What is your most memorable Christmas while deployed?

2015-11-28T22:07:41-05:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHwa-Iq1Bx4

We sure didn't have the wherewithal all to decorate our hooches like this in Vietnam, but one of the parents of one of my men owned an Italian restaurant in Indianapolis and they sent all the table decorations and stuff to make a helluva Christmas dinner. I and my driver stole a case of frozen steaks from the ration break down point at Long Binh and I horse traded at the mess hall for a lot of other "necessities". The young man who had grown up working in the family restaurant worked his buns off setting it all up and we had a very Merry Christmas despite missing friends and family at home. The leftovers (and they were ample) were donated to an orphanage at Ton Son Nhut. We also stuffed stockings for the orphans with everything we could find as well as small gifts our families sent from home. It became a contest to see who could make the biggest stocking. Have you ever stuffed an Army issue wool sock? They expanded so large that most were taller than the kids. That was Christmas 1967. The Tet Offensive began less than two months later...

2011 Christmas Lights- Thank You Troops and Veterans! Thanks for Your Votes!

Since 1775, over 1.3 million American troops have made the ultimate sacrifice. Thank you and please visit SemperFiFund.org to help give back to those who pro...

Response by MAJ Alvin B. made Nov 28 at 2015 10:29 PM

2015-11-28T22:29:54-05:00

Sarajevo and the Balkans with IFOR and SFOR.
Midnight mass, gifts for the orphanage, thousands of bullets being fired over the city daily, almost quiet that night. Time with my team mates.

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Nov 28 at 2015 10:30 PM

2015-11-28T22:30:27-05:00

On Christmas Eve 1970 I was on duty at Monkey Mountain, RVN (Panama Control) when a deep voice boomed out over Guard frequency - "This is God on Guard - Happy Birthday Son"
And just as quick a smaller voice piped up on Guard - "Thanks Pop!”

I was chuckling over that the rest of the night.

My folks sent me a decorated tree for my room and a bunch of gifts to go under it.

The chow hall had a spectacular feed and I stuffed my cargo pant pockets with apples and oranges for Mama-San's kids - these were almost unheard-of for the Vietnamese at the time.

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 28 at 2015 11:43 PM

2015-11-28T23:43:21-05:00

Christmas Eve 1969, RVN, I was on Rat Patrol. Two jeeps, each jeep with a driver, Radio Operator, and two men manning a M60 machine gun. I was the Radio Operator, and our job was to patrol the roads at night to keep the VC from planting mines. We drove the roads randomly without lights. At midnight, we could see red and green flares shooting into the sky from the direction of Cau Ha Combat base. The next day, the whole battalion was read the riot act, to ensure that this behavior did not occur ever again. New Year's Eve, I was again on Rat Patrol, and the same thing happened back at the base.

Response by WO1 Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 29 at 2015 12:30 AM

2015-11-29T00:30:39-05:00

Mine would be hanging in my tent with my boys and knowing that we had a week before we flew home. I feel like it was yesterday.

Response by CAPT Kevin B. made Nov 29 at 2015 12:37 AM

2015-11-29T00:37:32-05:00

South Pole. We had a diesel carving contest. Our tree was made of cans, candy wrappers, and licorice. Dinner was ham and turkey with all the fixings. Since the sun was up 24/7, everyone noticed they missed the night time "eve" part of it.

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made Nov 29 at 2015 7:23 AM

2015-11-29T07:23:45-05:00

Sad to say I don't remember a Christmas Deployed. At the Very Least I know that I was in Diego Garcia for at least One Christmas. Actually now that I think about it. Christmas in Pearl was pretty cool. The Christmas Spread at COMSUBPAC Pearl Chow Hall was wonderful.

Response by LTC Ed Ross made Nov 29 at 2015 10:20 AM

2015-11-29T10:20:15-05:00

Christmas Eve 1966, Bearcat South Vietnam, spent it alone sitting on a sandbag wall looking at the stars.

Response by SGT Patrick Reno made Nov 29 at 2015 10:56 AM

2015-11-29T10:56:04-05:00

Berlin 1984. We got drunk and snuck over to the Battalion Comanders head quarters. He had just had it landscaped that fall. We cut down one of his pine trees with an e-tool. Took it back to our room and decorated it. It's said he is still looking for us.

Response by LTC Stephen F. made Nov 29 at 2015 11:19 AM

2015-11-29T11:19:12-05:00

Christmas 1982 was my most memorable Christmas CPT Jack Durish. I was stationed in Bamberg, Germany and went to Heidelberg, Germany with another infantry 1LT bachelor from my unit. We sat outside the castle across teh river and drank while watching the black bears they kept caged up outside by a bridge which went to the castle. The bears frolicked and play fighted under the clear black sky.
It was cold and clear, I had spent several Christmases away from family since I enlisted in 1974l but, for some reason that Christmas seemed the most poignant. I was a little homesick and melancholy

Response by CPO Emmett (Bud) Carpenter made Nov 29 at 2015 1:49 PM

2015-11-29T13:49:42-05:00

Christmas Day 1971. We were A few miles off Da Nang waiting for Bob Hope to come aboard. The fog was so bad he couldn't make. Instead of a Bob Hope show on Christmas Day we moved out of the fog and flew missions into Laos. What a merry Christmas that was

Response by SFC Rollie Hubbard made Nov 29 at 2015 6:06 PM

2015-11-29T18:06:07-05:00

Seeing a black Santa riding on the hood of a 3/4 ton truck around the perimeter road at Marble road Air Facility in 1970 made my day. LOL

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 29 at 2015 7:15 PM

2015-11-29T19:15:26-05:00

My most memorable Christmas while being deployed was in Vietnam, December 1966, when LZ Bird was trying to be over run by the NVA. It was a major battle with the First Cav kicking ass. Two of my friends who worked at the POL were captured, never to be heard of again. We lifted off right after the attack began. There were many NVA but they weren't good enough to defeat us. Read the attached link:
http://www.troynovant.com/Franson/Marshall-SLA/Bird.html

Bird - The Christmastide Battle - S.L.A. Marshall

Bird: The Christmastide Battle, by S.L.A. Marshall, tells the story of the North Vietnamese Army attack on Landing Zone Bird shortly after midnight, 26-27 December 1966. The NVA plan had been to overrun the American outpost, wipe out the Americans and destroy LZ Bird's howitzer batteries, and retreat into the jungle just as the negotiated Christmas Truce came into effect. The NVA force arrived in the vicinity late because of high water in the...

Response by SGM Mikel Dawson made Nov 29 at 2015 9:02 PM

2015-11-29T21:02:31-05:00

2003 while at Victory Base, Baghdad. I spent Christmas Eve out on a guard tower to let an enlisted soldier have the time off. Christmas day dinner I was invited to spend with the Australian contingent. It was a great time and will never forget it.

Response by CPT Jim Schwebach made Nov 30 at 2015 1:42 PM

2015-11-30T13:42:45-05:00

Korea, 1964.
We got trucked to the Div HQ for the Bob Hope Show but arrived a trace late due to some confusion about coverage on the Zone. Anyhoo, by the time we got there the only seats were way back in the nosebleed section.
Show time! Bob Hope walked out on stage, looked around and headed back off stage. The CG looks confused and follows him off only to return a few minutes later to adjust the seating. Seems like the first five rows had been reserved for and filled with officers, not an uncommon practice at the time. But not one that pleased Mr. Hope. Apparently he wasn't going to start the show until there were Soldiers in those from rows, and by that he meant us enlisted swine. So we in the back got moved to the front and those in front, including the Div Staff, got our seats. A great show.

That was the first and only time I got to see a Christmas show of any sort while deployed. In fact the only celebrity I saw during the time in RVN was Maggie Ray. She actually came to where the teams were and visited, as in sitting around and actually b*llsh*tting with the troops. Way better than a show!

Response by SGT Michael Bond made Nov 30 at 2015 3:00 PM

2015-11-30T15:00:35-05:00

1970 and a wet day at Fire Base Blackhawk on QL19 between Anke and Plieku. Hot meal with ham and turkey, with warm Olympia beer. Good day :)

Response by LtCol Robert Quinter made Dec 1 at 2015 2:37 PM

2015-12-01T14:37:06-05:00

In 1969 I was a Marine helicopter pilot in Viet Nam. The Bob Hope show was playing in DaNang, and, to allow the Marines there the opportunity to attend the show, the units based north of DaNang flew their missions.
I drew the mission of transporting the Division Commander; unusual since he normally flew in a UH-1E. We arrived to pick him up and were immediately loaded with huge crates of socks and hot food. Once we were loaded, the General appeared, along with the Division Sergeant Major who was dressed as Santa Claus.
We spent the rest of the day flying to all the remote sites where Marines in the field were involved in combat operations. At each site, the General and “Santa Claus” would dismount, serve a hot meal and give clean socks to their Marines.
Christmas 69 certainly wasn’t my most festive Christmas, and none of us shared the joy of our families, the Christmas feast, or a candlelit worship service, but the memory of the joy those Marines got from a hot meal and clean socks is with me to this day.

Response by Maj Kevin "Mac" McLaughlin made Dec 1 at 2015 2:46 PM

2015-12-01T14:46:34-05:00

Camp Estelle, Afghanistan 2013. The 838th AEAG Spartans and our Italian Air Force Friends gathered together on Christmas Night, to a bonfire. I had a content look on my face that night as my own year long deployment was coming to an end. While I missed my wife and kids terribly, I couldn't ignore one of the few moments of true camaraderie we get to experience in the military today. That night and that deployment for that matter are experiences I will never forget.

Response by SSG Samuel Sohm made Dec 26 at 2015 10:34 AM

2015-12-26T10:34:39-05:00

We deployed right before Christmas (December 9th for me, my second deployment) 09-10. Morale was OK, I wouldn't say good at that time even though our unit was good. The Chaplains and Assistants came up with the idea to pack up all the mail, care packages, and the best chow we could find on FOB Shank and bring it out to the outlying COPs. The Brigade leadership jumped on board and we got the command birds to fly around in for two days. We hit my unit (1-503rd) and a few others on Christmas eve and the rest on Christmas day. I ended out the day covered in chocolate ice cream, exhausted from heaving mail and food around for 8 hours, and felt pretty good about myself. The picture is from that day.

Response by SP5 Bruce Waltz made Dec 18 at 2019 6:59 PM

2019-12-18T18:59:56-05:00

SP 5 Bruce Waltz
Christmas in Viet Nam. The Bob Hope Special was great, Enjoy the entire show surrounded by men and woman serving our country. However, after the show went back to my hooch and into immediate depression... All alone. Crasher on my bunk....laid there for about an hour, when someone knock on my door, it was the mailman on Christmas Day. I was so surprised, I told the specialist I didn't expect anyone to be working, he said to me, that this was his greatest joy, delivering packages to his fellow GIs... He handed my a large box, as I opened the box I found fresh apples, oranges, tons of candy and cookies. All sorts of salami too and a letter from my family. Seconds after I opened the box my hooch started filling up with guys from my unit... I shared all the goodies with everyone. It was great, giving/sharing simple things (apples, oranges & candy) to those homesick men, seeing them enjoy a few moments of the world back home. We all had a wonderful time and a great blessing sharing food and stories of home. We all knew we had each others backs.
God I love my country and those fighting for her.

Response by CMSgt William Wilson made Dec 18 at 2019 7:00 PM

2019-12-18T19:00:12-05:00

10 hour and 20-minute combat flight on Christmas day. Enjoyed an in-flight roast beef on crumbly bread and a small chocolate milk. Same as I had on Thanksgiving and New Year day. It helped tp be doing something on those special days away from my family.

Response by Capt Daryl Gonyon made Dec 18 at 2019 7:36 PM

2019-12-18T19:36:35-05:00

Christmas 1971, Phan Rang AB, Vietnam. I was with OSI,responsible for gathering intelligence about possible attacks of the enemy, strange sightings, etc. We were not amused with military TV, set on auto-control Christmas Eve, showing soap-opera TV shorts that were 10-15 years old. Horseplay ensued to better occupy our time. I concocted a phony "Enemy sighting" I sent to the Base Commander, to the effect of, "A sighting was made of a strange man dressed in red and white, out of shape physically, and singing to himself as he drove a sleigh across the rice paddies drawn by several caribou. The intelligence community suggests we respond with a helicopter gun-ship prepared to meet the enemy, probably disguised as a jolly old man so as to catch us off guard in these holiday hours. Our Air Base is manned with 200 Air Force personnel without aircraft, as our planes were prematurely sent to Cam Ranh Air Base. 200 other personnel are at Long Binh Army Post for the Bob Hope show. To be blunt, we need Army or Marine support ASAP. Our only weapons carrier has a flat tire. " It was lucky for me that the Base Commander had a good sense of humor and ignored this important message!

