Payson Roundup

Photo by Michael Tolzmann

Army Spec. Robert T. Packer, 11th Quartermaster Company, Fort Bragg, N.C., helped to prepare needed supplies that were shipped to Haiti after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake left thousands of people without food, water and shelter.

When the magnitude 7.0 earthquake devastated the island nation of Haiti, it was the son of a Payson woman who stepped in to help rush medical supplies, food and water to the region.

Army Spec. Robert T. Packer, son of Susan Wicks of Payson, is a parachute rigger with the 11th Quartermaster Company at Fort Bragg, N.C., who worked tirelessly to make sure the people of Haiti received the assistance they needed.

“I was involved in the packing and processing of the parachutes that were used in the air delivery of supplies for Haiti,” said Packer.

During the relief mission Packer helped deliver more than 50,000 gallons of water, 375,000 ready-to-eat meals, 700 container delivery systems for air deliveries, and 200 pallets of supplies to Haiti.

“I can’t imagine how the Haitian people are feeling, or begin to fully understand their losses, but I believe we have helped in a very big way,” said Packer.

Thanks to Packer, and other service members, tens of thousands of people in Haiti were able to survive in the weeks following the earthquake. Helping make a difference is something he feels is the right thing to do.

“I believe that it is important for our country to help less fortunate nations, not only because it is the right thing to do, but because we have the resources and the willing manpower,” said Packer.

Recent natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina, the Pacific tsunami and the Haiti earthquake prove that Mother Nature rarely gives mankind a chance to prepare for her wrath. But for Packer, and service members like him, helping pick up the pieces is always a short call away.