Students at St. Michael's Catholic School in Cary have been learning a lot about service and community in their special outreach project to U.S. soldiers, exchanging letters with them, making gifts and praying for their safe return.

But the kids got a special treat Nov. 14, when Sergeant Brad Brewczak, an army sergeant in Kuwait, visited several classes, including a class of four-year-olds, to thank them in person. The young children had never met Brewczak; they only knew him by a blurry picture.  

The students' letters created a bright spot in the darkness of war, said the sergeant. The letters really help morale, he continued. Brewczak is heading back overseas in a few weeks. The children will continue to correspond with the sergeant; they're already planning what kind of cookies to send him.