Response by SPC Carolann Smith made Dec 18 at 2019 7:52 PM

2019-12-18T19:52:50-05:00

1989 Panama Just Cause/Desert Shield. Sitting with my fbf eating a chicken ale king MRE thinking about our family back home and how bad we wished we were with them.

Response by Sgt William Walker made Dec 18 at 2019 7:57 PM

2019-12-18T19:57:30-05:00

Hue Vietnam 1965. George E Jessel entertained the troops inside the VOA compound. He can outside to visit and meet the Marines that were protecting the compound. An area that was always under fire, his support of the military was very special. Cpl John T Hewitt family from Richmond Va sent our 4 man team - canned sardines, family photos, ( maybe a few cans of Black Label beer) and a Rosary each.

Response by SPC Kurt Hesselden made Dec 18 at 2019 8:31 PM

2019-12-18T20:31:03-05:00

Had the fortune of being in Long Binh Xmas '67 waiting for an assignment when the Bob Hope show rolled in. Managed a spot near the stage and as an 18yr old as of just a few months had my heart rate challenged being just feet away from Raquel Welch.

Response by Maj Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 18 at 2019 8:55 PM

2019-12-18T20:55:56-05:00

Dec 2001, FOB Rhino in Afghanistan. Mail had arrived and in it were several Hickory Farms gift packs, so we shared amongst our S-3 section. It was a nice break from a solid month of MREs.

Response by SP5 Pat Carrithers made Dec 18 at 2019 9:28 PM

2019-12-18T21:28:35-05:00

Long Binh, Republic of Vietnam, 1969. Christmas Eve Bob Hope show with Neil Armstrong, who had walked on the moon that summer. He waved and said, "Fellows, I know what it's like to be a long way from home."
For the 25th, then, Charlie supplied some rockets.

Response by SN John Wampler made Dec 18 at 2019 9:42 PM

2019-12-18T21:42:40-05:00

I was stationed 8 miles offshore on the Columbia River Lightship “RELIEF” WLV-605. Basically we are a floating lighthouse anchored as the entrance to the Columbia River (WA/OR).

There are two lightships that swap station every four months. Each Lightship has a crew of 22 with about half on compensatory leave with a crew of 11/12 aboard at only one time while “on station.”

We were replenished from time to time with water and fuel by a Coast Guard buoy tender. Just before Christmas 1974, the USCGC “FIR” WLM-212 arrived astern of us to pick up our messenger line (floating stern with a blow-up rubber ducky) and they attached the fuel/water hoses for replenishment.

The entire crew of the “MIGHTY FIR” were in elf hats and the CO in a Santa suit with Christmas music blaring from speakers on their bridge wings.

I will go to my grave remember what the crew of the “FIR” did for us lonely Lightship sailors.

Response by COL Jim Green made Dec 19 at 2019 12:45 AM

2019-12-19T00:45:27-05:00

My team arranged for a Christmas dinner at the American FOB near ISAF HQ and we all enjoyed a meal together minus the officers on duty at the Afghan MOI Operations Center. We were all far from our families although we were an “Army” family and were being meddling by our mutual sacrifices in order to bring the precious gift of freedom to people who had no idea what to do with the gift. It was the last time that we could celebrate as a team before an insider murdered two incredible officers who were our team mates. We felt blessed to serve together and to have achieved so much towards to goal of Afghan self sufficiency. We had no idea that a sleeper was in our midst who would destroy our trust and the families of those they murdered. The murderer worked among us on a daily basis and the two victims were the most generous among us as it relates to kindness and generosity towards every Afghan we worked with. Our Christmas dinner was a moment that few can ever comprehend in it’s power and meaning for each of us. We all pledged to risk our lives in the effort to give liberty to every Afghan and our efforts were met with the devious actions of the Taliban and the Quetta Shura. These are people that need to be expunged from existence and the same apply to every member of their gene pool. Great men died the following February and their families were robbed of their life long contributions. I am so thankful to have served among this incredible group of warriors who were willing to risk everything in order to give the most precious gift of liberty to millions of Afghans who we never met. God bless LTC Loftis and MAJ Marchanti. They gave us a gift that few will ever appreciate or understand.

Response by GySgt H Logan made Dec 19 at 2019 12:54 AM

2019-12-19T00:54:14-05:00

Christmas eve in Persian Gulf 1990 awaiting next beach assault.

Response by SGT Harald Hendrichsen made Dec 19 at 2019 1:43 AM

2019-12-19T01:43:09-05:00

Camp Holloway, Pleiku, Christmas, 1969. A father of one of the guys in my platoon (I think it was Len's dad) sent us a live Christmas tree and decorations. L-R in the photo: Lonny Mitchell, Larry Whaley, Len Shellhammer & Paul Daily.

Response by Sgt William McGrath made Dec 19 at 2019 2:08 AM

2019-12-19T02:08:27-05:00

Christmas 1966 Chu Lai all I remember is Christmas Day we still ran or daily patrols but all patrols were ordered not to engage for that 24 hr. time period samey same their Tet. Also all patrols had to be led by E-5 & above so I became squad leader again for the day. Saw 5 or 6 VCS’s at a distance but did not engage.

Response by SCPO Mizel Wood made Dec 19 at 2019 5:46 AM

2019-12-19T05:46:40-05:00

While I was with VS-22 on board USS John F Kennedy (CV-67) deployed to the Mediterranean Sea in support of Multinational Peacekeeping Force Beirut, Lebanon 1983-1984, Bob Hope had an USO Show on board the USS Kennedy as part of his 1983 Christmas Show Bob in Beirut 1983. YNCS(AW) Mizel C Wood Retired

Response by LTC Michael Toler made Dec 19 at 2019 6:58 AM

2019-12-19T06:58:32-05:00

Kneeling in the sand with about 30 Marines, Airmen, and Soldiers while a Catholic Priest Chaplain gave us a brief eulogy on Christmas morning. Mogadishu, Somalia. Ruins of the former US embassy compound. Marine snipers on the roof gave us over watch.seemed surreal.

Response by SP5 Donald Betzen made Dec 19 at 2019 8:12 AM

2019-12-19T08:12:19-05:00

I was a medic with Bravo Co. 2/501st, 101 Airborne in Vietnam, 69-70. I recall we were just back from the field, at FB Bastogne for Christmas. That evening everyone was celebrating and kind of hanging loose. I walked all around the whole hill and where ever I went there was the smell and really a cloud of marijuana haze covering the whole place. It was awesome.

Response by CPL Jack Walker made Dec 19 at 2019 9:47 AM

2019-12-19T09:47:54-05:00

I was on guard in our squads night logger at midnight on Christmas eve 1970. Everyone was sleeping and I had the PRC225 radio. There was usually nothing to hear on night watch but we had to be able to be contacted, just in case. About 5 minutes till midnight soft Christmas music started streaming from the headset. As I listened I felt a wonderful warmth fill my heart. I thought about the radioman on the other end of the line and how he though about putting some Christmas songs out to us that did not get out of the bush to see Bob Hope.
SP4 Jack Walker US Army Ret.

Response by CW3 Kirk Wilmore made Dec 19 at 2019 10:50 AM

2019-12-19T10:50:46-05:00

Christmas1974, Darmstadt, West Germany. My roommate and I got a small pine tree, maybe 2-foot tall. We decorated it with balls of aluminum foil and Cheetos strung through with yarn. For a star topper we cut out the bottom of an aluminum foil pie tin. The next day the unit had a "health and welfare" inspection. The NCOs tore apart every aluminum foil ball looking for drugs. Needless to say, the tree didn't look the same when we put it back together!

Response by CPL Henry Miller made Dec 19 at 2019 10:57 AM

2019-12-19T10:57:17-05:00

Santa Clause in the Hofbrau House in Munich, Germany with an Oommpah pah band.

Response by PO2 Allan Bertsch made Dec 19 at 2019 11:07 AM

2019-12-19T11:07:36-05:00

As a US Navy veteran from the Viet Nam time period I was stationed on Guam. Our aircraft did deploy to Viet Nam. Not being part of an aircrew I really don't know what their mission was. I hope that they helped protect the personal on the ground. I became friends with a aircrew person from the station on Guam. During the Christmas time they did Santa drops for the dependent children that were there. Here is the only photo I took during one of those drops. This was December 1969.

Response by MAJ Tom Deaver made Dec 19 at 2019 11:18 AM

2019-12-19T11:18:34-05:00

One of the soldiers had the Jewish holidays off. When it came time for Christians to celebrate Christmas he took Christmas off as it was a national holiday. We worked both for him.

Response by PV2 Chris Perkins made Dec 19 at 2019 11:41 AM

2019-12-19T11:41:00-05:00

Got a resupply on Christmas in the boonies..3/506th Infantry 101st 68-69.. hot chow and packages..made a tree with lrrp ration liners and a couple of m60 belts..got socks and clean fatigues..stuffed ourselves with cookies from home..Currahee !

Response by SFC Leon Amer made Dec 19 at 2019 12:03 PM

2019-12-19T12:03:47-05:00

1990, Operation Desert Shield, pulling TOC duty NCO with Deuce-and-a-half's crawling through our Battalion camp with the cargo canvases rolled up on the sides and outlined with improvised Christmas lights from home (thanks to the motor pool electrical genius who rewired them from 120VAC to 24VDC !). In the backs of those trucks were the CSM, staff officers and firing battery lieutenants singing carols. About half the battalion was having dinner that night with Saudi Aramco employees courtesy of the Host A Soldier program, so the ones in camp on Christmas eve were the ones who were hosted for Thanksgiving (1SG's made sure nobody double-dipped on both). Those singers all were hoarse the next day from having to sing at max volume over the engine noise !

Response by CMSAF Lou Georgieff made Dec 19 at 2019 12:09 PM

2019-12-19T12:09:16-05:00

During Christmas in 1966, I was stationed at Ton Son Nhut Air Base, Saigon, Vietnam. Bob Hope came to entertain the troops, and because it was going to be a slow day, I told all my fellow coworkers to go see the show and I'd man the operation at 8rth Aerial Port Sq vehicle operations. We maintained and dispatched forklifts and other type aircraft loading vehicles. I could hear music coming from the event as we were right on the edge of the flight line. When the guys returned, they were happy and told me to take the rest of the day off. As we worked 12 hour days, it was a treat for me.

Response by PO3 Francis Becht made Dec 19 at 2019 2:35 PM

2019-12-19T14:35:38-05:00

Christmas 1969 at NSA DaNang. Christmas Eve at Deep Water Piers, our division Bos'n dropped off a pallet of Colt 45. Needless to say we all got hammered. I remember waking up on Christmas morning majorly hung over and home sick (I was 28 days away from going home). We were all pretty sick that day. Worst Christmas ever.

Response by Sgt Henry D. Santa Maria made Dec 19 at 2019 4:41 PM

2019-12-19T16:41:55-05:00

Having Bob Hope visit our Base during the holidays in l962.

Response by 1LT William Bozarth made Dec 19 at 2019 5:11 PM

2019-12-19T17:11:06-05:00

Response by SGT Terry Weightman made Dec 19 at 2019 7:05 PM

2019-12-19T19:05:33-05:00

Spent Christmas Eve '71 stuck at Ft. Hood on CQ duty with relief at midnight. Knowing I was to be deployed to Vietnam in January I was certain this might be my last Christmas. Having grown up in Dallas, less than 3 hours away I called home to tell my father I'd be home for Christmas. Once off duty I caught a cab to the Belton Grey Hound bus depot. Having never experienced bus travel I bought a ticket to Dallas. The bus left Belton around 1 am and i could smell the bacon my dad was frying in his cast iron skillet. As I mentioned this was a bus depot and I had grown up in Texas traveling all over the state. What I experience over the next 15 hours in route to Dallas was an Almanac view of almost every city with less than 500 citizens between Killeen and Dallas. I watch people come and go the entire time wondering how much longer before I would see the Dallas skyline on the horizon. When the bus stopped for lunch in Waco I began to realize the enormous mistake I had made. We pulled into the same bus station that I consumed a box lunch in the day I got drafted...at 5 pm Christmas Day! When i checked the return schedule to Killeen I quickly realized that if I was going to report for duty the day after Christmas I had no choice to catch another bus in less than an hour. I called home to find to Army friends who were stationed with me celebrating Christmas with my family. I told everyone the dilemma, wished them the best, and hopped the bus. I spen t my next Christmas at Camp Stanley, outside of Oijonbu South Korea. Having been pulled from RVN in December '72 I was redeployed to Korea. I have profound respect to the vets who fought there during the Korean War since 1951 was the coldest winter in their history....and while the jungle was the jungle those vets fought up one granite mountain after another. I did make it to Korea in time for the Bob Hope Christmas show at 2nd Inf command in Tong Du Chon. Since I was coming off the DMZ we got front row center stage. I do remember it being so cold that even with two parkas we were all freezing.

