USO of Greater Jacksonville helps military families in need ahead of the holiday season

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Many military families are already living paycheck to paycheck but the recent rise in prices for food and other goods has only made the situation more challenging. The USO of Greater Jacksonville is easing the burden for some of our military members making sure those in need are getting a special Christmas.

Sue Lowthian is a Navy veteran and volunteer with the USO of Greater Jacksonville. During her more than 20 years of service, she even earned a nickname.

“Typhoid Sue, because every place I went, I either decommissioned or it closed down,” Lowthian said.

Today she’s packing toys from the giving tree that will go out to military families in need.

“For the girls, we saw a lot of frozen, for the boys we saw hot wheels,” she said.

Lowthian has been a volunteer with the USO since 2017. She told Action News Jax Wednesday that the needs for military families increased during the pandemic and now rising inflation is making it even more difficult to feed families.

“We definitely had a few more families and we had a lot more kids so yes, I would say we’ve given out as many or more food bags as well,” she said.

For Lowthian, it’s the smiles she sees year after year that make volunteering all worth it.

“It’s really good to see the families really happy. The moms, the dads, they’re all happy that they get so much for Christmas for their kids.”

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