Cheyenne students give Marines ‘early Halloween’
Student packages boost morale for Marines in Iraq

A group of U.S. Marines in one of the most dangerous areas in Iraq have a smile on their faces today thanks to students and teachers at Cheyenne Traditional School in Scottsdale.

The school sent letters and more than four dozen boxes of goodies to Lance Cpl. Bryan Speed, who is the son of a friend of Cheyenne parent Erin Reed. The school’s student government adopted Speed and collected items and letters to send to him. Teacher Elisa Garcia led the effort.

“Holy moly. It all arrived, and boy was everybody happy,” Speed wrote to the Cheyenne students. “Early Halloween they were calling it. Our sweet tooths are satisfied for a long time. You guys are amazing. People here really appreciated and are getting together for a huge thank you.

“We are all blown away. Tell everybody you see thank you in advance, you really picked up the morale out here. Awesome!!!!!”

The boxes included food and other items, including a necklace from second grade teacher Mariellena Politis that Speed said he keeps “in my breast pocket for luck and protection.”

Speed is scheduled to return home in March, and Cheyenne students are hoping he can visit the school after reporting to Camp Pendleton in California.

Speed is not alone in praising Cheyenne students for Boosting morale among the Marines. “How wonderful,” Reed said. “What great teachers and kids we have. “

Editors: A photo of Speed with the packages from Cheyenne is available electronically.

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