Sending 'pieces of heaven' off to Baghdad

In the war in Iraq, Helen Taylor is a one-woman USO.

Every week, the 72-year-old Minden woman whips up several batches of homemade cookies, fires up the vacuum sealer and packs a box of treats which she sends off to troops who've become dependent on "the cookie lady."

Her labor of love started last December when she and her daughter and son-in-law decided to "adopt" her step-grandson's unit in Baghdad.

She's never met Army Capt. Glen Renfree, but Taylor has become "Grandma" to 115 men and women who work in the area.

"They did send me a nice picture and a card which many of them signed," Taylor said. "They live in trailers and work in the abandoned palaces in Baghdad."

Postage is about $20 a box for the packages which are shipped to an APO. Delivery takes a week and with the vacuum sealer, the cookies are fresh, according to the men and women who make short work of them.

Her grandson has sent her several e-mails which reflect how much her touch of home is appreciated.

In an e-mail to Taylor's daughter Teresa, Renfree said:

"We just got two more boxes from your Mom (we call her the Cookie lady now) and the cookies are on the countdown to being gone. I'll give it until tomorrow."

A few days later: "I want you to know that Helen is truly a saint and we love her.

It was so funny because she gives us notes and tells us who contributes to the boxes. One of our soldiers felt bad, offering me money to send back."

He told the soldier that Taylor would never accept money and she just wanted them to know how much her friends and neighbors appreciate what the troops are doing.

"Helen's cookies are commonly known as 'little pieces of heaven.'"

Renfree is leaving Iraq in the spring, but Taylor is committed to keeping the cookie convoy going.

Capt. Renfree said he intends to help support the effort when he gets back.

"She gives us something from her heart and we know that from the efforts put forth. Just the fact that all of the cookies are vacuum-packed to ensure they stay fresh (and they do) means so much to us and we couldn't be thankful enough. I know that it's hard to know what exactly to think of this war, but through what you do, it serves the soldiers, and not any political agendas."

Favorites are oatmeal cookies and ginger cookies. She likes to bake with nuts, raisins and coconut, but is careful to label packages for troops with allergies.

The weather in Iraq determines whether Taylor makes chocolate chip cookies which don't hold up well in the Middle East heat.

In her Internet research, she discovered a World War II recipe for "Soldier's fudge" which packs well and doesn't use sugar, a carryover from the days of rationing.

She hasn't asked anyone for help. Recently, a neighbor came over with $20 to help with postage and returned a few days later with homemade cookies.

"She said she didn't get a chance to bake much any more and how fun it had been to make cookies," Taylor said. "She used her mother's 100-year-old recipe for ice box cookies.

After the June 24 Angora fire at Lake Tahoe, Taylor learned that firefighters needed bottled water and energy bars.

She went door-to-door in her neighborhood and collected $150.

"My son-in-law is an ex-fireman, and after the fire, I got to thinking, 'Why don't I just ask the neighbors?'

"Everybody gave at least $20 or so and in no time, we had a trunkload of bottled water and energy bars," she said.

Taylor, who moved to Minden from Seattle a few years ago, said she undertakes the projects because she likes to be useful.

"It gives me something to do," she said.