Bumper response to Supporting Our Troops campaign

WE knew it would be good - but we never thought it would be this good!

More than 700 shoe boxes full of much-needed supplies are on their way to our heroes in the Gulf thanks to the generosity of kind-hearted Observer readers. The response to the Supporting Our Troops campaign has been incredible.

In last week's Observer we estimated more than 150 packages would be posted to troops in the desert but since then countless more bags and boxes full of shopping has been delivered to our Sackville Road office and Sainsbury's.

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Toiletries, magazines, foot creams, sweets, tinned food plus messages of support have been donated.

It means local soldiers and their colleagues will benefit from around 2,000 worth of goods this Easter.

Barry and Doreen Foggon, who run market stalls across Sussex, donated 200 pairs of socks because their 29-year-old son Paul, who has been in the Royal Navy seven years, always asks for them. A team of four worked non-stop from last Thursday to get the boxes ready for collection.

Wards Bexhill made a generous donation of 50 to help with the cost of sorting and sending the goods.

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Perhaps the most unusual donation was some 50 sophisticated dust mask devices from Save The Children Bexhill. Soldiers have asked for masks for them to don during sandstorms in the desert.

Above: editor Michael Beard thanks Royal Mail's Colin Innes and Dave Leigh for their help.