FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Milford, Ohio – January 21, 2009: In the shadow of presidential inaugural history and answering a national call to service, Operation Gratitude, Serve DC and Target Corporation teamed up for “A Day of Service for Our Military,” held January 19 at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C. At the event, approximately 75,000 personal care kits were assembled for military personnel serving abroad. In support of that effort was Buckhorn Inc., a manufacturer of reusable plastic material handling containers whose products were used to create an efficient assembly line for a volunteer force of more than 10,000 – including state governors, members of Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, incoming Cabinet officials, Jill Biden and First Lady Michelle Obama. Operation Gratitude, a California-based non-profit, all-volunteer organization founded in 2003, annually sends more than 100,000 care packages to individually named U.S. service members deployed around the world. Care packages are filled with snacks, entertainment items, hygiene products and personal letters of appreciation. The care kits assembled at Monday’s event will be part of Operation Gratitude’s larger care packages. This year, Operation Gratitude will ship its milestone package – number 500,000. Last month, the group reached 400,000 care packages shipped, which represent 3.2 million pounds of product and over 20 million individual items sent by Operation Gratitude to Military members in combat since 2003.

Monday’s event was held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and in the spirit of “The King Day of Service,” where Americans are called to service projects that strengthen communities, empower individuals and break down barriers. As part of this call, Operation Gratitude joined with Serve DC, the Washington Mayor's Office on Volunteerism, Target and thousands of volunteers and donors for “A Day of Service for Our Military.”

Carolyn Blashek, founder of Operation Gratitude, said, “Serve DC and Target worked hard to obtain fantastic items for Monday's care kits – products that I know will be very welcomed by our men and women in uniform. “And we appreciate Buckhorn once again supporting us with their plastic hand-held totes, which are invaluable to our organization because of the large number of donated items that need to be stored, sorted and assembled. Buckhorn’s plastic Attached Lid Containers allow us to set up an efficient production line to create the care packages at our events, while also protecting the donated items in storage. And since they are reusable, the containers help to reduce cardboard waste being sent to landfills so we’re also protecting the environment.”

But equally important as the specific items in the care packages are the energy and enthusiasm of the volunteers who pack them. “When our recipients open their Operation Gratitude packages, they will see not only great items, but they will feel the love, respect and appreciation of the American people,” Blashek said, “and that is what Operation Gratitude and ‘A Day of Service for Our Military’ is all about.”

“We are excited and fortunate to continue our support of Operation Gratitude in its important mission to bring a bit of home to our service personnel,” said Joel Grant, Buckhorn’s managing director. “That our products can be part of that process, to be used in giving thanks to our military, is quite an honor.”

Buckhorn, based in Milford, Ohio, partnered with Operation Gratitude last November by donating plastic Collapsible Bulk Containers and hand-held Attached Lid Containers for the group’s Holiday Drive Assembly Days in California. The heavy-duty plastic containers – normally used in industrial and commercial supply chains such as shipping appliance parts to assembly lines or delivering produce to the retail shelf – were put into service to help improve logistics and protection of the donated products during the Holiday Drive Assembly Days.

With hundreds of sponsors and donors contributing a wide range of items, logistics and protection for the donations was quickly becoming a big challenge for Operation Gratitude – a challenge Buckhorn could easily, and eagerly, help them overcome. During the Holiday Drive last year, Buckhorn containers replaced numerous cardboard boxes in storage and assembly operations, improving efficiency for the volunteers creating the care packages, protecting donated items against moisture and other contaminants in warehouses and helping to eliminate truckloads of cardboard waste from being sent to landfills.

Grant concluded, “The men and women of Buckhorn value everyone in our military services and trust our small contribution will continue to make it easier for Operation Gratitude to show our nation’s appreciation for their service.”

About Operation Gratitude
Operation Gratitude (www.operationgratitude.com) is the California- based 501 (c) (3) non-profit, volunteer organization that annually sends 100,000+ care packages of snacks, entertainment items and personal letters of appreciation addressed to individually named U.S. Service Members deployed in hostile regions such as Iraq and Afghanistan, and on military ships at sea. Its mission is to lift morale, bring a smile to a service member's face and to express to all our Armed Forces the appreciation and support of the American people. For safety and security, all assembling of packages occurs at the Army National Guard armory in Van Nuys, California. Since its inception in March 2003, Operation Gratitude has shipped more than 410,000 packages to American military deployed overseas.

About Buckhorn
Buckhorn Inc. is a North American leader in reusable plastic container and pallet systems for material handling. Buckhorn products meet product shipping, handling and storage needs in manufacturing, distribution and food industries – replacing expendable cardboard containers and wooden pallets to improve product protection, increase productivity, reduce costs and eliminate waste in supply chains. Based in Milford, Ohio, Buckhorn has manufacturing facilities in Springfield, Missouri; Shelbyville, Kentucky; and Bluffton, Indiana. A Myers Industries, Inc. company (NYSE: MYE), Buckhorn is part of Myers' North American Material Handling Segment, which also includes Akro-Mils® plastic storage, organization and transport products. Visit www.buckhorninc.com to learn more..

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