Louisiana woman's penny project sends prayers, support to U.S. troops

Published: 2006-03-15

THIBODAUX, La. (CNS) -- The words "In God We Trust" on the U.S. penny were the inspiration for Thibodaux resident Sally Sobert's Power of Prayer Penny Project, which she began shortly after U.S. military forces invaded Iraq in 2003. "When President (George W. ) Bush first started to talk about a war with Iraq, there were a lot of people who were against sending our troops over there. I wanted to find a way to show our soldiers that we cared about them, that we were praying for them and that no matter whether we believed in the war or not, we supported them," Sobert said. She said she had witnessed the power a prayer coin had on a friend of hers who received it while she was recovering from an injury, and the memory of it stayed with her. "Whenever my friend rubbed the coin, it brought her comfort," she told the Bayou Catholic, newspaper of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. Sobert's prayer pennies for the military are spray-painted red or blue, then affixed to a card that reads: "God has so blessed America. You are one of his many blessings. Thank you. Thanks be to God for you. Keep this penny as a reminder that our prayers are with you. Thank you for serving our country and for protecting the world. God bless you and keep you." To date, according to Sobert, more than 50,000 of the military penny cards have been distributed to troops in the U.S. and Iraq.

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