Basehor ? As of Monday, Capt. Jay Scrivener had not received his first “Treats for the Troops” package.

But the 38-year-old Scrivener, who is stationed with the Army National Guard in Baghdad, knows the package is on its way.And he told his wife, Gina Scrivener, he plans to share the cookies and other treats with his unit.

“I think it’s great that the people in Basehor are working together to package treats for us,” Jay Scrivener said.

So Gina has started a mission to send, on the first week of each month, cookies and other homemade treats, to Baghdad where her husband will distribute them to other military personnel.

Gina Scrivener said she started her project by writing a letter that was printed in the Basehor First Baptist Church’s newsletter.

In her letter, Scrivener said if people would bake cookies, she would pick them up on the first Sunday of the month at church.

Then, at her home, she vacuum-seals bags of cookies and packs them in boxes to mail. And, Scrivener said, she will pay the postage.

This is still a fledgling program, with the first box shipped to an APO New York address earlier this month.

It’s a project Scrivener hopes will take flight.

Gina Scrivener moves homemade cookies from a plate to a plastic bag that she will ship to her husband's military unit in Iraq. Scrivener's neighbor Betty Scheller holds 9-month-old Gunnar Scrivener at the family's Basehor home.

She noted the first month’s shipment included more than cookies. Included among the goodies were beef jerky, chewing gum and bags of microwavable popcorn.

Military natural

Gina, who married Jay on Sept. 30, 2000, is accustomed to his being away from home.

“We have been apart almost as much as we have been together,” Gina said.

This is Jay’s third tour of duty overseas. Before going to Iraq in November, his most recent deployment was to Bosnia in 2003. He also served during the first Gulf War.

In Baghdad, Jay is in an infantry unit working on a security mission. And when he’s not on active duty, he works as a defense contractor at Fort Leavenworth.

Jay’s military service has included more than the Army. Prior to serving in the Army National Guard, he spent 14 years in the Marine Reserve.

Gina said Jay’s father was in the Navy.

“There’s military blood in him,” she said.

Gina’s stepson, 13-year-old Austin Scrivener, lives part of the time with her and her husband.

And last summer the couple added another son to their family. Gunnar was born Aug. 18.

Just five days later, Jay left for training and in November was sent to Iraq. In March, he was able to see his family again when he returned home for a two-week visit.

‘A piece of home’

Betty Scheller, who lives across the road from Gina, heard about the cookie project, and is helping.

“I thought, ‘Now that’s something I’d like to do’ and I asked her if I could help,” Scheller said.

Since then, Scheller has baked several batches of cookies and brownies for the project.

And, Scheller writes a note to include with each pack of cookies. Last week her notes read, “We are so pleased what you are doing for our country. You are in our prayers every day!”

Fred Box, commander of Basehor’s VFW Post 11499, said the chapter has adopted Scrivener.

“We just keep in touch with him through e-mail and we paid for his first year of membership to the VFW,” Box said.

Gina said she’s eager for her husband to receive the box of treats she shipped earlier this month. Jay said it usually takes mail two weeks to arrive in Baghdad, but it can take longer.

“If the address is wrong on the package you may never receive it and then there are customs inspections,” Jay said. “Some mail is selected to be searched. The cookies that Gina had sent me were in some sort of medical box so of course it was going to be inspected seeing how I am not in a medical field. I received the box I think a month later and it was opened and re-taped. The cookies on the outside were a little hard but some were still moist. I tried one and thought it was still edible and it tasted alright so I put them out on the magic table.”

The “magic table,” Jay said, is a table where, when treats are placed on it, they quickly disappear.

But it’s not just about food, Jay said. It’s also about the conversation that arises when there’s a package from the states.

“Usually we talk about stuff at home while eating cookies – and about anything other than being here,” Jay said. “Then after eating one or two, we go back to work.”

Gina said that’s why she believes it’s important to work as a community to send packages of food to the troops.

“For it to be homemade,” Gina said, “they crave that kind of stuff and a piece of home.”