First Soldier selected to jump in Operation Toy Drop
Spc. Ryan S. Mitchell, a mechanic and paratrooper stationed here, lined up at 6 p.m. the night before with a bag of toys in hand in hopes of being named as the First Soldier for the 20th annual Randy Oler Memorial Operation Toy Drop. Operation Toy Drop — a Fort Bragg tradition and collective training exercise — is scheduled to run from Nov. 30 to Dec. 8, 2017, here. Operation Toy Drop combines U.S. Army Reserve personnel, dozens of volunteers, foreign jumpmasters, and toys for what is the world’s largest joint and combined airborne operation. (Photo by U.S. Spc. Jesse L. Artis Jr.)