A Mill Basin resident and her local pizza parlor are working together to bring joy into the lives of troops serving in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Pam Marinos started creating care packages for soldiers three years ago. Now, Marinos and Christina's Pizza Palace work together to provide goods for troops overseas. Marinos puts together a list of what is needed for the packages, and the pizzeria displays a donation box so customers can drop off goods.

An idea was originally hatched to deliver pizza to the soldiers, but the plan didn't prove logical. "By the time they would get it, it would have mold," says Pietro Piscazzi of Christina's.

Marinos' son is currently serving in Iraq. The woman says she is inspired to help by him and the other men and women serving their country.