 20 states to operate more than 140 alternative education and dropout recovery programs. For more information, visit www.ombudsman.com.
About Spectrum Center Schools and Programs
Spectrum Center Schools and Programs serve students with a variety of special needs, behavioral challenges and differing abilities. Spectrum programs are designed for students ages five to 22 with a wide array of special needs, including autism, emotional disturbance, physical challenges, behavioral disorders and developmental delays. Spectrum Center operates state-certified non-public schools as well as several integrated collaborative classrooms on public school campuses that provide special education services to 115 school districts. For more information, visit www.spectrumschools.com.
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Contact: Robin Embry,
Lovell Communications Inc.
Phone: 615.297.7766
Email: robin@lovell.com
