Lake County is home to soldiers training at the Great Lakes Naval Base and like other training bases in the United States and troops fighting overseas - holidays can be a tough time.
Two community organizations stepped up to the plate and made soldiers feel at home while they served our country.
One of the stories written needed extensive work after being given just a last name for the point of contact in the event.
My quick response and ability to ask the right questions allowed me to make just the last name "Patterson" into a story on Christmas Day, a holiday I enthusiastically volunteered to work in the Waukegan newsroom.
After making a call to the Winthrop Harbor VFW, verified the first name and then conducted an online phone search for the individual and called a number.
There it was, came into contact with the wife of the household and she was just as involved in the VFW as the man that just had a last name a half hour earlier.
The wife gave me more contacts and numbers in order for me to expand the holiday story and there it was... A story was born.
Winthrop Harbor VFW post treats sailors
to holiday meal
'The first time I've been able to enjoy
myself and be happy'
December 25, 2006
By Jason Arndt
The News-Sun
WINTHROP HARBOR - The Veterans of
Foreign Wars has found a way to give back to current military
personnel with an annual Christmas party to help boost morale. The
Winthrop Harbor VFW Post 7448 hosted 76 sailors Saturday by providing
them with snacks and a holiday dinner. The event has taken place
since 2001.
The attendees were caught by surprise because no one told
them about the dinner beforehand.
"The sailors didn't know what they
were getting into, they were just told to get on the bus and had no
idea where they were going," said VFW member Richard Coombe, who
will be the first Lake County representative in the VFW-Illinois
office as a State Senior Vice Commander.
"It's a great thrill to see the
smiling faces and one sailor came up to me and said, 'I have been (at
the Great Lakes Naval Station) for six months and this is the first
time I have been able to enjoy myself and be happy,'" Coombe
said.
The non-profit organization usually
serves more than 100 per Christmas but faced competition from a
similar event in Milwaukee Saturday.
"It's part of the organization,
that's what the VFW does, we assist them in any way we can,"
said VFW Women's Auxiliary member Judy Patterson.
Coombe was accredited by the VFW as a
member of both the Korean and Vietnam wars and has been part of the
VFW since 1988.
"I have dedicated my life to
veterans and active members for the last 16 years," Coombe said.
Patterson's husband, Cmdr. John
Patterson, was a member of the Army and a Vietnam veteran.
The commander began the preparation for
the fifth annual event in July by compiling the funds to assist the
sailors in the holiday meal, and also sent them home with cookies and
other snacks.
In addition to providing a meal, the
VFW also had professional entertainment with a deejay.
"Just seeing the young men and
women enjoying themselves feels good," said Judy Patterson. "We
enjoy having the sailors because they can't go home and we want them
to feel comfortable."
The Winthrop Harbor post has more than
400 male members and 78 members in the women's auxiliary.
In addition to providing a meal and
gifts, they also offered a way for sailors to connect with relatives
around the United States.
"The VFW provides phone cards to
the sailors (on the day of the dinner) so they can call home since
they are so far away from family," Judy Patterson said.
The participating veterans had a
hands-on approach to assisting the sailors during the meal by cooking
the dinner and serving them during the event.
Coombe said the VFW is striving to
better support the community as well as the veterans themselves.
"We do a lot for the community,"
said Coombe. "We don't just sit around and tell war stories."
The newly minted State Senior Vice
Commander spent the tail-end of the meal talking with sailors in
attendance and receiving comments from them.
"As long as I am here, I want to
keep doing this," said Coombe.
Away from Family during Holidays
November 24, 2006
By Jason Arndt
The News-Sun
GURNEE - Imagine being away from family
during one of the most celebrated holidays of the year.
For sailors
undergoing basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station, it's a
reality. The sailors were able to come together and be a part of the
community for one day, courtesy of Gurnee Community Church which
served more than 200 sailors from the base on Thanksgiving.
"Gurnee
Community Church has been doing this for about 12 years and putting
the Thanksgiving dinner together," said kitchen supervisor John
Hintz, "but this is the biggest year."
The church at O'Plaine Road and Old
Grand Avenue drew a handful of sailors last year and received
requests to serve more sailors during the dinner.
Church members wanted to give the
sailors a home-like feel by offering other services, such as a video
game room and televisions tuned to the traditional Thanksgiving Day
football games.
The church put the dinner together to
show appreciation for the sailors who are serving the nation.
"That's what we are all about, we
are here to serve them. They are serving our country, they are
serving overseas and they are basically representing our country,"
Hintz said. "They are serving us and today is one day we can
serve them."
Hintz and his team of volunteers woke
up at 2 a.m. to start firing up the deep fryers for the 37 turkeys
that were served Thursday.
"You bet it's worth it - it's a
great day," said Hintz in regard to how he feels about helping
the servicemen and women. Hintz said the sailors were so anxious to
have the dinner, most of them showed up at the church at 8 a.m.
In order to bridge communication
between the sailors and their families, the church opened up phone
lines and allowed them to contact their families free of charge.
Several people were in tears as they
talked to loved ones across the country, especially 19-year-old
Lotyease Killingsworth of Atlanta.
Killingsworth had to hang up the phone
because she started crying as she talked to her mother and little
daughter.
"This experience is really
enlightening because we all needed a break and we got it and we are
blessed to be here with everyone like a family," Killingsworth
said. "I tried not to cry because it will make my mom sad and I
didn't want that to happen."
Killingsworth became more emotional
when she read letters written by children of the community to thank
them for the service they are providing the country.
"I think it is really great for
what everyone is doing for us. I had no idea that this was going to
happen," Killingsworth said. "It's real pleasant. It is
amazing because some people take the military people for granted and
(these letters) make it all worth it."
During basic training, recruits are not
allowed to leave the base. Thursday was different.
"This is the first time we have
gone out (to the community)," said 20-year-old Ryan Dunaway of
Roswell, N.M. "I think this is fantastic. It's a great thing
everybody has done here."
Dunaway had to wait for several hours
to make his phone call to his family due to the long lines at the
phones.
"We don't get a chance to contact
our family a lot," Dunaway said. "Calling your parents on
Thanksgiving Day is a really great thing."
Lakin Lacy is a 20-year-old North
Chicagoan attending basic training at Great Lakes and has a
long-standing connection to the base because her father was a former
Navy man.
"It's a great way to relax and not
worry about anything for a day," Lacy said. "Especially
when we have two weeks left of basic when we return."
For D'Shaun Ryan, the experience
allowed his life to return to normality as he got the chance to watch
the Thanksgiving Day football games.
"It will feel good to watch
football again, I certainly will watch football," said Ryan, a
19-year-old from Baton Rouge, La. "The Dallas Cowboys are my
team today."
The church allowed the sailors to stay
at the facility until 7:30 p.m. to enjoy the recreational activities
they offered.
