Kansans who want to help pay for travel expenses to bring the Kansas National Guardsmen home for the holidays are asked to send their donations to the Kansas National Guard Foundation, 2800 S.W. Topeka Blvd., Topeka, KS 66611.

All donations to this foundation are tax-deductible.

On Friday, foundation officials will make an assessment of the funds collected so far to determine what else needs to be done to get the soldiers home later this month.

The guardsmen will have Dec. 23 through Jan. 2 off, but federal regulations prevent the Kansas National Guard from using any of its own money to bring the troops home for Christmas.

It will take about $50,000 to get them to Kansas and return them after Christmas to Fort Bliss, Texas, located on the U.S.-Mexico border near El Paso.