What are your best memories while deployed during the Holidays?

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 22 Dec 2015 19:20:27 -0500

As we get closer to the Holidays I was thinking about the good times that were had during the Holidays while deployed. Mine would have to be during Desert Shield. We were set up in tent city at King Fhad Airport. No CHU's. Just line after line of Hadji tents that everyone lived in as best as possible. We were in a somewhat "down" mode for the holidays(minus guard duty etc). They had done the best they could with chow(some terrible looking bird-like thing they called chicken). We had started probably the longest spades game in history(I think we decided first team to 250,000 wins). We'd start playing then when people got tired of playing new guys would just hop in and keep going. Everyone got involved in that at one time or another. Even CDR and 1SG popped in for a hand or 2. We had fashioned Christmas trees out of MRE boxes(cut out outline of tree), and hung red and green chem lights off it. Caroling was done thru out Co area(really bad idea..no one could carry a tune in a bucket). One of our sister companies had rigged a outdoor movie theatre off the side of a conex with a generation 1 projector..lol. Yeah it sucked, we weren't home, we were prepping to unleash some serious whoop ass on Sadaam, but that day and a half really has stuck with me all these years later.

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 22 at 2015 9:09 PM

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 22 Dec 2015 21:09:01 -0500

I spent one Christmas Eve in the home of one of my Kurdish interpreters, who happened to be Christian. It was one of the kindest things anyone had done for me. He knew I was really missing my very small children (Anja was not quite 2, Robby was 5 months old) and I got to "adopt" theirs for a night. His kids were absolutely thrilled with the small tokens I could scrounge or buy at our rudimentary PX, and I felt like a million bucks, for a night.
Nothing like the laughter and joy of children to cheer you up.

Merry Christmas, RP.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Dec 22 at 2015 9:10 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Tue, 22 Dec 2015 21:10:33 -0500

I am glad that was a quick war.

Response by PO1 Brian Austin made Dec 22 at 2015 9:50 PM

PO1 Brian Austin — Tue, 22 Dec 2015 21:50:08 -0500

By far the most memorable was at Camp Lima Karbala Iraq 2004. The Poles were in charge of the FOB, which made things interesting not to mention a severe language barrier for the most part. We had gotten into their good graces by fixing their internet (laptops saturated with porn virus's) and providing phone lines. Their field hospital was located in close proximity to our comm trailer, so we'd see the Doc's and nurses regularly, wave, nod "hi", etc. The nurses were very popular as they would regularly sun bathe nude and had no problem using the male showers unannounced when their's had no water.

On Christmas Day one of the Doc's came to the door of our trailer, he just kept saying "Christmas, Christmas" and motioning for the 3 of us to follow to the hospital tent. They had a full blown Christmas party going on, music, food, drink, dancing, the works. We gorged ourselves on all sorts of Polish food, pickled this and pickled that and large amounts of vodka. The nurses made sure all cups were never empty. The singing of Christmas songs in a mix of English and Polish had to be heard to be believed...lol We all really had no idea what the other was saying but every one was happy and smiling and enjoying themselves. We didn't need words for that.

Response by SGM Mikel Dawson made Dec 22 at 2015 11:29 PM

SGM Mikel Dawson — Tue, 22 Dec 2015 23:29:39 -0500

Christmas time 2003. WWE filmed their Holiday special at Victory Base. I'd been working for an Aussie COL, so he invited me to partake of Christmas day dinner with them. Was great!

Response by SPC Rory J. Mattheisen made Dec 23 at 2015 12:48 AM

SPC Rory J. Mattheisen — Wed, 23 Dec 2015 00:48:19 -0500

We spent hours digging up this lil tree to transplant it! OIF 03-04

Response by CSM Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 23 at 2015 9:14 AM

CSM Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 23 Dec 2015 09:14:58 -0500

When I was a 1SG in Afghanistan we had a cook out on he FOB. We had close to a foot of snow on the ground and it was awesome.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 23 at 2015 12:01 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 23 Dec 2015 12:01:59 -0500

While at Basra, one of my fellow team mates LOVED LOVED LOVED the holidays and she was a crafty soul. She always made decorations for every holiday and always created holiday activities for the team. To this day.......five years after deployment....when Christmas rolls around, I always find myself thinking about her spirit of the holidays and smile.