US Service Members Celebrating Christmas

Santa's Signal

Navy Lt. Larry Young, dressed as Santa Claus, signals to launch an F/A-18 E Super Hornet on the flight deck of the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Persian Gulf, Dec. 21, 2017, as the aircraft carrier supports security efforts in the region. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Victoria Foley

Bagram Visit

Medal of Honor recipient and retired Army Capt. Flo Groberg speaks to service members as Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, stands by during a USO Holiday Tour show at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, Dec. 24, 2017. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Divine Cox

 Holiday Hilarity

Service members take in the 2017 USO Holiday Tour show at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, Dec. 24, 2017. Performers included actor Adam Devine, comedian Iliza Shlesinger and country singer Jerrod Niemann. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Divine Cox


 Swimming Santa

Santa Claus, commanding officer of Holiday Cheer, Northpolecom, conducts basic swim qualifications at Camp Pendleton, Calif., Dec. 19, 2017. Claus and all operational reindeer must pass the qualifications every two years to maintain their water survival skills. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Evan Ahlin

Afghanistan Veteran Takes Care of Homeless Veterans For Chirstmas

Afghanistan veteran gives back by providing Christmas Eve meals
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Meg Jones
Published Dec. 24, 2017

"The last four, five years Christmas has been a little lackluster for me. This year I decided to do something about it because Christmas is more than gifts and pretty Christmas trees." Matt McDonell 

The holidays are a difficult time of year for Matt McDonell ever since he lost a comrade in Afghanistan on Christmas Eve five years ago.

A photo of veteran Matt McDonell, who was stationed in Afghanistan's Logar Province when his friend was killed by small arms fire on Christmas Eve 2012. Since then, Christmas has been difficult for him. Photo courtesy of Matt McDonell

Each December memories flood back for the Fox Point man: hearing the horrible news, attending a memorial service and participating in the last roll call on Christmas Day.

But this year, McDonell decided to spend the holiday helping fellow veterans, collecting clothing donations and organizing a Christmas Eve luncheon for homeless veterans. And in a way, he's helping himself heal from his loss.
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Pearl Harbor 97 Year Old WWII Veteran Being Evicted

Pearl Harbor veteran, 97, faces eviction from Brooklyn home

PIX 11 NEWS

Magee Hickey

December 24, 2017

CROWN HEIGHTS, Brooklyn — A 97-year-old veteran has already lived through many battles and now he's facing one more: eviction.

James Blakely, a Navy veteran who survived the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, will be in Housing Court in less than two weeks. A group called Black Veterans for Social Justice intends to evict the World War Two vet from his studio apartment, where the walls are covered with certificates of recognition and appreciation.

“I am so angry,” Blakely told PIX11. “And we will fight this legally.”

Six years ago Blakely, who is also an ordained minister, was living in a trailer with no running water in a junkyard on Buffalo Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant columnist Denis Hamill wrote an article in the Daily News about his living conditions.

That’s when, according to Hamill, a representative from the Black Veterans for Social Justice offered the studio apartment on Bergen Street to this World War Two vet rent free for the rest of his life.

Now the group says Blakely owes years in unpaid rent.
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Yukon Oklahoma Opens Arms for Wounded Veteran's Family

Volunteers Help Make Veteran's Family's Christmas
News On 6
Caleigh Bourgeois
December 23, 2017

“The feeling you get when you get to help somebody else that's in need is just a feeling everybody should experience,” Wade said. 

YUKON, Oklahoma -

A wounded warrior in Yukon and his family were given a Christmas miracle thanks to two friends and several volunteers.

Last week, Jessica Smith with the Red Cross received a phone call from a wounded warrior’s wife.

“He had just lost his job. They had no food in their cupboards. They were about to be evicted,” Smith said.

Determined to help the Yukon family, Smith called up her friend Ellie Wade, who works at First United Bank. 

“We have a fund where if we wear blue jeans on Friday we pay into it, and we collect all year long,” Wade said.

Wade and Smith took the money from that fund and started shopping. 

“We just started buying and paying the rent and utilities, and buying groceries and gifts,” Wade said. 

read more here

Fort Bliss Soldier's Death in Iraq Under Investigation

Fort Bliss Soldier Dies in Non-Combat Incident in Iraq
Military.com
By Richard Sisk
December 22, 2017

A 20-year-old soldier with the 1st Armored Division has died in Iraq in a "non-combat incident," the Defense Department announced Friday.

Army Spc. Avadon Chavez. (Facebook)

In a release, the DoD identified the soldier as Spc. Avadon A. Chaves, 20, of Turlock, Calif. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, of the 1st Armored Division, at Fort Bliss, Texas.