Easy Way To Contribute

You can drop off donations in one of our convenient locations below until November 29th:

• Frisco Independence High School Mobile Store at the front entry in the mornings (due to security the public is not allowed)

• Frisco Independence High School Classroom B-200 at the front of the school just past the top of the stairs on the second level (due to security the public is not allowed)

• The Chiles home in South Paloma Creek (Northeast Denton County by Little Elm) - please contact Shelby for additional information

• Trietsch Memorial United Methodist Church (TMUMC) in Flower Mound in one of the drop boxes Monday through Thursday, limited hours Friday, and early Sundays

Or, you can order from our Amazon Gift Registry until November 28th and have everything shipped via Prime to our temporary storage facility at TMUMC. That makes it super easy!

If you know anyone that is active duty that is currently overseas, please request a care package here. We would love to send them a personalized care package as a small token of our appreciation for their service! We know it must be difficult for them to be away every day - especially on holidays. We would be honored to bring them joy. If you are one of their loved ones, thank you for your service as well. We know that when someone serves, it is not only the person in the military - it is everyone that they love.

Budget Friendly Blessings

It doesn’t have to be the latest, greatest, top of the line, name brand item. Please keep in mind that even if you don’t “need” to shop on a budget, the more you get for your money, the more people you can bless.

Here are some of our favorite places to shop:

• Dollar Tree

• Kroger

• Sam’s

• WalMart

• WinCo

You can find some excellent deals at all of them.

Dollar Tree Favorites:

• Eye drops

• Lip balm - 2 or 3 per pack

• Jelly/Jam that’s squeezable in grape or strawberry (no glass)

• Shave gel in a tube (no traditional shaving cream in a can or after shave since we can’t have pressurized cans or anything with alcohol)

• Slim Jim jerky sticks

• Sunscreen SPF 30 or higher - in a bottle or tube (no cans please)

Kroger Favorites:

• Jelly/Jam that’s squeezable in grape or strawberry (no glass)

Sam’s Favorites:

• Band-aids

• Chef Boyardee meals

• Dry coffee creamer in a canister

• Hot chocolate in individual packets

• Oatmeal in individual packets

• Sugar in a canister

Walmart Favorites:

• Baby wipe refills in Parent’s Choice brand (no hard plastic containers please)

• Jelly/Jam that’s squeezable in grape or strawberry (no glass)

• Jif-to-Go peanut butter single serve cups -AND- squeezable tubes

• Hormel Compleats - 3 pack (NO PORK please)

• Sunscreen lotion SPF 30 or higher in a pump or squeezable tube (no aerosol cans)

WinCo Favorites:

• Gallon, quart, sandwich, and snack bags in WinCo brand for packing and sorting

• Jelly/Jam that’s squeezable in grape or strawberry (no glass)

What They Want

These are items that they like that are not high priority needs. Priority should be given to the items that are requested most; however, if you have a box of old movies (or anything else on the list) gathering dust that is new or gently used (used is okay where noted), we would love to take it off of your hands.

If you would like to simply purchase them and have them shipped to our location, you can check out our Amazon Gift Registry and have everything shipped via Prime until November 28th. High priority items will also have “Angel Item” in the notes when you click on the product in the registry.

Everyone can assist us by purchasing the maximum amount of Gold Bond Foot Powder per home which is three at $0.97.

Thank you!!!

NON-FOOD:

• Baby powder - travel sized is okay

• Bar soap

• Band-aids

• Ben-Gay

• Body wash in 10-18 oz bottles or tubes

• CDs - gently used is okay

• Command or other brand of adhesive hooks

• DVDs - gently used is okay

• First Aid kits

• Hand and foot warmer packets

• Insect repellent (non-aerosol only)

• Mechanical pencils

• Moisturizing lotion

• Over the counter medicines - Tylenol, Advil, Aleve, Rolaids, Tums (no liquids please)

• Panty liners (no pads please)

• Pens

• Power converters - gently used is okay

• Shampoo in 10-18oz bottles or tubes

• Small flashlights

• Tampons (no pads please)

• Throws

• Unused, unopened travel size items

• Wash clothes

FOODS:

• Bean dip

• Canned fruit (no cans that require a can opener or plastic containers)

• Chocolate (only in winter months)

• Crackers

• Hot sauce in a plastic container (no glass)

• Jelly/Jam that’s squeezable in strawberry or grape (no glass please)

• Lays Stax Chips, Pringles, shoestring potatoes in canisters (no bagged snacks)

• Microwavable popcorn

• Nuts - peanuts, almonds, pistachios, etc.

