Westlake Middle School Sends Care Package to US Army Engineer in Kuwait

WESTLAKE, OH - Students at Lee Burneson Middle School helped assemble a special care package for a US Army member deployed overseas in Kuwait.

Seventh-grade math teacher Taylor Ratliff's best friend and college roommate Larissa Davis joined the army in 2015. The two attended Hiram College together and both played on the school's basketball team. Nothing bonds people together like quality hoops.

Davis graduated from Hiram in 2014 and then worked for a year before joining the army. She is now a combat engineer with the 82nd Airborne Division. She is stationed in Kuwait, which is a far cry from Northeast Ohio.

To help her best friend adjust to her new climate and lifestyle, Ratliff decided to put together a collection of items to ease the transition. Her idea caught on with a middle school class and collecting items for Davis soon became a class service project.

Over the past few weeks, students in Ratliff's, Meg Sherban's, Paul Hammond's, and Todd Milkie's classes have collected books, wet wipes, Amazon and iTunes gift cards, candy, snacks, and sock to send to Davis.

“She has a great sense of humor and she’s still my best friend,” Ratliff said in a statement. “She’s had a rough time trying to adjust. I wanted to do something to cheer her up. The idea of ‘Love for Larissa’ came up with Valentine’s Day.”

There's a gift in it for one of the LBMS classes as well. The class that collects the most items will be treated to a pizza party. And don't feel bad for the runner-up either, they'll get a whole bunch of donuts.

Ratliff’s grandfather’s VFW Post 5137 in Medina is donating the cost of shipping the items to Kuwait.

Photos from Westlake Schools