Response by SFC Ronald Moore made Dec 19 at 2019 10:51 PM

2019-12-19T22:51:38-05:00

OIF 2006. Our tree

Response by SPC Stephen Walsh made Dec 22 at 2019 5:48 PM

2019-12-22T17:48:26-05:00

I spent 5 Christmas Overseas and I cannot remember one. But then I'm 74 and can't remember breakfast.

Response by SN William Young made Dec 24 at 2019 12:22 PM

2019-12-24T12:22:53-05:00

Dec. 25th 1971 off the Vietnamese Coast. We were refueling another Ship when our steering went out. The ships rammed and hoses and cables were flying everywhere. Took two days to repair all the damage and we were ready to send a avgas to the Enterprise. Not much of a Christmas but we got the job done.

Response by SFC Richard Williamson made Dec 29 at 2019 8:24 AM

2019-12-29T08:24:24-05:00

WOW! It's been a while since I've thought about this but: Christmas 1973, Waegan, S. Korea. I was 19 years old, first time away from home and in a foreign country. I had just met a lady and we wanted to spend the holiday together, but had no clue what to do. As it turned out, there was an orphanage just outside our compound. It was poor, run down and the kids were hungry and dirty. Our post chaplin arranged with the Korean authorities for troops to adopt an orphan for Christmas and take them to the mess hall for Christmas dinner. My date, who later became my wife and I adopted a little boy, named "Cha" for the day, but we kept him for 3 days, with permission, of course. This little guy was filthy when we got him, but I took him to the barracks and let him take a shower, and change his clothes. We bought him 2 sets of clothes, a winter coat and a pair of boots and shoes. This little guy never knew what a shower was, but he sure had fun. We took him back to the orphanage on Sunday and he was the best dressed and cleanest of all 50 or so kids that lived there. It was also his first time ever sleeping in a real bed. I'll never forget the look of joy and awe on his face each time he did something new. As we said our goodbyes, he bowed in front of me, showing me respect the traditional way and when he straightened up, he promptly grabbed my knees with a bear hug and wouldn't let go. Our chaplin adopted him the following year. To say that that was an emotionally charged Christmas, would be an understatement. One I hope to never forget.

Response by SSG Strick Richardo made Dec 29 at 2019 10:57 PM

2019-12-29T22:57:16-05:00

Capturing Saddam Hussein during the month of December, Christmas week back in 2003. And receiving care packages during the holidays while in Tikrit Iraq.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 30 at 2019 10:25 AM

2019-12-30T10:25:10-05:00

Christmas 2009. Got a half day off and spent the morning with my daughter who was deployed with us as the BN intel analyst,

Response by PO2 Russell "Russ" Lincoln made Dec 30 at 2019 5:50 PM

2019-12-30T17:50:52-05:00

Arrived in country for Desert Shield Christmas Eve 1991.

Response by PO3 Charles Streich made Dec 30 at 2019 7:43 PM

2019-12-30T19:43:49-05:00

I had to make a run by truck to Long Binh 1970 Christmas and inside the base was a Christmas Tree made from sand bags with lights that I took a picture of. I thought it was the greatest thing that I saw that day.

Response by TSgt David Olson made Jan 3 at 2020 3:22 PM

2020-01-03T15:22:46-05:00

It was Christmas Eve1964 at Pleiku, Vietnam. I was a corporal with the 560th Military Police detachment. Bob Hope landed at Camp Holloway, 52nd Aviation unit. It was an unplanned stop, but due to weather, which forced half of the show to fly somewhere else. It was try and organize some sort of security fast. I was patrolling with my Thompson .45 sub machine gun at the rear of the spectators. I had 5 or 6 MPs at various locations. The perimeter fence consisted of two stands of wire. Vegetation grew up to the edge. There were probably 200 or so GIs in the audience. Hope naturally quipped about where was Pleiku? Everything went off all right, they did an abbreviated show with all the performers, but most of the production crew and musicians had been on the other plane. Pleiku was attacked on 7 February 1965. Both the II Corps Advisory compound where we were billeted and Camp Holloway were attacked. That was really the start.

Response by PO1 Thomas McBride made Jan 4 at 2020 4:15 AM

2020-01-04T04:15:38-05:00

Being in South Korea and having my friends want to go out to "karaoke". I chose to stay in and call home to my family. When they got back and told asked to borrow money because they were robbed by hookers, I knew I made the right choice.

Response by CW4 Harris Smith made Jan 5 at 2020 5:22 PM

2020-01-05T17:22:10-05:00

In December of 1969 I was at Phu Bai, in the former Republic of Viet Nam. I was the new guy (fng) and while not being satisfied with being low man on the totem pole, I had incurred the wrath of my 1st Sergeant by getting drunk and fighting. So while my comrades enjoyed the Bob Hope show at Camp Eagle, I listened to the show on AFVN radio on a tiny transistor radio while I pulled a 12 hour day guard shift in a bunker on the perimeter, pouring down monsoon rain and a lovely Christmas dinner of cold C ration turkey. I was a miserable little pup but I learned my lesson.

Response by CW4 William Kessinger made Jan 5 at 2020 5:51 PM

2020-01-05T17:51:13-05:00

How the hell did you get to see Bob Hope? I was there in 69 and he never came close to anywhere I was. I don't remember christmas as it was just another workday.
And houches? We only had GP mediums. I thought you Marines roughed it!
Oh Well!!!!

Response by Sgt Ken Crouse made Jan 7 at 2020 12:13 PM

2020-01-07T12:13:13-05:00

I went straight from Vietnam to my next duty assignment. Do not pass-go / do not collect $200. I served in Vietnam as a member of the Marine Security Guard detachment at the American Embassy in Saigon at the time of its evacuation in 1975. Evac'd, float to Manila and here are your orders: American Consulate in Asmara, Ethiopia where I would receive hazardous duty pay for my entire time there (civil war had just broken out and we were literally stuck in the middle between two adversaries, neither of which liked us / but that's all another story). How does this relate to Christmas? I received orders in mid-December that transferred me to the embassy in Brussels, Belgium and did so on Christmas Eve. I was very thankful for Christmas 1975 - alone, brand new arrival but didn't have to worry about incoming or any of the "to whom it may concerns" that were common in northern Ethiopia and Vietnam earlier that year. Still remember dinner that Christmas: hot dogs on toasted raisin bread, the only thing in the Marine House kitchen. But at least it was peaceful.

Response by PO2 John Driskill made Jan 7 at 2020 12:27 PM

2020-01-07T12:27:17-05:00

Christmas 1972 on the USS Saratoga CV60 in the Tonkin Gulf, Yankee Station. I have a picture somewhere of myself and PH3 Frank Devance at the duty desk in the ship's photo lab under a clock that read "How Time Flies When You're Having Fun." Christmas day in the Navy at war was trying at best.

Response by CDR Kenneth Pepper made Jan 12 at 2020 4:34 AM

2020-01-12T04:34:51-05:00

My most memorable one was not filled with joyful memories. For me, it was horrific.

I was a USN E-5. Due to VC threats to kill any Americans, they saw everything was off-limits. I had been in-country a little over six months and was highly agitated about the curfew and having to wait to be shot before shooting (my interpretation of the Rules of Engagement).

I decided if I were going to die there, it would be on my terms. I donned all my combat gear. I had an M1911 on my hip and an M-14 locked and loaded.

The streets were empty. I walked the center of the main street in Vinh Long screaming every rude and insulting thing I could think of in Vietnamese, and when I exhausted that, I continued in English.

An hour or so later, seeing no one around, I stood at the traffic circle, yelled out, "I'm going to live!", then got off the street.

Response by SFC Michael W. made Jan 17 at 2020 2:38 PM

2020-01-17T14:38:34-05:00

Mine was Desert Storm...we had already deployed from Germany to Saudi Arabia around 12/09/90 for Desert Shield. My 2 other brothers and I were sent to different locations in Saudi Arabia prepping for combat and this was the first combat operation which we would serve together.

It was scary as hell because we had no way of contacting each other, even though I had Global DSN and could call anywhere. I spent my Christmas eating the REAL ARMY MREs and T-Rations before we were able to go to KKMC on a log run which we put money together and bought several whole chicken which we grilled out in the hot desert.

I remember it well because as soon as the chicken were ready to eat, we were HIT by one of Saudi's dust storm which covered EVERYTHING in dust!!!

Some Merry Christmas that was! LOL

Response by SP6 Peter Kreutzfeldt made Jan 26 at 2020 5:01 PM

2020-01-26T17:01:52-05:00

Canned Turkey in Cu Chi and watching some Korean all girl band playing "I want to go Home" and getting hit by 122 mm rockets that night

Response by MSgt John Celentano made Feb 3 at 2020 1:07 PM

2020-02-03T13:07:16-05:00

Forget about it !!!

Response by PFC Bobby Smith made Feb 17 at 2020 6:59 PM

2020-02-17T18:59:51-05:00

The Christmas in Kassel, Germany bare in mind I was 19 at the time. great to get together with friends. both Military and non- Military.

Response by SSgt Russell Stevens made Mar 3 at 2020 6:55 PM

2020-03-03T18:55:44-05:00

There were so many Christmases I spent deployed, it's hard to answer the question. It was 1992 where the group of us decided the new Air Mobility Command really stood for Another Missed Christmas.

Response by CPO John Bjorge made Mar 7 at 2020 4:37 PM

2020-03-07T16:37:35-05:00

1974 USS Independence CV62, walking the line to get food and looked up to see the skipper of the ship serving. I looked at him and said thank you skipper and Merry Christmas.

Response by Cpl Bernard Bates made Mar 8 at 2020 2:15 PM

2020-03-08T14:15:10-04:00

1965 AnKhe center highlands supporting 1st Cav with ammo. Living in tents . !he army supplied us with a small Christmas tree and a few decorations. Looked out of place over there. I don't think our Christmas dinner was to great. We had a better thanksgiving dinner. We didn't have much of a messhall no reefers to keep thing cold. what we ate was mostly powdered or canned. to this day I don't eat spam. That was our main diet of meat 10lb. cans of spam. Semper Fi.

Response by LTC John Bush made Mar 9 at 2020 9:28 PM

2020-03-09T21:28:51-04:00

Mine was thanksgiving 63 or 64 we were aggressors for the 10th special forces and deployed in the Alps along the Austrian border. Someone decided we should have a real Thanksgiving dinner so they dropped in whole frozen turkeys and other raw and canned ingredients. Not the best but surely the most memorable. Just a reinforced rifle platoon wit nothing to prepare food.

Response by Cpl Ryan McGrath made Mar 27 at 2020 2:15 PM

2020-03-27T14:15:11-04:00

Christmas 2004 Camp Ramadi. S BTRY 5/11 3rd Plt attached to 2/11. They gave us two beers and one of those airline bottles of rum or vodka per person. And you can guess there was a bunch of trading. Everyone trying to get booze from from the fellas that didn't drink and the beer only and liquor only folks haggling. Was a good day.

Response by CW4 Craig Urban made Apr 2 at 2020 1:32 AM

2020-04-02T01:32:43-04:00

Bosnia

Response by PO1 Lyndon Thomas made Apr 2 at 2020 2:52 PM

2020-04-02T14:52:45-04:00

I was on yet another war deployment and we'd been given some downtime to Rest Reload and Regroup. we Arrived in France for a short stay and I immediately put in for leave for the entire visit because we'd be there on Christmas day. I got a hotel room a hot shower and lots of food! I talked to my wife and kids on Christmas and that just made the entire deployment worthwhile for me. I got to tour the city of Marseilles, and the whole city was filled with lights people having a really good time. Put a lot of things about this life back into perspective. But we had a good time!

