When geography teacher Jan Weston gets a call during class from her son, who is serving in Afghanistan, she answers it.

That is how sophomore Kendalyn Feaster and fellow students were inspired to take charge of a care package drive for Ben and his fellow soldiers.

“[My students] just heard my end of the conversation that [the soldiers] had been weeks without a shower and went into action,” Weston said. “It warmed my heart.”

Weston’s son, Ben, has been in the armed forces for eight years. His third deployment was on Sep. 19 out of Fort Bliss in El Paso, this time leaving a wife and a newborn child behind. Weston said he is currently located in the Northeastern part of Afghanistan at Combat Outpost Charkh.

“Remote and primitive would be the two words to describe it there,” Weston said. “It’s a no frills area. They live off a lot of Ramen Noodles.”

She also knows Ben’s battalion is under the constant threat of coming under attack. That is what left them with no showers in the first place.

“It’s a tough fight,” Weston said of Ben’s experiences. “You can never let your guard down out there.”

With all this in mind, Feaster started out with a mass Facebook message urging her classmates to bring things for the soldiers.

“We all thought it was a really good idea and jumped on board,” student Brianna Hinders said.

The total of 15 care packages of items included snacks like beef jerky, candy, nuts, and other necessities such as dog treats and body wipes. An anonymous parent paid for all the flat-rate boxes to be shipped.

 “[Mrs. Weston] told us about the hard times they were going through,” Feaster said. “A lot of people there don’t get care packages very often. I have family in the armed forces, so I knew the soldiers would like to get packages. And I knew it would make Mrs. Weston happy.”