What is your most memorable Christmas while deployed?

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.

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

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.

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

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.