Response by COL Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2020 1:58 AM

2020-04-24T01:58:35-04:00

2008 with USFOR-A in Kabul. I took the opportunity to visit the 101st HQ in Bagram and work with my counterpart their. They put me up for the week, we reviewed ongoing plans, revised some, and I got to know the subordinate command team (BG McConville). My former boss, Mark Milley, (now CJCS) was a new BG and returning from leave during the same week. So, I made certain to be sitting at his desk, with my tanker boots (he hated them) propped up on his desk when he arrived. It was the best way to greet a former boss and jerk his chain a little. Best meal I ever had at a Division HQ.

Response by SN Michael Carrillo made May 7 at 2020 3:59 PM

2020-05-07T15:59:23-04:00

I was away from home every christmas (1963-67) but since then I have had great Christmases.

Response by SSG Shawn Mcfadden made May 11 at 2020 7:02 AM

2020-05-11T07:02:20-04:00

I was in Iraq in 2003, and although I wasn't able to see them in person, some of the WWE wrestlers came to LSA Anaconda. I got to watch the show on tv.

Response by SPC Benjamin Uminn made May 15 at 2020 4:04 AM

2020-05-15T04:04:13-04:00

For my first duty station, I landed Camp Pelham, in South Korea near the end of 1994. Finally assigned to my unit, and totally unprepared for all my new found freedom as a soldier and as a young man. I was easily talked into heading off camp for a few drinks with a few seasoned soldiers: a couple E2 and a PFC. And Specialist Ammes.
What I expected to be a festive introduction was more like a poorly planned yet effective hazing. Bar to bar, drink after drink, and repeat. At 19 years old I slammed everything placed in front of me. Until I passed out. And that's how I stayed until the loudest explosion I had ever heard shocked me awake.
It was 0600 the following morning. Yep! Cannon blast, then reveille as the flag was raised. As it was Christmas Eve, the Sergeant Major was up and observing the detail. I hadn't been noticed until the blast jumped me because I was placed in a mock manger with a baby Jesus and crew. I stood there as this Sergeant Major locked on me. I didn't know him but I knew by his glare that I has hit! Suddenly, there was a tug on my arm and I was off runnings, with Spec. Ammes leading and maybe laughing? Ducking into a barracks door and up the stairs Ammes slid under his bed and pointed to the other for me. Wide eyed and gut sick petrified I lay there with only the worst possible endings unfold, and some ones smelly sneakers while Spec. Ammes slept. Soundly. Till 14:00. Ammes remained amused I over the situation while I had visions of a firing squad.
In front of the Sergeant Major we picked up two weeks before extra duty and loss of pass priv.
On Christmas day feeling like the biggest dirtbag, I headed to the mess hall expecting to be shamed by my fellow soldiers, only to find the opposite. Christmas day with my platoon laughing hysterically as we retold the tale over and over.
Thanks. TV

Response by PFC Bobby Smith made May 27 at 2020 12:25 PM

2020-05-27T12:25:26-04:00

my Mom sent me a box of homemade cookies. while I was in Germany

Response by PO1 Frank Reiffenstein made May 28 at 2020 8:43 AM

2020-05-28T08:43:55-04:00

Christmas we pulled into Gibraltar and Spent the day at a pub that the owner invited us to dinner.

Response by CPL Mark Jozwik made Jun 17 at 2020 12:47 AM

2020-06-17T00:47:50-04:00

During Desert Shield/Storm we got GP mediums to sleep in instead of under our camo nets by our tracks. I pulled guard duty Christmas eve at our ammo dump and it actually snowed out in the desert!!

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 22 at 2020 11:33 AM

2020-06-22T11:33:55-04:00

Danang Air Plane Patch in 1972, dodged rockets most of the morning. The guys on monkey mountain said they enjoyed the early morning show.

Response by Sgt Michael Sayles made Jul 16 at 2020 8:39 PM

2020-07-16T20:39:19-04:00

Christmas 1969 we were trucked over to 1st Mar Div HQ to watch the Bob Hope show, I was allowed to go as I was short on my first tour, I enjoyed the show and only had to stop 1 member of my squad from shooting a soldier who kept standing up in front of us 2X!!! We rode back and I got to stay in my hooch until evening when we shuffled up the hill to man the OP were I stayed up all night wondering the contradiction of seeing a great Christmas show in a war zone when I never had a chance in the world.

Response by AN Charles Collins made Jul 17 at 2020 11:43 AM

2020-07-17T11:43:27-04:00

1984 Bob Hope did his Christmas Special from the USS Independence. Plus we were in Israel

Response by SSG Charlie D made Jul 18 at 2020 6:34 PM

2020-07-18T18:34:31-04:00

The time my wife was banging another dude.

Response by SSG Eric Blue made Aug 2 at 2020 5:31 PM

2020-08-02T17:31:12-04:00

Probably 2007 or 2009 when I deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq for battlefield circulation with the 82nd Airborne Division's All-American Chorus. Both times, we were either, rocketed, mortared, shot at with pistols & AKs, IED'd, VBIED'd, and/or RPG'd at in a UH-60. We survived and we put smiles on faces downrange while also returning fire to dumbasses trying to take us out. I even got to call in a successful fire mission. It made us late for one of our next missions, but the BN CDR, BN CSM, and senior understood. As much as our Division CG hated us, we all got commander's coins for our actions. What we did warranted CABs, but like I said...our CG hated us. I also got to meet more famous people, such as Gary Sinise & The Lt. Dan Band, John Topper from Blues Traveler, and a number of other celebrities both times. The extra money I received helped out when I got back, too.

Response by PO1 Edward Speary made Aug 4 at 2020 8:59 AM

2020-08-04T08:59:52-04:00

In Naples the local people invited a bunch of us sailors to their homes for Christmas dinner.Great food,people,and fun.The Grandma would try to feed you until you burst.Then on New Years eve you would want to walk in the middle of the road because at midnight they would throw used furniture out the windows.

Response by PO1 Kevin Dougherty made Aug 10 at 2020 12:01 AM

2020-08-10T00:01:53-04:00

Probably my most memorable was serving on an isolated duty station 500 miles north of the Arctic Circle. When I say isolated, I mean isolated. We rarely saw or talked to anyone outside of the 2o or so men on the crew. Entertainment was movies, cards, ping pong, B Ball in a "gym" where the roof was so low you had to shoot between the rafters, and assorted hobbies. (Wood shop, Darkroom, and ... umm never mind, that was about it.) OH and of course log flights on those occasions when the weather was good enough for them to land.

Anyway, we had the usual festivities, and a really good meal, Turkey with all the trimmings, along with a ration of "medicinal" brandy). What I remember though took place later that night on watch. We were a LORAN station, and also had a VOR, mostly we were there to provide a navigation fix for BUFFs flying alerts, but we also conducted basic weather observations and provided a check in site for commercial aircraft flying the Great Circle Route from Europe. So there I am, doing my hourly readings, and listening for our call signs on about 12 different frequencies we guarded from LF through UHF. An SAS flight called to check in, and the pilot said he had a special message for me. I was then treated to several stewardesses singing Jingle Bells and White Christmas with their wonderful Swedish accents. They then wished us a merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Truthfully they could have sung anything and it would have been wonderful just to hear a woman's voice, but to this day I can close my eyes and hear them, and a smile comes to my face.

Response by LCpl James Schleich made Aug 21 at 2020 2:45 PM

2020-08-21T14:45:35-04:00

Dinner while doing guard duty on the USS Gaudal Canal Christmas 1990. The turkey had none and they had a rib roast. All you could eat.

Response by Lt Col Jim Coe made Aug 21 at 2020 5:54 PM

2020-08-21T17:54:48-04:00

Spent one Christmas with the Air Attaché to Guatemala. Flew C130 in to Guat City on 22 Dec. Blew a prop seal. Weather crumped. Relief aircraft with new prop and maintenance people couldn’t get in until 26 Dec. We stayed in hotel downtown but it wasn’t safe for North Americans at the time. Invited to Colonels home for Christmas dinner. His wife and two domestic servants put out a great meal for our aircrew of 7. Flew back to Howard AB on 27th.

Response by SP6 Peter Kreutzfeldt made Aug 22 at 2020 10:23 AM

2020-08-22T10:23:31-04:00

lucky you :-)

Response by Cpl David Miller made Aug 30 at 2020 1:50 PM

2020-08-30T13:50:11-04:00

Christmas 1969, Marine Helicopter Squadron aboard the USS Iwo Jima. We had Vietnamese orphans in the ships Hospital and we all gathered up as much pogey bait that we could find and had a little Christmas party with them. We sang a few Hymns, led by the Nuns. Not a dry eye!

Response by SGT Barry Wilson made Sep 7 at 2020 3:44 AM

2020-09-07T03:44:24-04:00

1969. Departed Long Binh for R&R in Sydney on Christmas Day, arrived In Sydney on Boxing Day. I had an enjoyable week, mainly rotating between the Texas Tavern in Kings X and the Royal Auto Club downtown every evening, with days enjoying the sun on Bondi Beach.

Response by CPL Sarah Stilwell made Sep 11 at 2020 7:11 AM

2020-09-11T07:11:41-04:00

I didnt have a christmas in the military. But i did have three december 25ths

Response by SPC Ron Salsbury made Sep 19 at 2020 9:22 AM

2020-09-19T09:22:33-04:00

The best memory of the Holidays was spending both Christmas, and New Years during Operation Desert Shield / Storm, listening to everyone complain about being away from home, and family. I would just smile, and laugh, because I was spending my holiday's surrounded by all my buddies for the first time in five years, since I never went home on leave during those weeks sitting in the barracks with nothing to do. The Commander eventually set up a Spades tournament to pass the time away; I remember my partner, and I went to the finals, winning the whole thing in just three hands.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 20 at 2020 10:13 PM

2020-09-20T22:13:46-04:00

I was driving up from Navstar to Cedar II and it had been raining all day. I saw a Bulgarian convoy who only had second hand body armor hanging over their trucks as protection from IEDs. We RPed at C II and the parking lot was a sea of mud. When I jumped down, i sank up to my hip, we slogged inside to the DFAC and they had Christmas dinner ready, it was dry and warm and it wouldn't have mattered if the food sucked,[it didnt] this was December 2005..

Response by SgtMaj Robert Burke made Oct 9 at 2020 10:08 AM

2020-10-09T10:08:29-04:00

Spent Christmas of 67 in Nam but was on R&R in Bangkok for Christmas of 68.
Don't remember how I pulled that off but enjoyed the crap out of it for sure.
L/Cpl Robert J. Burke

Response by CPO Bernie Penkin made Oct 21 at 2020 2:18 PM

2020-10-21T14:18:05-04:00

Christmas 1992. Deep Freeze ‘93. Woke up on Christmas morning to see the continent of Antarctica off the bow. It was a childhood dream come true. Later that morning, the ship navigated through a large field of ice bergs that dwarfed the ship on our way to McMurdo. It was vey humbling. We had holiday routine that day and most of the crew shared cookies and the like that they got from packages back home.

Response by SFC John Peters CWDP: BES, JSS made Dec 18 at 2020 8:32 AM

2020-12-18T08:32:50-05:00

Desert Shield 1990 in Saudi Arabia at the gunnery range prepping for Desert Storm and the eventual ground war. Pulled a 2 hour guard duty shift on Christmas Eve guarding ammo dump. Temps were in the low 30's with huge wind gusts. Was so damn cold I spent most of my shift running up and down a sand berm just to stay warm. Most miserable Christmas in my life!

Response by SSgt Jon Hall made Dec 18 at 2020 8:36 AM

2020-12-18T08:36:25-05:00

Dec 1967 MCRD San Diego. The platoon was out on the tarmac for an evening run. The air was cool and I remember the silence except for all the boots hitting the pavement in unison and seeing Christmas lights twinkling at scattered homes around the surrounding hills. Little did we know it was a little peace before the storm. Not deployed but memorable none the less.

Response by SGT Roger Bunton made Dec 18 at 2020 9:25 AM

2020-12-18T09:25:43-05:00

I grew up in the Salvation Army so I received a care package from them. My grandmother packed them with the usual goodies, SA magazines , home made cookies and a small Christmas tree. I was in Vietnam at the time. At the bottom of the box were the last six months copies of Playboy. Obviously my aunt Janette had helped pack this box and was letting us know what we were protecting...hahaha....all the guys saw this and immediately wanted to join my church....we shared everything during Christmas. 1969.

