The Friday before Christmas, Kailey Eberhart, an East Hampton High School ninth grader from Springs, gathered a dozen peers at the American Legion Hall in Amagansett for a “pack-out,” in which they stuffed boxes of supplies and treats to be sent to members of the military on active duty. The donations had been collected during the Bonac Lights festival at the high school in December and at the One Stop Market on Springs-Fireplace Road.
The effort was Kailey’s way of kicking off a passion project: starting a local chapter of Whiskey Bravo, a national organization of youth who support military personnel through service projects.
“When I started my freshman year, I went to the club fair and realized there was nothing for the kids to do to be a part of the huge military community we have in East Hampton,” she said in an interview. “I’m excited to see where it goes.”
Whiskey Bravo happens to have its roots right here, too. Benjamin Barkoff, a graduate of the Dalton School in Manhattan who is now an undergraduate at Yale, is the president and co-founder of the organization. He began attending Soldier Ride events on the South Fork when he was just 4 years old and later heard the story of Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter, a Marine from Sag Harbor who lost his life in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2008.
“I barely knew anything about the military or the service in general, but his story really struck home with me,” Mr. Barkoff said. “By the time I started middle school, I started organizing my own projects and programs. When I got to high school, I started Whiskey Bravo. We see now that when students interact with men and women who serve, they are inspired to start giving. Whiskey Bravo’s whole mission is to facilitate that.”
Mr. Barkoff and Kailey met several years ago through a mutual family friend, Patty Sales of Wainscott, the baker behind the popular Cousin Patty’s Cookies. “It blows my mind how much he has accomplished, and Kailey is a
force to be reckoned with,” Ms. Sales said. “So far, everyone’s jumping on board like crazy.”
East Hampton’s Whiskey Bravo chapter is a bit different from others. Most chapters are formally affiliated with individual high schools, but Kailey started this one as a community-based organization, in order to be able to loop in students from other schools.
“I want to bring in Sag Harbor kids, Southampton kids, and Bridgehampton kids,” she said. “Slowly we’re growing, and I’m very proud of it.”
Leading up to Christmas, Kailey and her team raised about $1,000 to buy items for the pack-out. She and her mom, Kristine Eberhart, who teaches first grade at the John M. Marshall Elementary School, went shopping with Ms. Sales at Walmart and Target. But as they piled their carts full of granola bars, potato chips, hot cocoa, popcorn, candy, toiletries, card games, Sudoku books, and other gifts for the soldiers, they found themselves going over their budget. That’s when a little Christmas magic happened.
“A man who heard us came over from another aisle and threw us a $100 bill and said, ‘Keep doing what you’re doing,’ “ Ms. Sales said. “It was a ‘Hallmark’ moment.”
Kailey said starting the chapter “has taught me a lot about leadership and responsibility.” An honors student who takes part in the Model United Nations, Mock Trial, and Yearbook Club in school, she initially found it challenging to balance everything.
“Luckily, my mom is good at time management and helped me out a lot,” she said.
Mr. Barkoff called Kailey a “go-getter.”
“Right away, she reached out and said, ‘I want to do a project immediately,’ which I think speaks to the person she is and the mission of supporting the people we serve,” he said. “I was blown away.”
For the group’s next project, Kailey hopes to organize a babysitting night in Montauk to benefit parents who serve in the Coast Guard. She also hopes to volunteer at Jordan’s Run, an annual 5K event held in Sag Harbor each summer in honor of the late Lance Corporal Haerter. Those who would like to learn more or get involved can reach out via the organization’s website, whiskeybravo.org.