Ed Asner Works for the Troops
Dec. 10, 2006 — -- Ed Asner, the Emmy-winning actor who played tough guy Lou Grant, is spearheading Operation Gratitude, mobilizing people to send 50,000 holiday care packages to Americans who serve and sacrifice overseas.
Ed Asner: There's a wonderful organization called Operation Gratitude, which is one of the 200 organizations … which are all in support of our troops … who does these things constantly … to encourage people and to make it easy for them to send cards and to send packages.
Having visited Bethesda Hospital and Walter Reed, I've never been more impressed with human beings in my life, with missing limbs, who stand tall and will be a credit to this nation when they achieve as full a mobility as they will, because they're dedicated as they are, brimming with energy and intelligence and charm.
Touring the hospitals … working at the armory, seeing how many people turned out … to prepare these packages … 17,000 the day I was there. When you're in a foreign land, to get words of love and support from a total stranger, it means a great deal.
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