Response by CW4 John Schwartz made Dec 22 at 2020 8:17 AM

2020-12-22T08:17:56-05:00

While on leave from Northern Iraq in DEC 2003, a S3 NCO buddy and I went on our own Band of Brothers tour in Europe. Landed in Germany, drove to Nimaggen, then Normandy, Bastogne and Christmas in Garmisch.

Response by MSgt Bill Ballard made Dec 22 at 2020 8:41 AM

2020-12-22T08:41:31-05:00

Definitely a memorable Christmas 1969 at Bien Hoa AB, Vietnam. My wife never failed to send me a letter, card, or package every single day for my entire 2nd tour in that country. This particular year, she mailed a box in November to make sure I got it before Christmas, which I did. It contained every single thing needed for a good Christmas dinner to serve about 8 people. Of course, everything was canned, in a jar, or dry bagged. The menu was ham, green beans, potatoes, and brownies for dessert. All was good except the bread had some signs of 'green mold' which we cut off and ate the rest. It was still better than the chow hall on that particular day. Several of us sat around a big table in our Barracks Bar, having some great food that was warmly prepared, and watched a live presentation of the Bob Hope Show from Long Binh. AFN televised it for the very first time, so there was no need to sit in a hot humid field for entertainment. Besides, I saw the show in '68 at Cam Ranh Bay when Ann-Margaret was on the tour. It was a good day for being in RVN. Then on December 26th, the rocket attacks picked up where they left off 2 days before... just another war day at the office !!!

Response by SFC William Fowle made Dec 22 at 2020 8:50 AM

2020-12-22T08:50:19-05:00

My most memorable Christmas deployed? Waking up my first morning in Vietnam, and seeing the Replacement Detachment in daylight for the first time. Moved on to Can Tho on the 26th. Christmas 1969.

Response by SGT John Cooper made Dec 22 at 2020 8:55 AM

2020-12-22T08:55:48-05:00

Christmas 1980, Nurenburg, FRG. Christmas in Germany was extra special as we had the worlds best and largest Kriskringel Markt in the Nurenburg town center. Truly awesome at night with all the Christmas lights, stalls set up with handmade toys, fresh bakery items and especially the smell of spiced wine simmering in large vats. Tasted great too. It just felt so traditional and not commercialized like back in the world! I miss Germany, and I miss being in the Army that allowed me that chance to be stationed in Western Europe!

Response by PO1 Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 22 at 2020 10:23 AM

2020-12-22T10:23:34-05:00

Most memorable I'd say was 2009. "No shit, there I was. . ."

I was deployed to the southern Philippines, part of Joint Special Operations Task Force-SULU. We had basically 2 squads there, one on Mindanao at the Lanao Agricultural College, and my team, located at Barangay Kagay on Jolo island. Our means of communication with "the world" was a sat phone call, about 10 - 15 minutes every couple days.

I took a few minutes to make my call, it was probably around the 20th or so, and from that earpiece came the piercing, screeching voice of my wife.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU WERE GETTING EXTENDED?! RIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS!! ASSHOLE!!!"

Hell of a way to start the call, yea?

So, what had happened was. . . Dod-durned spouse network. My best friend (we called him Bear) was in Afghanistan with his Seabee battalion, and had taken over as battalion safety officer after the Chief had to be evac'd to Germany due to illness. He happened to be waiting on his monthly safety report for the CO to print off when the CO retrieved his papers. Skipper looked at it, asked if Bear knew anyone in NMCB 1 (my battalion), and said, "Well, your buds are getting extended it looks like."

So, Bear told his wife. His wife told my wife. Bear's wife had also talked to another friends girlfriend who happened to be in my battalion, which was deployed to Okinawa. She told Angie (Bear's old lady) that they received word about being extended as well.

Pretty easy to figure out how my wife knew. I didn't. I left with my detachment on 01AUG, and Pres. Obama had just ordered the surge, which threw deployments into whack. My Chief and det OIC were planning on coming out the next day, but after the debacle with my old lady, I called him back in Zamboanga and told him what I'd heard, & he confirmed it, and that he & the CPT had planned on delivering it in-person when they came out.

I let them two break it to my crew.

However, as memorable as that part is, the next piece is better.

Now, we had been building a school in Barangay Kagay, and two Soldiers from an ODA that shall not be numbered out of respect were killed on 29September (VOIED) literally 200m from the entrance to the camp. The villagers - all Muslim - cried for our two Brothers. Not only did they give us the most sincere, warmest Christmas, with cheap souvenir T-shirts as gifts, but the absolute sincerity and love with which they did it was overwhelming. Our project wrapped up a couple days before Christmas, and we were due to leave the site the day after. On Christmas eve night, when we received our presents, they showed us a plaque they had made in honor of our two Brothers, that they wanted placed in the front of the school. Ghani, the Barangay Captain, and his brothers-in-law made the plinth for the plaque themselves, but had never told us why.

Those Muslim villagers had collectively decided to name the school after two Christian men: one black, one white, with an honorable mention of a third, PFC Jerwin Estrada, part of the Philippine Marine Corps Bn Landing Team SIX, who died supporting the construction of it.

The school we built - still untouched by extremists in the Southern Philippines to this day - was named the "J. Martin & C. Shaw Elementary School of Barangay Kagay".

THAT, Brothers & Sisters. . . THAT is the absolute best & most memorable Christmas I have ever & will ever have: being shown true, heart-felt love from Muslims, who named a school for two men from another country, another religion, and differing ethnicities, and who honored us by celebrating a holiday with us that was not their own.

Response by CPO John Bjorge made Dec 22 at 2020 2:21 PM

2020-12-22T14:21:31-05:00

1975, 1976 USS INDEPENDENCE CV62, Christmas in Naples duty on Christmas Eve. Went down for Dinner and the Skipper was working the serving line. In the shop one of the guys made wine and we watched movies.

Response by PO1 Frank Reiffenstein made Dec 22 at 2020 7:59 PM

2020-12-22T19:59:30-05:00

When we were in heading home in the early 90's we had a port visit at the Rock Of Gibraltar. There was a sign up sheet for rent a sailor. About 15 of us were invited to a Pub where we had a good American Christmas dinner at the Pub (which was closed)which was made by the owner. Turkey and ALL the fixins. After which we had an open bar. One of the best CHRISTmas away from home port.

Response by SP6 Jack Moore made Dec 23 at 2020 7:06 PM

2020-12-23T19:06:10-05:00

Christmas Time 1968. Vietnam with Bravo 5/60th, Third Platoon, 9th ID at Rach Kien. I was lucky enough to be chosen to attend the Dong Tam Bob Hope Show. It was his first time in the deep Mekong Delta. We had a miserable couple of months so the news was uplifting. There was a time during the show that an Alpha Sierra took place and Bob Hope headed for the bunker bunker built for the show people, saying "Call off the war General Ewell!!!" The troops were cracking up. Ann Margaret was sensational. Miss World was there (Penelope Plumber), Rose Greer (what a blast), the Band of Renown's, and others. In the crowd of hard a$$es, there was laughter, good cheer, and an occasional tear.

Response by SPC Gary McHargue made Dec 23 at 2020 7:08 PM

2020-12-23T19:08:49-05:00

While with the 1st Cavalry in 1969 we set up our perimeter on top of some unknown hill near Loch Ninh. After everything was secure we sat down for dinner. I reached into my pack not knowing what I was going to get because it was dark. I grabbed a C Ration not a clue what I had picked. To my great surprise my ration came with canned peaches and as a bonus a pound cake. Pouring the peaches over my pound cake on the flattened cardboard was heaven. It was one of the best Christmas dinners I have ever had!

Response by SPC Sandra Sherman made Dec 23 at 2020 7:19 PM

2020-12-23T19:19:55-05:00

Beautiful story, I know those kids never forgot your kindness.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 23 at 2020 7:23 PM

2020-12-23T19:23:11-05:00

Military Police caught me in a 'hootch' in Tong Du Chon Korea in 1956...

Response by SMSgt John Lemon made Dec 23 at 2020 7:37 PM

2020-12-23T19:37:54-05:00

I was TDY at Yokota AB, Japan. This was about 1982. We were working out on the hot and downloading Class A and B explosives onto a high line. There were 6 of us working this mission. We had just downloaded the Class B and were trying download the Class A. The rollers on the highline were rusted and the pallet got stuck in the rollers. So we pulled the pallet back to get a running start. We were able to get it going and it went faster and faster until it got out of control. The team chief yelled, "Get out of here it's going to blow!" the two guys on either side bailed off the highline leaving me and my buddy to try to slow down the 9,000 lb. pallet. We drug our feet, and pulled back on the cargo netting and finally when the pallet caught the other it was only a mere bump. I looked at my buddy and said, "We're safe now. So why am I still shaking?" At that we laughed. Then we went to the café in the passenger terminal. We missed the turkey dinner at the chow hall, so all we had was a hamburger and fries and a coke at the Pax café. Considering the alternative it was the best tasting burger and coke we had ever had.

Response by SSgt Randall Matheny made Dec 23 at 2020 8:23 PM

2020-12-23T20:23:17-05:00

I had just finished delivering ammunition to a Spooky at Tan Son Nhut AB in '72. The war was winding down and I was walking back to our Line D hangar when someone from the Red Cross drove up and handed me a care package. I don't know why but it struck me so deeply that I will never forget it.

Response by SPC Dan Coscina made Dec 23 at 2020 8:24 PM

2020-12-23T20:24:16-05:00

1969 Camp Enari (Pleiku) -MP sitting in a V-100 with full flack gear watching the Enlisted men's club so the guys would not fight among themselves.
Good side - we had a great party at the MP club with goodies sent from many families.

Response by CMSgt Dave Soldano made Dec 23 at 2020 8:30 PM

2020-12-23T20:30:54-05:00

I was in basic training for Christmas 1983. Everyone was so depressed and missing family and home. When lights out was announced and our whole flight hit the sack; it was quiet and dark, there was no talking on this night. About 30 minutes after we all got into our beds our First Sgt. got on the giant voice and started telling us about Airmen guarding the DMZ, and Airmen patroling the flightlines on the Alaskan/Russian boarders. So don't feel too bad about being in BMT for Christmas. Well that got everyone crying in their beds until we fell asleep. Very memorable time in my 27 year AD military career. Merry Christmas to All!!!!

Cmsgt. Dave

Response by SSG Carlos Madden made Dec 23 at 2020 8:35 PM

2020-12-23T20:35:34-05:00

I only had one but I was without the rest of my CA team and with a new unit at a COP on the banks for the Tigris. It was actually pretty relaxing and enjoyable.

Response by Sgt Jay Cole made Dec 23 at 2020 8:57 PM

2020-12-23T20:57:47-05:00

Christmas day 1967 I was at U-Tapao Airfield, Thailand as an aircraft mechanic on B-52 bombers/KC-135 tankers. The 24 hour Christmas truce that started Christmas eve meant I would be working Christmas day since all the aircraft were there. I remember some guys painted Christmas greetings for the Viet Cong/NVA on the external bombs under the wings. Later I heard a Colonel didn't like them & made them wash them off. I didn't realize it at the time but I guess political correctness began that day.

Response by TSgt Ken Vandevoort made Dec 23 at 2020 9:01 PM

2020-12-23T21:01:10-05:00

Christmas 1968, I was a ground radio operator at Site 4, Karamursel AS, Turkey. I had been in the country less than two months. I was at work Christmas Eve and stepped outside the building. I could hear sheep out in the field and the shepherds were playing their wooden flutes. Talk about a Luke 2 experience. I half expected to see the sky full of angels in a few moments. That was the closest I had ever been physically to where it all started and why we have Christmas.

Response by SPC Gregg Bothell made Dec 23 at 2020 9:09 PM

2020-12-23T21:09:02-05:00

Christmas 1970 I was on a mountain top firebase in the Central Highlands of Vietnam with the
Army's 1st Cav Division. My buddy and I spent the evening Laying on our backs watching the best meteor shower I have ever seen.

Response by SN James Needham made Dec 23 at 2020 10:06 PM

2020-12-23T22:06:48-05:00

My most memorable Christmas was the Bob Hope and Raquel Welch Christmas tour on the Ranger in 1967. I was on the Destroyer USS Orleck (DD-886) at Yankee Station (Vietnam War) and we had a lottery to see who would be able to helicopter over for the show. I didn't win, but we were cruising alongside the carrier, close enough so we could faintly hear the show and make out the pink one of the women was wearing. Took photos, but not able to discern much from where I was. Nevertheless, it was a major milestone on my WESPAC cruise!

