Brett and Daniel Petre were excited to drop off their valentines - the ones with Dr. Seuss photos or 102 (not 101) Dalmatians and Blue's Clues. Each with a paper sack in hand, which each boy decorated. Four-year-old Daniel's had pictures on it, while six-year-old Brett's was more word oriented with many Xs and Os.

Unlike the normal children's cartoon valentines, these were not put in carefully decorated bags or boxes taped to an undersized school desk. Instead, they were lovingly placed inside boxes destined for soldiers serving throughout the world.

Why were these children bringing valentines to mail out to people they never met? "'Cause we care about the soldiers," the younger Petre shouted in his small voice.

The older brother, more shy than his outgoing sibling but still a little silly, added a "Yeah."

The Petre boys helped the Rio Rancho Blue Star Mothers last Saturday in packing boxes to send to soldiers, even though they know no one currently serving. Their cousin Dan is a Marine who finished two tours in Iraq.

The boys' mother, Jane Petre, said the boys normally tithe a third of their allowance to the church but decided that money this time would go elsewhere.

"They decided they would bless the soldiers with it," their father, Matt Petre, said.

The boys were anxious to start packing a box with items lining tables at Rio Rancho's American Legion - items such as tea and hot chocolate, condiments including Arby's and Taco Bell sauces, assorted toiletries, stuffed animals, magazines and comic books. On top of the stack of comic books was an issue of Captain America, easily history's most prominent patriotically themed super hero.

And, of course, there were valentines. Some, like those of the Petres, were pre-printed with popular cartoon characters. Others were hand drawn or written by area children. There were enough that each soldier would get at least one.

One wasn't enough for Daniel Petre, who took several valentines out of his bag until he was satisfied the box was properly filled. The rest of his valentines were added to the others for placement in their boxes.

Among the others was Christine Holley, who had just finished packing a box for her sailor son Patrick Rutherford.

Rutherford, 37, is scheduled to head to Kuwait on Feb. 1, Holley said, and he will likely retire in November.

"You get nervous when it gets that close to the end," she said.

At the end of the day, the Blue Star Mothers had 157 boxes ready to go overseas: two each for 71 soldiers overseas and one each for 15 stations "stateside." The group took those packages to the post office two days later, where they paid a flat rate of more than $8 per box, nearly $1,300.

"The post office has been so helpful to us," said Teresa Dosch, the Mother who organized the mailing.

The packages take three or four days to reach those in the United States, Dosch said, but could take two or three weeks to reach those overseas, longer for anyone stationed on a Naval vessel.

When the group packed up the remaining items, there were far less than when the day began, most of the objects having been taped securely into a box headed somewhere in the world. Before the next mailing, the Blue Star Mothers will have to restock.

For Saturday's mailing, everything that was sent was donated to BSM, Dosch said.

"The community has been tremendously generous," she said. "It's been wonderful."

The Blue Star Mothers have a need for more of everything before they send packages again, but some things are in especially short supply. Because of the cold temperatures in the Middle East, president Marla Griffith asked for donations of chemical handwarmers. Dosch was more concerned with where all the donations will go, noting a need for storage totes or organizational shelving.

The occasion for the next mailing is still up in the air: maybe St. Patrick's Day, perhaps Mother's Day, or it could be Easter. There will definitely be one for the Fourth of July, Griffith said.

Anyone wishing to donate to the Blue Star Mothers should call Dosch at 610-7456. She even volunteered to arrange pickup of any items