Want to put your money where your “Support the Troops” car magnet is?

Give a small donation to Athens’ 203rd Military Police Battalion now stationed in Iraq. Now you can donate online and help make Thanksgiving and Christmas better for local and area soldiers, said Amanda Bailey, chairwoman of the Family Readiness Group — which supports the 203rd Military Police Battalion based in Athens.

Donations of any size are needed to buy turkeys or hams for the families of about 85 soldiers from Limestone, Morgan and the surrounding area for Christmas. The FRG

also hopes to buy about 60 teddy bears that will be given to the soldier’s children on Christmas day. The $3 bears include a recording device that will be sent to Iraq so a soldier mom or dad can record a message then return it and have it reattached to a bear for their children. Donations will also be used to buy and fill Christmas stockings for each of the soldiers.

To donate online, go to: www.frg203rd.org.html, scroll down to the Contact Us bar on the left side of the home page and click on it. Then, scroll down to the end of the page and click on the yellow donate bar, which allows you to donate using PayPal.

Or, you can send a check or money order by mail to: FRG 203rd, 28514 Countryside Circle, Ardmore, AL 35739.

The 203rd was deployed on Father’s Day to Fort Hood, Texas, and then to Iraq in September. The soldiers are training the Iraqi police for their eventual takeover in the region. The unit's departure from Athens this summer marked the first time a local guard unit deployed overseas since 1950, when the 1343rd Battalion left for the Korean Conflict.

The primary mission of an FRG is to assist commanders in maintaining readiness for the service members, families and communities by promoting self-sufficiency, resiliency, and stability during peace and wartime.