School helps woman continue mission
Finch sits with students at Discovery Middle School. They have been helping Finch collect cards to send to soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Shirley Finch is a little lady with a big heart.
Her husband, Peter, was sent to serve in the Vietnam War four months after they married in 1968. Weeks and months and, ultimately, a year had passed before Finch said she received a card from her husband. She said a few years ago, she made it her goal to provide greeting cards to soldiers currently serving so they could have them to send to their families back home.
For the past three years, the retired Hallmark employee has been sending blank greeting cards to soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“I want the soldiers’ spouses and family to be able to get these types of cards,” Finch said. “When I was married, my first anniversary went by, no card and then the first Christmas, no card.”
She said she thinks the soldiers and their families are pleased to have the cards.
Finch’s husband said he wanted to send cards home to his wife, but had no accessibility to them while oversees.
Soldiers have sent Finch letters of appreciation, but she said she would prefer they take that time to write to their families.
“I don’t ask for anything in return,” she said. “But I do keep every note someone sends me and I try to reply to them all.”
Finch used to send the unused leftover cards from her job, but because of the economy, Hallmark is recycling the cards in order to save money, and Finch’s efforts halted.
That’s where Discovery Middle School came in. Anita Parker, school secretary, and Carrie Sanders, school receptionist, decided to get students involved by having a drive to bring in greeting cards to support Finch. Parker described the Finchs as a “wonderful family who have always been helpful,” and she wanted to do something to help out.
Until The Madison Record interviewed her, Finch did not know Discovery’s involvement.
“I had no clue,” she said, stunned. “I’m so pleased they are helping.”
She also said two elementary schools—Horizon and Madison—make Christmas cards she also sends to soldiers.
“This goes to show if you do good things for others other will do good things for you,” Parker said. “She takes the time to collect and mail the cards and we want to help her out any way we can. We are paying it forward.”
Parker and Sanders organized a card drive at Discovery, and now all students, faculty and staff are collecting cards to give to Finch so she can continue her mission.
“This gives the students a chance to see what it’s like to help the soldiers,” she said.
She has received hundreds of cards from Huntsville and Madison residents in the past few weeks. She has gotten all types of cards from birthday to Christmas to “thank you” notes.
She said she is always accepting more cards to send.
Anyone who is interested in helping Finch and Discovery Middle can bring blank greeting cards to the school’s front office or mail them to P.O. Box 1278 Madison, Ala. 35758.