Response by SP5 Lyle Platz made Dec 23 at 2020 10:19 PM

2020-12-23T22:19:46-05:00

1968 SETTING IN RICE PADDY IN VIETNAM. WISHING I WAS HOM IN TRAVERSE CITY,MI. WITH MY FAMILY.

Response by SSG Steve Thorne made Dec 23 at 2020 11:07 PM

2020-12-23T23:07:00-05:00

Spent Christmas Eve and morning in the Joint Security Area (Korean DMZ) in 1974. The cook from the Swiss/Swede compound (Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission) brought their party leftovers out to the guard post at the entrance to the JSA late on the Eve. We were going to shoot him until we saw he had aluminum foil in his hands and not a weapon. "Thanks very much, but next time call first." We were relieved about 0800 and went back for chow before heading to the QRF site. Some clown had unrolled red and green condoms and thumbtacked them around a poster of "Suzy," our barracks sweetheart. The feather boa she was wearing wasn't enough holiday cheer, you see. QRF until 1600 then back to the Quonset hut where I hunkered down in my bunk under a couple of Korean-made quilts and GI blankets. We had the space heater glowing red that night. Not much of a celebration.

Response by SGT Dale Foss made Dec 23 at 2020 11:14 PM

2020-12-23T23:14:25-05:00

I honestly do not remember Christmas in Vietnam 1970. I imagine the mess hall had a turkey dinner or something special. I was in the scout platoon of the 3/5 Cav at Dong Ha. I do remember being on a liaison mission with a S3 officer at the Cua Viet South Vietnamese Naval base for a week. The US Navy was sending barrages up the river to load up blown up tanks, etc. at Quang Tru and we coordinated the Army patrols along the river with the Navy so they didn't shoot each other up. Of course me being the enlisted guy, I had the night shift to receive sit reps. When we returned to our unit, the 1st Sgt. told me trucks were leaving in an hour to go to Da Nang for the Bob Hope show and he saved a place for me. I told him I hadn't slept much for the past week and just wanted to go to bed. I told him to give my place to someone else. I thought our guys would be in the last row anyway. As it turned out, our guys were in the second row. I do remember pulling guard duty on New Year's Eve and seeing all the fireworks of flares, tracers, etc. at midnight.

Response by LTC Michael Toler made Dec 23 at 2020 11:34 PM

2020-12-23T23:34:11-05:00

My Christmas memory was kneeling in the sand tactically spaced outside in the embassy compound in Mogadishu with Marine snipers providing overwatch while a Catholic chaplain gave a mass to about 50 of us. Michael Toler LTC USArmy

Response by PO3 James Foley made Dec 23 at 2020 11:51 PM

2020-12-23T23:51:11-05:00

In 1969 I was serving aboard USS Benner DD 807 on Yankee Station as plane guard for the USS Ranger CV 61 (nickname-TOP GUN). We were notified that a select few members of our crew would be helo- lifted to the carrier for the Bob Hope show. I was standing CIC radar watch while the show went on but in my minds eye, I was on the carrier. The other plane guard was the USS Eversole DD 789. Their crew was similarly given access to the show.

Response by CDR Curtis Stubbs made Dec 24 at 2020 12:05 AM

2020-12-24T00:05:35-05:00

I was stationed in Iceland unaccompanied from 93-95 while my wife, my 3yo, and my son was born on Christmas Day 1993 in Jacksonville, Florida. For my Sons 1st birthday, they flew to Iceland and spent Two weeks enjoying the Snow, extremely high winds, sledding and the blue lagoon. One of my Sailors dressed up as Santa and delivered Christmas gift to my 1year old and my 3 year old. It was great. We even flew to Amsterdam for 4 days to warm up a little. This event helped shape my youngest Sons career path as he is a Navy Seabee and really enjoys it. My other Son is in his last year of Medical School and, as expected, we are both proud of our young men. Merry Christmas to all my shipmates overseas and those at the tip of the Speer. I am proud of every man and woman serving our country. It makes us all better people. Stay Safe.

Response by PO2 Michael Rickey made Dec 24 at 2020 12:22 AM

2020-12-24T00:22:38-05:00

1980. Went by train from Naples Italy to northern Hollamd for Xmas. My friends family was of a Dutch background. Went thru the alps. Beautiful but cold. Saw a lot of Germany. When we got to our destination his grandmother had us stay upstairs w no heat but slept in a bed w feather pillows. She fought in WW2 w the underground. She did not speak any English. Sat w two nights s coming back. Met a guy from Iraq on train and I think he wanted to surrender to us since we were Americans. Got back to the John F Kennedy (CVA67) and finished our Med cruise. PN2 Mike Rickey

Response by CPL Leo Smith made Dec 24 at 2020 12:39 AM

2020-12-24T00:39:12-05:00

Christmas 1964 there was a big fire in the mountains out from Taegu ,Korea where we had a commo sub station me and and few others that were in company area in early morning were grabed up to fight fire with beaters . fought fire all day long till late afternoon . Will never forget that.

Response by PFC David Tomlinson made Dec 24 at 2020 1:22 AM

2020-12-24T01:22:42-05:00

In 1972 in South Korea, stationed at Camp John Pelham, which had an artillery battalion (2nd Infantry Division, 7/17 Artillery) and a company of MPs, total of 700+ personnel, Christmas dinner consisted of 2 turkeys and fixings. By the time I got there, nothing left...I got 2 hotdogs and mashed potatoes. Somehow, all that Christmas dinner for 700+ people disappeared. I hear it turned up in various markets from Mun San to Seoul, but I never saw it.

2 years later, in Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, we did a cookout (luau) on Sunset Beach (north shore of Oahu), where we had pit-roasted Palua pork with accouterments like poi and laulau. Plenty of beverages were to be had. This worked out much better, we relied upon our own devices and skipped the mess hall.

Response by LCpl Lawrence Dos Santos made Dec 24 at 2020 6:21 AM

2020-12-24T06:21:44-05:00

12/25/1967 C 1st Bn 4th Marines We humped all day on our trek from Strong Point A3 (between Con Thien and Gio Linh) to C2 Bridge behind Con Thien. We were lucky during this movement that a Spoter Plane saw the NVA trying get into an Ambush for us. Air strike to care of them.Thank you Jesus!

Response by CPO Alan Elze made Dec 24 at 2020 7:38 AM

2020-12-24T07:38:53-05:00

During a cruise to the Middle East on a destroyer in '93 morale was quite low and there were pro and anti Christmas sentiment on the ship, as we had not been receiving mail regularly for some time. But with a little bit of luck and a lot of help, it turned out to be an okay Christmas.

Response by SPC Ronald Zatawski made Dec 24 at 2020 8:26 AM

2020-12-24T08:26:05-05:00

Christmas Day in Long Binh Vietnam, was lucky enough to get to see the Bob Hope Christmas show along with 25,000 of my brothers and sisters, still remember it to this day

Response by MSgt Michael Brooks made Dec 24 at 2020 8:43 AM

2020-12-24T08:43:00-05:00

On Christmas 2006, at Kirkuik AB, Iraq, the chaplain and the Top 3 okayed the making of a Christmas tree. We made it out of a steel frame with camouflaged netting and lights, the base commander had a lighting ceremony and we all stood around singing Silent Night and a few other carols.

Response by SPC Bob Kickenweitz made Dec 24 at 2020 8:52 AM

2020-12-24T08:52:01-05:00

Remembering Christmas 54 years ago
By Robert "Bob" Kickenweitz

When I was a youth growing up in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, Christmas was pretty much the same year to year other than the presents we would receive. Each year my family would watch a variety of Christmas Shows, Ozzie & Harriet Nelson with David and Ricky, Andy Williams, Perry Como, I Remember Mamma, and of course The Story of the Nativity. On Christmas morning after church, my Aunt and Uncle would drive out from New York City to spend the day and have dinner with us, sometimes my Grandmother and Grandfather would be with us also. My younger brother Edd and I knew that whatever we received as gifts from my Aunt and Uncle there would always be a new pair of slipper socks for each of us, we hated slipper socks but we knew we couldn't say anything other than, "Thank you."

The year I have the most vivid memory of is 1966. This would be my first Christmas away from home, I would not have my family and friends around me, and we would not be having dinner together and for once I wished I could be home to receive those slipper socks. December 25, 1966 found me in Xuan Loc, South Vietnam as part of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. Our base camp was located about 65 miles northeast of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, between the jungle and a rubber tree plantation, I really was not looking forward to Christmas that year. I can remember that after dinner on Christmas Eve I went and took a shower, put on a clean uniform and sat down to listen to Armed Forces Radio and to write some letters for my family back home. We also listened to Hanoi Hannah the only other station on the radio. She was the Tokyo Rose of the Vietnam War. She played the best music and in between songs would send out her propaganda message. On this night, she was saying that the Vietcong, (you remember the guys in the black pajamas) would be having Christmas Dinner on the base camp of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment the following day. Now that’s a message that really got our attention.

At about ten in the evening I got up to go over to the service for Christmas Mass. Our Chaplain, Father Egan, his assistant Tony Graziano and whoever else helped, did a superb job in preparing an open field into a beautiful place to serve midnight Mass. They started by taking some beer and soda pallets to construct a floor for our altar, then nailed some plywood on top of the pallets to finish the floor. For the rear walls of the altar, they nailed four by eight sheets of plywood to the floor, then lifting the plywood seven to eight feet high into the air to create the rear walls of the altar. Blue spotlights were used to wash light across the back walls of the altar. A podium with a white cross on the front of it was in the center of the altar.

Off the altar to the left was a confessional with a long line of soldiers and some nurses. The lines were always long at the confessional, everybody always took the opportunity when it presented itself, to go to confession. While more soldiers were filling in the bare spots in the field the Chaplains assistant was playing Christmas Carols on an organ. For some reason while I was sitting on the ground singing with the others around me, I decided to lie back on the ground. Coming from the New York, New Jersey area you never see all the stars that are in the sky due to refractive lights of the big cities. But out here between a jungle and a rubber tree plantation you get to see the Milky Way in its full splendor. I’m not sure if it was my missing of family and friends or if God was telling me in his own way that things would be okay. Looking up into the night sky I saw the most beautiful sight I have ever seen in my life. On the ceiling of our open air church was the same scene the shepherds must have seen two thousand years before, the only thing missing was the star of Bethlehem. The grandeur of the Milky Way in that black sky was absolutely breathtaking. Every Christmas Eve when my family and I go to Mass, inevitability sometime during the service I drift back to that magical Christmas Eve. so many years ago and so far away I'm still filled with a joy only that Christmas could deliver. This year more than any other, I would like to take the opportunity to wish everybody; especially our young men and women of the armed forces a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and that they may feel the magic of that special Christmas.

Robert Kickenweitz
11th ACR HQ & HQ Troop
Oct 66 - Sep 67
[login to see]

Response by LTC Van Jones made Dec 24 at 2020 9:21 AM

2020-12-24T09:21:25-05:00

It was during Desert Storm. On Christmas evening I had Christmas Dinner at 1st Sup Com. I had ham for dinner.

Response by SGT Edward Murie made Dec 24 at 2020 9:50 AM

2020-12-24T09:50:32-05:00

I was in 9th infratry unit and I receieved Christmas package of cookies but I was on guard in the middle of the jungle with the rest of my fellow men, about 40 miles from Long Binh Vietnam. Christmas didn,t mean much to be there, it was just another day for patrol and being on guard. I knew the family back home was have a nice time and I was hoping we wouldn't see charlie { VC} that day, which we never. Next day they toldus we have to move to a hot zone and help out another unit that was under fire so we traveled back closer to them and driving Hyway 1 . I was the driver of a pc carried and I did enjoy driving it, I just had to be on alert for land mines, thank God I made it home safely in 1969.

Response by SSG Andrew Blattel made Dec 24 at 2020 10:43 AM

2020-12-24T10:43:44-05:00

For Christmas 2006 we were at OP Warheight overlooking COP Keating (from the movie The Outpost, but at the time it was COP Kamdesh as my friend Ben Keating had not given his life yet). Since the resupply flights were infrequent, at Best we had taken to buying goats from the locals to feed ourselves. For Christmas we pooled our money together and bought a cow. We butchered ourselves and made a grill out of Hesco barriers. Fortunately we had gotten mail on a previous resupply flight and my wife had sent me some barbecue sauce. We grilled that cow and ate on it until New Years. We stored it in unused sand bags and set it out in the snow. We would bring some in for a meal and heat it up on the woodburning stoves we were using for heat.

