BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Although currently deployed to a combat environment, a 10th Sustainment Brigade Soldier has not stopped thinking about what else she can do to help American veterans or the less fortunate in a foreign country.
Sgt. Jenna Moffitt, a truck commander assigned to 110th Transportation Company, often helps those who need support helping themselves.
Volunteer work is nothing new to Moffitt. She is currently involved with more than five charity and humanitarian aid programs.
Although her workload can be hectic at times, preparing convoy escort teams for missions, she makes time to volunteer.
Moffitt has been a sponsor for a child in Bangladesh for the last five months.
"I help with her education by donating to her and sending her care packages," Moffitt said. "I get cards and letters from her all the time."
She hopes that one day she will be able to meet the child she sponsors.
Moffitt's volunteer efforts have not gone unnoticed by her leaders.
"Sgt. Moffitt is a hard-working Soldier whose focus is not so much about herself but on the people around her," said Capt. Joshua Meador, 110th Transportation Company commander. "She is dedicated to helping others, and it shows with all the volunteer work she does."
For the past three months she has been involved with a team recognized as a leading veteran nonprofit organization, whose mission is to enrich the lives of America's veterans by connecting them to their community through physical and social activity.
Moffitt recently helped raise $1,000 through the team for a run in memory of Staff Sgt. Daniel A. Rodriguez, a Baltimore native, and Sgt. Jose J. Reyes, a native of San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico, both of whom served with 110th Transportation Company.
Both NCOs died July 18, 2012, in Ghazni City, Afghanistan, when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb.
The run is scheduled for today, starting in North Carolina and ending at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Beth-esda, Md.
Another way she makes a difference is by using a cell phone application that allows her to select from a list of charity programs to which she may wish to donate. The way she donates is by simply walking. She donates 25 cents to her selected organization for every mile walked.
Being deployed hasn't slowed down her volunteer work.
Moffitt volunteers her spare time in the intensive care unit at Craig Joint Theater Hospital, helping the staff and talking to patients. She recently started helping out at the American Red Cross as well.
Her most recent interest led her to an organization that helps Afghan children.
"Last deployment was my first experience being deployed and seeing the children and how they lived," she said. "It hit me a certain way. How they lived and the struggles they go through. It has stuck with me ever since then."
Moffitt said she has wanted to do something for the children of Afghanistan, and she is glad she found a way to make a difference.
When people hear about Afghanistan, they may only think about the terrible things war has brought to the country and not so much about the people who go through it.
"I think a lot of people are ignorant to what the children deal with over here -- what they go through, the limited recourse that they have and how they live," Moffitt said. "My goal is to make more people aware of exactly what they do and what we can do to help."
Making a career out of the Army was never her plan, but continuing to make a lasting impression on countless lives will be in her future.
"My goal when I get out of the Army is to travel and do humanitarian aid in as many different countries as I can," Moffitt said. "I want to come back here and be more involved."
Social Sharing