By Patricia W. Stinson In only six short weeks Nick Mascolo and John Clemente collected 50 more suitcases and 10 more laptop computers to donate to wounded U.S. soldiers recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and Bethesda Naval Hospital.
Last Saturday the two friends loaded the donations and made their second trip to visit the wounded Iraqi War soldiers.
For now, Clemente and Mascolo plan to continue their efforts until the war ends.
Mascolo's business, the BBC Salon at Highwood Avenue in Tenafly, has become a collection center for donations. The front windows and the basement are piled high with suitcases which hold men's and women's toiletries, clothing and other personal care items. Each suitcase is carefully packed in plastic wrap.
Mascolo and Clemente personally deliver each suitcase to a soldier and they have a story about each one. As Mascolo said, "I feel like Santa Claus. The soldiers and their families really appreciate knowing that someone cares about them. They are grateful to get the items, but mostly it's about knowing that someone cares enough to say thank you for your sacrifice."
Development plans for their nonprofit organization - Bold Brave Courageous - are rolling along but not as fast as those donations. One donor has offered to but them a van.
People bring donations for those recovering from their wounds to the salon in Tenafly. They may expand to other U.S. military hospitals.
Suburbanite