• Seeds - sunflower, pumpkin

• Sugar in a canister

• Sweeteners, crackers, and jellies in restaurant sized packets

• Raisins

• Rice Krispies Treats (commercially made only)

Items To Avoid

• “Adult” items

• Aerosol products - anything that is pressurized in a can could spray or explode (e.g., hairspray, lotion, suntan lotion, Lysol)

• Anything with alcohol as an ingredient

• Bagged snacks (e.g., chips, Goldfish, Veggie sticks, Cheez-Its) - anything that can be popped and/or easily crushed

• Books

• Cans that require a can opener

• Chocolates (due to melting) - except from October to February

• Flammable and/or pressurized items

• Fruit cups in plastic as these tend to leak

• Hard candy as it melts

• Homemade food products

• Items packed in glass

• Liquor and wine

• Magazines

• Menstrual pads - tampons and panty liners are okay

• Mouthwash with alcohol

• PORK products - they’re restricted by importing countries

• Pudding as these tend to leak

• Ramen or noodle cups

• Tobacco of any kind

• X-rated materials

IHS DECA Members Only

How can I help?

Please do not forget that our goal is to have 100% chapter participation in the community service projects. There are multiple ways that you can help:

• Donation of the suggested items above;

• Purchase from the Amazon Gift Registry by you, family, friends, neighbors, and/or loved ones (please don’t forget the foot powder - currently limited to three per household/account at $0.97 each) - send a copy of the receipt so we know you participated;

• Write thank you notes (see below for additional information); and/or

• Attend the packing party (see below for additional information).

Please remember that you can do one, two, three, or all of the items on the list. We set it up to accommodate your lifestyle, budget, and time constraints as much as possible.

What if I have a sibling in DECA and we both order from Amazon?

That is an excellent question!

Please place separate orders. Since everything is Prime, there will not be any additional charges if you have a Prime account. Please send a copy of the invoice to the advisor and officers so we know you both participated. You should each submit your orders individually.

For example, Jack and Jill are both members. Jack is a senior and has additional disposable income, so he decided to purchase deodorant/antiperspirant and three foot powders. Directly after his order, Jack printed a pdf version of his invoice and emailed it to the advisor and officers using the link provided.

Jill is a freshman and only works odd weekends babysitting, so she doesn’t have as much money available. Her brother already purchased all of the allowable powder under their account, so she decided to buy a bag of coffee. As soon as her transaction is complete, Jill prints a pdf copy of the invoice and emails it as well. Now, they will both count as participants although it is under the same account.

Jack and Jill’s father sees their purchases later, asks about them, and he decides the family will buy all of the Compleats in one flavor. This purchase could have been used by Jack or Jill for participation, but not both.

Do you need service hours?

We need your “Thank You” notes! For all IHS DECA members that would like service hours, we have a project for you. Here are the criteria in order to receive one hour (yes, you can do this multiple times):

• Write a heartfelt, personalized “Thank You” note to a deployed member of the military

• You will get one hour for every four cards

• They need to be handwritten - sorry, not printed in handwritten font

• They need to be a minimum of five sentences

• Please keep it general and positive in nature

• Sign it with your first name, city, and state only

• Please abide by the following DECA Don’ts at all times:

  • Do not refer to specific religious events (saying “holidays” is okay)

  • Do not talk about yourself because security and safety always come first

  • Don’t include your last name, any kind of contact information, photos, or any other types of identifying information (blank postcards from home are okay)

  • Do not seal or write anything on the envelope - the troops use them to send letters home

You can also obtain a minimum of three hours by attending the packing party!

Would you please tell me about our “Packing Party”?