Response by CAPT Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 24 at 2020 10:45 AM

2020-12-24T10:45:09-05:00

Christmas Day 2006 at FOB Shield in Baghdad: we had the day off from our duties as part of the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior transition team and decided to have a Christmas party and share all of our care packages from the folks back home. While in my hooch gathering mine from over the past month or so, I came across a box of Cheerios that one of my old P-3 squadronmates from Jacksonville sent earlier that year. I had set it aside because of the dearth of good breakfast chow at the DFAC. I decided to bring it along, but noticed that the box "sloshed" when it was shaken. And lo, there came a welcomed harbinger of Christmas Spirits, in spite of CENTOM’s General Order Number One forbidding said spirits: My thoughtful and resourceful friend had neatly hidden a pint of Jim Beam inside the box and carefully resealed its top with a glue gun. Thankfully, it had slipped undetected by the not-so-diligent Booze Police.

Needless to say, that was one item I did not share with my group on the FOB. No problem falling asleep that night!

Response by SSG Christopher Uzzi made Dec 24 at 2020 10:48 AM

2020-12-24T10:48:38-05:00

Its Christmas! but the show must go on.
Doctors, nurses, fireman, Police, Power plant workers, Truck drivers, essential workers and all of the workers that keep Christmas shining and wonderful though their efforts, I thank you. Being in a base camp 20 miles north of Saigon in 1968 Christmas eve Christmas day does not stop the advance of threat or harm to a Combat unit. In the fields of combat where life a death is a toss-up depending on the circumstances of the moment, a combat company would deploy for the night, ambush squads of mostly 10 men to protect the main companies night time position. Most of the time they were called Tiger Alpha Teams in my unit C co 3/7 199th Light infantry Brigade. The teams would assemble just before dust and move out to their coordinated positions for the night. This was a daunting task for any night but Christmas eve and Christmas night and being 20 years old and an Army Staff Sergeant in charge of 3rd platoon with the choices of who goes out on ambush and who stays in on Christmas eve and Christmas night. Its one tough decision we know sergeants in similar positions will always need to make. Here is the most inspiring and courageous part. When I assembled the platoon and spoke. I said “Listen up! we have command orders for one squad for Tiger Alpha duty for Christmas eve and Christmas night”. I figured I start by asking for volunteers then look at my rotation list to see who was next for tiger alpha duty. I said. “Listen up my beauties, do we have any volunteers for tonight’s and tomorrow night’s Tiger Alpha’s”? Incredibly, the hole Platoon raised their hands. Now we know sergeants never twitch but there was a tear in my eye. No worries, no one saw it. I went to my rotation list which always included me and off we went to do our jobs for Christmas eve and Christmas night.
Coach Chris Uzzi Veterans Listening Post. vlpost.com

Response by LCDR Robert Seybold made Dec 24 at 2020 11:00 AM

2020-12-24T11:00:18-05:00

Having spent 33 years in the Navy, I have been assigned to a number of different ships. I have been deployed many times over the years and more than a few of those have been over holidays. We have always managed to be in port somewhere which allowed phone communication with the home front, if not having loved ones visit that port EXCEPT that one deployment to Desert Shield/Storm. Christmas was spent making best speed in the South China Sea with a sixteen ship amphibious task force headed for Persian Gulf. We were allowed some battery powered directions, but no contact home and no visitation from loved ones. I really remember that Christmas.

Response by AN Lorenzo Strother made Dec 24 at 2020 11:18 AM

2020-12-24T11:18:05-05:00

Early 1980's Christmas eve. Uss Midway home ported in Japan . I walked the streets of yokosuka thinking about my family in California, My.Mom Dad Brothers and sister. It was my first Christmas away from home. As a young man I felt so lonely. So I put on my Walkman, listening to the BeeGees I walked for miles that night.

Response by SGT Ed Matyjasik made Dec 24 at 2020 11:20 AM

2020-12-24T11:20:48-05:00

Just another day in the bush, I was writing a letter home. Near the DMZ 1969, Vietnam. Merry Christmas to all.

Response by PO3 Dennis Williams made Dec 24 at 2020 11:23 AM

2020-12-24T11:23:52-05:00

Christmas 1963 I was stationed at NATTC Memphis (Millington, TN) and I was not going home. We had a 14 inch snowfall around Christmas day and they had us airmen out clearing sidewalks using a broom stick and dust pan. Evidently there were no snow shovels available and they needed sidewalks cleared so there we went. We really used up a lot of dust pans during that snow storm because the snow was heavy and wet. I was able to fly home to Nebraska for the New Year.to see my family.

Response by PO1 Wood Frampton made Dec 24 at 2020 11:43 AM

2020-12-24T11:43:46-05:00

I think it was either 1982 or 1983. Underway and submerged on a ballistic missile submarine, USS Casimir Pulaski, somewhere in the Atlantic. I was a junior Missile technician (MT3). Our Weapons department senior chief dressed himself in a Santa suit and walked through the ship handing out candy canes. A group of Christmas carolers went through the ship singing to the men on watch in the different compartments. A Christmas dinner was prepared by the cooks.

Response by PO2 Steve Jean made Dec 24 at 2020 11:55 AM

2020-12-24T11:55:46-05:00

In 1965 I got a chance to see the Bob Hope Christmas show in Danang. It was pouring rain but nobody cared. It was a great break from what was happening in Vietnam. I still have vivid memories of the day.

Response by Cpl James R. " Jim" Gossett Jr made Dec 24 at 2020 12:36 PM

2020-12-24T12:36:23-05:00

???

Response by Cpl Mark A. Morris made Dec 24 at 2020 12:45 PM

2020-12-24T12:45:10-05:00

I am not sure if it was Christmas day, but I was at a Navy LT house, who was a coach for the Rugby team I played for while doing two years and four months overseas. He had a wife and two children. one girl and one boy. His son graduated WestPoint a few years back. We had dinner and exchanged gifts.
We would travel a ferry about two miles across the Lock to go to practice and games. I would work Fridays and Sundays to get time off for Rugby.
My time there was made easier with his company and well as a Scotsman Mr. Morgan. He was my teammate. A lot of my time was spent on special weapon transfers. In the worst conditions I would expect men to be working in.
Pam Am 103 was blown out of the sky while I was there. It landed somewhere between 15 to 30 miles southeast of our position. Women and children were targeted for being married to our service personnel.
Over and out.

Response by SPC Larry Crumbliss made Dec 24 at 2020 12:49 PM

2020-12-24T12:49:18-05:00

Laying in the snow all night in the alps with my M16. I was APC driver, my sgt. wouldn’t let me sleep in it. Didn’t mind too much, APC had a terrible stink. No showers for couple of weeks for 8 infantry. 1970

Response by Sgt Richard Lowe made Dec 24 at 2020 1:10 PM

2020-12-24T13:10:47-05:00

Date: December 25th 1966 0700 Hrs.
Place: Phan Rang AB RVN
Unit: 35th Security Police Squadron, K-9 Section

At 0600 I and my K-9 partner Prinz were picked up from post and returned to the kennel area after spending Christmas Eve/Morning patrolling the Air Base perimeter for the past 10+ hours.

The squad kenneled, feed and watered their dogs then climbed back on the truck again for the trip to the compound.

It was now about 0700 and as prearranging three of us got together in our hooch to memorialize our Christmas in Vietnam. Hopefully our only Christmas in Vietnam.

I pulled my olive green footlocker to the center of the floor and removed a bottle of Crown Royal, three cans of Coke and a small candle from my locker.

With the lighted candle at center stage on my footlocker and the three of us sitting around it we share stories of past Christmases, families at home, girlfriends present and past and what our plans were when we finally left the war zone. All that until we finished that large bottle of Crown Royal and the candle finally went out.

It definitely was not the Christmas we were dreaming about with our at home families but we were family now and making the best with what we had and it was a good morning.

To this day I cannot drink Crown Royal without remembering that Christmas morning in Vietnam.

Response by SMSgt Michael Gleason made Dec 24 at 2020 2:33 PM

2020-12-24T14:33:06-05:00

As a member of the U.S. Army in December 1968, I was having Christmas Dinner just south of the Korean DMZ at Camp Casey, Korea. We had REAL eggnog, flown in from California! (“Real” as opposed to the milk we usually had, which was shipped to Korea as powder, and “reconstituted" in the Army Milk Factory in Seoul, replacing the butterfat with coconut oil. It tasted OK if it was really cold, but if not it tasted like plastic). I was amazed that the Army made that effort to make Christmas "special"!

Response by MSgt Leilani Mariotti made Dec 24 at 2020 2:48 PM

2020-12-24T14:48:21-05:00

Mine was when I was stationed at Kunsan AB, Korea. I was missing my husband and did not plan on coming back to the states for a mid-tour as I was afraid that I would not come back. I sat on Santa's lap on base and told him that I wanted my husband to be with me for Christmas. Well, after that I made arrangements for him to fly to Korea and stay in my dorm room. That made my Christmas, even though he came there after the new year. That really helped get me through the Christmas season.

Response by Sgt Bob Buster Adcock made Dec 24 at 2020 3:02 PM

2020-12-24T15:02:17-05:00

BLT 3/1 was blooded on 23 Dec 67, on Operation Fortress Ridge. 10 KIA and 20 wounded. On the 24th we were back on the Valley Forge, had a great Christmas dinner on the 25th. Embarked on Operation Badger Tooth on 26 Dec. On the 27th 3/1 encountered an NVA battalion in the village Thon Tam Khe. At the end of that miserable day, 48 Marines were dead and over 100 wounded. Christmas hasn't been the same since.

Response by MSgt Mark Bucher made Dec 24 at 2020 3:22 PM

2020-12-24T15:22:53-05:00

Working Christmas Day in Afghanistan. Didn’t do a thing, set up a digital projector, opened up my facility, watched movies with a bunch of people, some I knew, some I didn’t, but we were all family, we all felt that too.

Response by SSG Christopher Uzzi made Dec 24 at 2020 4:04 PM

2020-12-24T16:04:38-05:00

Its Christmas! but the show must go on.
Doctors, nurses, fireman, Police, Power plant workers, Truck drivers, essential workers and all of the workers that keep Christmas shining and wonderful though their efforts, I thank you. Being in a base camp 20 miles north of Saigon in 1968 Christmas eve Christmas day does not stop the advance of threat or harm to a Combat unit. In the fields of combat where life a death is a toss-up depending on the circumstances of the moment, a combat company would deploy for the night, ambush squads of mostly 10 men to protect the main companies night time position. Most of the time they were called Tiger Alfa Teams in my unit C co 3/7 199th Light infantry Brigade. The teams would assemble just before dust and move out to their coordinated positions for the night. This was a daunting task for any night but Christmas eve and Christmas night and being 20 years old and an Army Staff Sergeant in charge of 3rd platoon with the choices of who goes out on ambush and who stays in on Christmas eve and Christmas night Is the one tough decision we know sergeants in similar positions need to make. Here is the most inspiring and courageous part. When I assembled the platoon and spoke. I said “Listen up! we have command orders for one squad for tiger alfa duty for Christmas eve and Christmas night”. I figured I start by asking for volunteers then look at my rotation list to see who was next for tiger alfa duty. I said. “Listen up my beauties, do we have any volunteers for tonight’s and tomorrow night’s Tiger Alfa’s”? Incredibly, the hole Platoon raised their hands. Now we know sergeants never twitch but there was a tear in my eye. No worries no one saw it. I went to my rotation list which always included me and off we went to do our jobs for Christmas eve and Christmas night.
Veterans Listening Post. Vlpost.com
Coach Chris Uzzi.

Response by SPC Marvin Diamond made Dec 24 at 2020 6:07 PM

2020-12-24T18:07:46-05:00

Christmas eve with the 7th Infantry Division, in Korea in 1954, among the 2,000 GIs sitting in the bitter cold to celebrate Christmas with Cardinal Spellman, who was on a makeshift stage with heaters at his back and a cruel wind at his front. When he said, "America's forgotten sons," the roar from the troops could be heard in North Korea. He went on to tell us we were there so the star of communism didn't replace the star of Bethlehem. We were all warmer in the Cardinal"s presence because it let us know that people who mattered in the States knew where we were and thanked us for being there.

