Garden City ? Hundreds of holiday stockings stuffed with goodies will be sent to troops overseas as a tribute to a Garden City soldier who died in Iraq in 2007.

The stocking drive for soldiers began a year before Sgt. 1st Class Travis Bachman died but was renamed in his honor. Bachman, a member of the Army National Guard, was killed when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle on Aug. 1, 2007.

The Garden City News-Telegram reports that this year’s drive brought in 615 stockings, shy of a goal of 700.

Bachman’s widow, Amber Wilson, started the drive with a friend in 2006. She says that every year she is overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and generosity from the community.