Store employees gather items for troops

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Employees of the Medford J.C. Penney store are rallying to send a box of supplies to soldiers in Iraq by the end of the month at the request of a store manager-turned-chaplain assistant.

Sgt. Jean Turner, a full-time store manager on deployment with the Oregon National Guard, e-mailed fellow employees asking for basic supplies because of a shortage at the Base Exchange where the Eagle Point resident is stationed in Tallil, Iraq.

Co-worker Linda Kardoos said Turner, a grandmother who "takes care of everyone," is the sort to help anyone in need.

"She has a big heart, and she's always thinking of others," Kardoos said. "She's the kind of person that, if she could get something, she'd give it away to someone who needed it more than she did.

"She said if anybody wanted to send anything, the soldiers could really use it. I talked to the other employers and some of her friends and we decided to try and get stuff to send."

The list of needed items includes body soap, hangers, dryer sheets, hair spray, disposable cameras, shampoo and conditioner.

J.C. Penney employee Coni Renteria of Medford said fellow employees and friends were merely trying to follow Turner's example of generosity.

"We felt like, in return for all that she does for everyone else, we need to respond to her request," Renteria said.

Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at buffypollock@juno.com.

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