Tortuga sends Rum Cakes to United States Air Force Firefighters in Iraq
Friday, December 31, 2004
Having suffered extensive damage in Hurricane Ivan, when a request to send rum cakes to Iraq for Christmas came to the Tortuga Company only a month after the storm it seemed an impossible task.
Donna Garrett's husband William is a firefighter with the 506th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron (ECES) stationed at Kirkuk Air Base in Iraq. She wanted the Tortuga Rum Cake Company to donate cakes for the holidays for the 40 people in his unit. However, Tortuga was busy trying to restore operations for their shops and bakeries across Grand Cayman in the wake of the storm and as much as everyone at Tortuga would've like to meet the requests things were not looking good back in October.
Yet by November, Tortuga's bakeries were back in full production and the company contacted Mrs Garret about her request. They were concerned about potential difficulties in getting the shipment delivered, and asked for a photo of the firefighters with their Tortuga Rum Cakes to show on the company's website. Donna provided an address and the cakes were sent.
This week William Garrett sent Tortuga an email which read as follows. "I wanted to personally thank you for the cakes that you donated to us. It means a lot to all of us serving over here when the people and the companies back home show that they appreciate us and that they care about us. I can tell you that for me, that caring and generosity that people like you have shown makes being over here and doing what we do more worth it.
"I also wanted to let you know that the cakes did arrive, and were a big hit.
"I opened the box and set it out the evening that we received it. I thought that I would get the chance to take a picture the next day, but all of them were gone. The word of how good they were spread faster than I had anticipated. I am not able to deliver the picture that you requested. Attached is a picture of our department with Santa.
"Again, we thank you so very much for your support and for your generosity.
Sincerely, William V. Garrett, SrA USAF. Driver Operator / Crew Chief, 506th AEG/ECES/CEF Kirkuk AB, Iraq Fire Department."
"Last year we shipped cakes to the 313th Army Military Intelligence Battalion," says Monique Hamaty-Simmonds, president of Tortuga Imports/Tortuga Rum Cake Company.
"But shortly after the hurricane, we didn't know if we would have cakes for our holiday customers this year. Being able to brighten the holidays for some firefighters in Iraq is one of our many blessings of the season."
On 16 December the Tortuga Rum Cake Company had its busiest day ever, shipping nearly 3,000 packages from their Miami warehouse to online and mail order customers throughout the world. Sales for 2004 have exceeded last year and the company recently introduced a new line - Tortuga: A Taste of Florida Rum Cakes - to appeal to the state's 76 million annual tourists.
Tortuga Rum Cakes and Gourmet Products are available in gift and specialty food departments and gourmet stores throughout the Caribbean and North America. The complete line can be ordered on the company website at www.tortugarums.com or by calling toll free 1-800-444-0625.
