The Butler Eagle’s annual Gift Guide to promote local businesses and draw attention to community gift-giving efforts to those in need at the holidays is in Wednesday’s paper.

One of those efforts is a great way to give back this season — sending gifts and care packages to military personnel stationed overseas during the holidays.

From a nonprofit group known as the Yellow Ribbon Girls — which sends everything from pillow cases and snacks to deployed troops — to other donation initiatives from VA Butler Healthcare and the nonprofit Veterans in Need Fund, there are numerous ways to show support for the military during the holidays.

Studies show that troops stationed overseas during such holidays as Thanksgiving and Christmas could use a little extra support.

Military.com, a website that provides news and information about benefits to military members and veterans, notes that deployed service members can often feel depressed, lonely, homesick or stressed out during the holidays.

And a post on the Army’s website says that deployments can take a toll on troops’ well-being, especially during the holidays when soldiers might attempt to force themselves to be merry, but get opposite results.

So, while nothing can compensate for being on the other side of the world from one’s family during the holidays, sending a care package to a soldier can be a bright spot during a day that might otherwise seem bleak.

In one thank-you note to the Yellow Ribbon Girls, a deployed soldier said that a pillow case sent to him went a long way.

“I am stationed at an undisclosed forward location, so sometimes supplies of this kind are never available,” he wrote. “I slept so well last night, and the (pillow) case gave me a sense of home.”

For some, a sense of home can be a great gift for those who are missing it.

A care package can provide a practical service for its deployed recipient by sending them a variety of necessary supplies or snacks.

But it can also provide a service that meets needs that go beyond the pragmatic. It can be a reminder that someone is thinking of them at a time of year that can be difficult for many people, but especially for those who are thousands of miles away from their loved ones.