Response by SP5 Dennis Dorsey made Dec 24 at 2020 7:03 PM

2020-12-24T19:03:08-05:00

I was in Long Binh the same year the same year. Cookies from home and the Bob Hope show was the best Christmas ever. Then the Tet offensive happened 2 months later.

Response by CPO Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 24 at 2020 7:44 PM

2020-12-24T19:44:03-05:00

My Christmas in the ‘Gulf

The day before Thanksgiving onboard USNS SHUGHART - a Military Sealift Command Ship off the coast of Dubai - we learned “All liberty was canceled” during morning Quarters. Threat Condition Bravo had started. Effective immediately, there would be no going ashore for the planned Thanksgiving Party. We heard the ship engines change sound, & soon found we were headed out to sea.

Thirteen of us were US Navy, the rest of the crew – Civilians or as we called them “Civ-Mars” meaning Merchant Marine Sailors. We lived on a ship the size of an aircraft carrier, loaded with military equipment.

Christmas was approaching soon & since hostilities began, there was no personal mail. Everything was reserved for operational necessities. Although spaces were decorated, it would be a rather somber Christmas.

As the Admin – Postal – Supply - Chief, the role of Morale, Welfare & Recreation fell to me. I thought about the rather Spartan Christmas we would be experiencing. Since I had to go ashore & the opportunity presented itself to do a little shopping. I loaded up on candy, nuts, little goodies and trinkets & stuffed them into my bag along with other supplies.

Back onboard, I scrounged for colored paper, tape & glue. One of the CivMar’s wandered into my lair & was commandeered into Elfdom, gluing Christmas Cutouts from wrapping paper onto the construction paper. By zero dark thirty on Christmas Eve, all fifty four bodies onboard had personalized, gaily wrapped cornucopias hanging from their doorknobs along the passageways.

Finally, a poem was taped to the bulkhead across from the Galley & job finished, tired but satisfied; we stumbled off to our respective bunks to sleep.

The next day was great. Grown men gathered in the galley with their goodies happy as little boys with Christmas Stockings! The spirit of Christmas could not be denied. Operation Desert Fox notwithstanding.

Response by SPC Marvin Diamond made Dec 25 at 2020 1:39 PM

2020-12-25T13:39:24-05:00

A little antisemitism for Christmas. My uncle Jack was killed on patrol in Normandy. My cousin Alan was wounded on Okinawa. My cousin Martin, a Marine, fought in Korea. I spent a brutal winter outdoors near the DMZ in a combat zone in Korea. Maybe we made up for the day your guy missed?

Response by SGT Jack Lampman made Dec 25 at 2020 3:46 PM

2020-12-25T15:46:21-05:00

Remote Turkey in 1975. Playing Santa Claus at a Party for kids from the local orphanage. Not that they knew who Santa was....but were all smiles when I gave them a gift.

Response by SSgt Bob Mobbs made Dec 25 at 2020 11:16 PM

2020-12-25T23:16:27-05:00

In 1972 I was part of the team supporting members from the 24th Spcl Ops Sq in disaster relief operations for the Managua, Nicaragua earthquake. The earthquake hit Christmas Eve morning and within hours the relief teams were on their way.

Response by SP5 Dean Manning made Dec 26 at 2020 12:58 AM

2020-12-26T00:58:47-05:00

Christmas 1969 I was in Phu Hep, RVN. I had guard duty Christmas eve, in the rain. I sat there in my poncho thinking about my family back home. It was my first Christmas away from my family. I can't explain it, but I had a different outlook on my life up to that point ( it wasn't good ) and I think I became a better person after that night. In a lot of ways, it was the best Christmas of my life up to that point.

Response by SMSgt John Lemon made Dec 26 at 2020 1:00 AM

2020-12-26T01:00:18-05:00

Before I joined the military I was first in the US Peace Corps. I was stationed in the Republic of Niger. This was 1978, years for the Boko Haram invaded the country. It would be my last Christmas in country. The American Embassy invited the Peace Corps Volunteer to the embassy for a Christmas Party. Most of us were way out in the bush so we had to take a mammy wagon to go to Niamey for the party. We all stayed at the Peace Corps Hostel for the weekend of the party. We got there and there was the Embassy staff, the Embassy Marine Guards, some American ex-pats, and of course the PCVs. We had a pretty good feed bag. Fried chicken and fruit salad, the first we had seen since we had first arrived in country. After we ate we sang a dew carols. Then for the kids Santa came riding in on a camel. By the time the Marines retreated the colors first one than another and by the time retreat was done there was a dry eye in the house. The tension was tense that day earlier in the month the US Iranian Embassy was overrun by the Iranian students and our embassy staff there was held hostage. So with that the US Embassy had every American set their bags by the door in case the same happened in Niger. So there we were anxious about our friend in Iran and other Islamic countries like Chad, not knowing what the future held, That Christmas was just a little more special because of the atmosphere in that Sahara desert country.

Response by SPC Bob Kickenweitz made Dec 26 at 2020 9:31 AM

2020-12-26T09:31:26-05:00

Response by Sgt Mitchell Poole made Dec 26 at 2020 12:01 PM

2020-12-26T12:01:00-05:00

1972. I was on security duty at the entry post of the missile site , which consisted of a small 6x6 guard shack in the middle of no where. The only thing visible was one small building in the distance and lots of rocks, lots of rocks, and lot of rocks and a double fence covered in concertina wire. It was December 24 and my scheduled should have ended at 3:00 PM. Unfortunately it had started snowing earlier in the day and by noon the blizzard hit and we had 3 feet of snow on the ground and no visibility. I had walked outside to take a piss earlier and found a mouse haft dead struggling in the snow. I have no idea where the mouse came from. I took him inside with me. It continued to snow and the message I received was that I had no relief coming due to the weather, as if I did not know. So I spent the next 3 days, including Christmas in the 6x6 shack. Marines on security duty were not allow to have food, books, or any items that would distract them, but I had my mouse. By the third day I was wondering if you could grill a mouse over an electric heater. Luckily relief arrived by snow cats on the third day, mostly due to the needs of the crew at the missiles site. I never got the opportunity to find out if you can grill a mouse.

Response by PO3 Francis Becht made Dec 26 at 2020 3:10 PM

2020-12-26T15:10:24-05:00

Christmas 1969...NSA DaNang...I was getting short...ETD would be 23Jan70...but Christmas in VN was still a bummer

Response by AN Justice Myers made Dec 26 at 2020 6:26 PM

2020-12-26T18:26:47-05:00

Response by CPL Jimmy Cartmill made Dec 27 at 2020 9:14 PM

2020-12-27T21:14:32-05:00

Christmas of 1968, 9th Infantry, Dong Tam Base - Bob Hope Show. A refreshing break during an eventful year in the Mekong Delta.

Response by SPC Jason Ramias made Dec 28 at 2020 12:44 PM

2020-12-28T12:44:32-05:00

Christmas 1989. I graduated from OSUT on Dec 7th, and got orders to report to Ft. Ord on Dec 17th, right as most of the units on the base were deploying to overthrow Noriega. I hadn't even turned 18 yet at the time. So I spent my first Christmas in the Army at the repple depple. I'll never forget the Sergeant there: "In a few days most of you will be in Panama. But don't worry, those flak jackets we issue you will stop a bullet!"

And of course, I was assigned to one of the units that didn't deploy.

Response by CPT Larry Hudson made Dec 30 at 2020 8:58 AM

2020-12-30T08:58:06-05:00

Deployment: Vietnam War 69-70
Vinh Long, I was with B Troop 7th of 1st Cavalry Operations Officer when I received just before Christmas a Christmas tree from home and a big banner saying "Merry Christmas." Placed both in my Operations Bunker for all to see and really made Christmas special to see the faces of the pilots and crews see a reminder of home. I also received a baked cake and as usual, took a big slice and placed the rest of the cake on the officer lounge bar. Mother was a wonderful cook and it allowed everyone to feel closer to home.

Response by FN Francis Freiderich made Jan 1 at 2021 11:06 AM

2021-01-01T11:06:53-05:00

When I was in Vietnam on the River boat.We had our Christmas diner on the River they flew it out to us

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 18 at 2021 8:18 PM

2021-01-18T20:18:43-05:00

FSB Iron 1 Christmas 1969. I was detailed to bring 5 troops back to Lai Khe to attend the Bob Hope show. Upon arrival, I received an azz chewing from the REMFs that never set foot outside the gates of Lai Khe for not maintaining secure radio procedure in mentioning the show. So I was sent back to the FSB without seeing the show. There were 5 NFL players visiting the troops in Lai Khe. I wondered aloud why these magnificent physical specimens were not in uniform with us? That caused a questioning of my patriotism and a skeptical viewpoint on my behalf towards the flag waving hypocrisy of the NFL. Turns out I was right.

Response by SGT Doug Blanchard made Jan 19 at 2021 9:59 PM

2021-01-19T21:59:22-05:00

While I was never deployed at Christmas, if one of my fellow NCO's had duty and had a family, I was sibgle at the time, I would take theur duty for them so they coulf be with theur family. Especiallt if they had children at home. I would do the same thing for them at Thanksgiving, if I did not already have dury. It was my way of paying it foward to a fellow soldier. If they asked why, I would explain to them when I was in BCT/AIT at Ft Sill and got injured and was in the medical platoon healing from surgery, Capt. Edwards treated the whole unit, a PT platoon, Education platoon, the previous mentioned Medical platoon a BB-Q at the Artillery Museum on board base. He, his wife, 2 sons and 2 daughters did all the cooking for roughly 200 troops and footed the bill. This was on the 4th of July 1976, the nations bicentenial birthday.
So after I became an NCO, I was glad to try to do something for my fellow NCOs if possible. Fyi Capt Edwards was a mustang and had come up thru the enlisted ranks before becoming a commissioned officer. He showed alm of us great respect no matter what our rank was. Unfortunately he passed away from lung cancer in 1986. But I still remember how he treated others though.

Response by PO2 Frank Baldwin made Jan 20 at 2021 4:21 PM

2021-01-20T16:21:48-05:00

Stationed aboard the USS McKean DD784 out of Long Beach, CA Naval Base; fortunate to spend Xmas 69 & Xmas 70 in Long Beach; phoned home both Xmases to speak with my parents and sister. No special celebration aboard ship. Many crewmen had families in Long Beach where they spent Xmas except those with the duty that day. Only the duty section aboard those days and those who couldn't go home or Xmas like myself.

Response by 1SG James Kelly made Jan 31 at 2021 5:37 PM

2021-01-31T17:37:15-05:00

Every one I was lucky enough to spend with my Sheila.

Response by PO2 Lawrence Janiec made Feb 19 at 2021 12:01 PM

2021-02-19T12:01:25-05:00

Probably my first December while stationed on Guam, in 1993. I called my mother and she asked how my first winter was in a foreign country. I told her that it was still a US territory, so not really a foreign country. I also told her that there wasn't winter there. Huh, what do you mean? Well, there are only two seasons here. I don't understand. The two seasons are the Wet Season and the Dry Season. Okayyyyyy, what's the difference? Well, right now it's the Wet Season, which means that it rains pretty much all day, every day. Okay, so what's the Dry Season, then? Well, the Dry Season means that it only rains once or twice a day and not for very long.

As a point of reference, during the Dry Season, if you had blue skies, not a cloud in sight, start the timer on your watch. Clouds roll in, rain for literally 5 minutes, then the clouds roll out again. Blue skies with not a cloud in sight. Check the timer on your watch? 10 minutes had gone by. After being home on leave for a few weeks, I started doubting that this was even real that things like this happened. Then I flew back to Guam and experienced it within the first few minutes out of the airport. Yep, really happens.

Response by SGT Bill Nixson made Mar 13 at 2021 12:56 PM

2021-03-13T12:56:15-05:00

Christmas 1981 Spinelli Barracks Mannheim Germany living on the top floor, had arrived about 3 weeks earlier. Germans love fireworks at Christmas, and I had a magnificent view of the city from my window!

Response by MIDN 4/C Private RallyPoint Member made May 21 at 2022 4:05 AM

2022-05-21T04:05:32-04:00

Every Christmas is always the best because I celebrate it with my friends. This Christmas I have sent the designer cards to my friends that I selected on
https://masterbundles.com/stock-content/vector/crown-svg/ and the good thing is everyone liked that cards and also wished me back happily.

19+ Premium Crown SVG Files (2022) - Master Bundles

Click here and download 19+ Crown SVG Files in 2022. Windows, Mac and Linux Master Bundles offers Crown SVG Files developed by professionals from all over the world.