Here is a quick rundown of the details:

• Everyone that attends will receive a minimum of thirty points for their participation due to the distance (that allows for approximately one hour drive time there and another back)

• Everyone that attends will receive a minimum of three service hours for their participation due to the distance as well (that allows for approximately two hours round trip drive time)

• In the event that it takes us longer than an hour to pack, you will get an additional ten points and one hour for each hour you stay to help

• We will be in the Ministry Center in Room #280. That will have us poised for people to easily find us as they enter through the Main Ministry Center doors and we will still be by Ministry Center East for loading/unloading. Please see the campus map for details. Do NOT go to the FLC.

• Upon completion, we will load all of the boxes into vehicles at the end of the evening. Others will take the boxes to USPS for shipment on Saturday. Then, we will cleanup the facility (put away tables and chairs, put things in the trash, etc - nothing major).

• As soon as the date has been locked in, the officers are going to set up an electronic signup.

• The date is tentatively Friday, December 3rd at 6:00.

• The location is Trietsch Memorial United Methodist Church, 6101 Morriss Road, Flower Mound, TX, 75028. The address is on the campus map.

• When you arrive, please sign-in to get credit

• When you leave, please sign-out

• Please carpool with other DECAs

• Mr. Chiles is going to attempt to reserve a vehicle through the district, so you are welcome to follow him. The officers will ride with him. You will need a tolltag since we will take 121.

• Please eat dinner before we depart. Please feel free to bring a snack for yourself and/or to share.

• To be on the safe side, you should be at IHS at 4:30. It will take approximately 75 minutes on a Friday evening with traffic at that time of the day. It should only take about 35 minutes to return.

  • Mr. Chiles expects all of you to arrive promptly, so everyone can depart together and ensure no one is left behind. In order to do so it is imperative that you arrive on time.

• In the event that your “Navigator” misdirects you, please reach out to one another. Worst case scenario, your advisor can tell you exactly how to get there from anywhere in Denton County. Since he will be driving, an Officer should be able to help. There are directions, a map, an interactive map, and a campus map. Your GPS will most likely route you a slightly different way; however, this is the easiest way to get there. Do whatever makes you most comfortable.

  • Take Independence Pkwy to TX-121/SRT South

  • Take Sam Rayburn Tollway (SRT)/TX-121 to East TX-121 Business towards Lewisville (they fork more than an exit - watch for merging traffic and construction)

  • Take TX-121 Business to North Stemmons Fwy/I-35E North in Lewisville (this is a dangerous intersection - please be careful) and get onto the highway

  • Take N Stemmons Fwy/I-35E North to exit 453 Valley Ridge

  • Take Valley Ridge Blvd West (you will be in a residential area)

  • Turn right on Morriss Rd

  • Trietsch is on the left at 6101 Morriss Rd. If you see Sonic, you have gone too far. If you see Marcus High School, you went in the wrong direction on Morriss.

  • As you pull into the parking lot, you can park on the left or right. Please park on the left side. We will be in the building directly in front of the lot on the left.

At this point in time, the plan is to continue collecting names to personally ship to. In the event that we locate someone who has the capacity to accept 25 or more boxes, we will send a bulk shipment to that person for distribution which will be the model of efficiency and ultimately affect more people. It will make packing fast too. The quality of the product will be better when it arrives and we won't have to be concerned about returned packages. All of the thank you notes should be pre-done by DECA elves as well.

Fun Facts: TMUMC is next door to the high school Mr. Chiles graduated from. When you look at the map below, you will see Copper Canyon. He grew up there on a working ranch until he finished college. Marcus High School was named after the man who donated the land, who also owned Neiman-Marcus. The first Principal that the school ever had was Mr. Chiles’ cousin, Larry Sigler, who was in the position for nineteen years prior to retiring. He spent forty years with LISD and graduated from Lewisville High School where Mr. Chiles’ parents met over fifty years ago and Mr. Chiles also began his career in education. Marcus is the second high school that LISD opened. Can you imagine being sent to the principal’s office and it is your cousin? It is a good thing he never got into trouble!