MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Gunny Claus takes gift requests from the children of a Marine assigned to the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit during a Christmas party at the MCAS New River Marina, Dec. 16, 2015. The event held special significance for the service members and their families as the 24th MEU missed the holidays last year while on their 7-month deployment to the Middle East. "These Marines have accomplished an incredible amount this year and I'm very proud of them," said Colonel Ryan S. Rideout, 24th MEU commanding officer. "This is a small way we can have our families come together and share in the holiday festivities towards the end of the year. Our family readiness program is an essential part of our combat readiness." (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Todd F. Michalek / Released)Master Sgt. Daira Hall, 379th Air Expeditionary Wing first sergeant from Minneapolis, Minn., delivers holiday stockings filled with candy, games and Christmas cards to security forces Airmen at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, Dec. 23. Hall said the first sergeants decided to deliver the stockings to security forces Airmen to thank them for all they do to keep people safe. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. James Hodgman/Released)U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Melissa Woods poses with a member of the Ferizaj Children’s Choir following the choir’s Dec. 22, 2015, Christmas performance on Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo. Woods, who is deployed to Kosovo with the 345th Combat Support Hospital, serves as a member of the Multinational Battle Group-East Task Force-Medical. (U.S. Army photo by Lt. Col. Gilbert Buentello, Multinational Battle Group-East)Brig. Gen. Michael L. Cunniff, left, The Adjutant General of New Jersey, lights one of four candles on the Menorah — one for each day of Hanukkah during a candle lighting ceremony at the Main Base Chapel, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., Dec. 9, 2015. The event was co-sponsored by the Main Base Chapel and Jewish War Veterans Post 126. Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem during the Maccabean Revolt. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which may occur at any time from late November to late December. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Mark C. Olsen/Released)U.S. Marines, Sailors, and Soldiers celebrate an early Christmas with Romanian children at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, Romania, Dec. 19, 2015. Marines and Sailors with the Black Sea Rotational Force team up with Soldiers to participate in a holiday event for the local Romanian children to strengthen community relations. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Melanye E. Martinez/Released)Marines collect toys and donations for the Toys for Tots program throughout Southern California, Dec. 18, 2015. This group of Marines collected 700 gifts, 600 bicycles, and more than $1,000 in donations for children over the holidays. The Marines are with 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Pvt. Robert Bliss)Sailors receive Christmas cards in the hangar bay of USS Harry S. Truman
GULF OF ADEN (Dec. 21, 2015) Chief Religious Programs Specialist M. Mackenzie hands out christmas cards in the hangar bay of aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75). Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group is deployed in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operation. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman A. O. Tinubu/Released)First lady Michelle Obama, left, and President Barack Obama arrive for an event to thank service members and their families at Marine Corp Base Hawaii, on Friday, Dec. 25, 2015, in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)Staff Sgt. Jere Ross, a chaplain's assistant deployed to the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing at Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan, speaks with President Barack Obama on the phone Christmas Day. The Rochester Hills, Mich., native who is deployed from Ramstein Air Base, Germany, was selected by his leadership to receive the Presidential call. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Nicholas Rau)151225-N-ZG705-020 GULF OF OMAN (Dec. 25, 2015) Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class R. Canady received a call from President Barack Obama on Christmas Day aboard aircraft USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75). Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group is deployed in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class K. H. Anderson/Released)U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller, 37th Commandant of the Marine Corps, speaks to Marines with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) and Sailors assigned to the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), aboard the Kearsarge, in the Arabian Gulf, Dec. 23, 2015. The Commandant and Sergeant Major conducted a holiday tour to visit Marines and Sailors stationed overseas and forward deployed. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Andrew D. Pendracki, 26th MEU Combat Camera/ Released)A New Jersey National Guard Soldier carries a tree at the Christmas trees for New Jersey Military Families event at the Joint Military Family Assistance Center, Bordentown, N.J., Dec. 14 2015. The New Jersey National Guard leadership, New Jersey Department of Agriculture, New Jersey Christmas Tree Growers Association and the New Jersey Agricultural Society’s Farmers Against Hunger Program welcomed military members and their families at the Center where more than 12 New Jersey Christmas tree growers donated approximately 125 trees to New Jersey National Guard Soldiers and Airmen. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Mark C. Olsen/Released)LAKE VILLA, Ill. – Navy Band Great Lakes’ horn section belts out a seasonal song during a holiday concert at Lakes Community High School, Dec. 13. (Official U. S. Navy photo by Scott A. Thornbloom/Released)151221-N-IX266-018 CHANTHABURI, Thailand (Dec. 21) – Joe Gutierrez, a midshipman cadet from U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N.Y., and currently serving with USNS Walter S. Diehl (T-AO 193), hands out gifts to students during a community outreach event at Pliu elementary school here. (U.S. Navy photo by Grady T. Fontana/Released)151222-N-OI810-266 YOKOSUKA, Japan (Dec. 22, 2015) Capt. Chris Bolt, commanding officer of the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), and a child from Shunko Gakuen Children's Home play with a Christmas gift from Sailors during a community relations project. Ronald Reagan provides a combat-ready force that protects and defends the collective maritime interests of the U.S. and its allies and partners in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Nathan Burke/Released)151206-N-WO404-052 ATLANTIC OCEAN (Dec. 6, 2015) Yeoman 3rd Class Moshe Benkandil places a candle on a menorah during a Hanukkah celebration in the chapel of aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). Washington and its embarked air wing, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 2 are deployed in support of Southern Seas 2015. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jonathan Nelson/Released)First Lt. Ethan P. Gusek and Cpl. Randall Kardtzke make reindeer candy canes for children during a Christmas party at the Giovanna Romeo Orphanage, Dec. 22, in Belpasso, Italy. More than 30 Marines and sailors with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crisis Response-Africa, participated in the event, where they also donated food and toys to the orphanage, sang Christmas carols and interacted with the children.SASEBO, Japan (Dec. 18, 2015) Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Ty Connors, forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) public affairs officer (enlisted), explains the meaning behind the holiday wreath to Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) Chief Petty Officer Hirosahi Nishitani in the hangar bay aboard Shirane-class destroyer JDS Kurama (DDH 144). Bonhomme Richard is the lead ship of the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group and is forward-deployed to Sasebo, Japan, in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Cameron McCulloch/Released)U.S. Army Maj. Diana Stumpf, Maj. Karen Schlobohm and Col. Chris Selvey, all deployed to Kosovo with the 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team, pose before Camp Bondsteel’s Dec. 25, 2015, Ugly Christmas Sweater 5K race. The race was one way for Soldiers serving in Kosovo to enjoy the day’s Christmas festivities. (U.S. Army photo by Lt. Col. Gilbert Buentello, Multinational Battle Group-East)Staff Sgt. Chad Lawless, of Swartz, La., kisses his wife, Angela, and hugs his daughter, Lily, 4, and sons, Luke, 2, and Levi, 6 months. Lawless met Levi for the first time in person at the welcome-home event in Monroe, La., Dec. 24, 2015. More than 150 members of the Louisiana National Guard’s 1023rd Engineer Company, 528th Engineer Battalion just completed a 10-month deployment to Kuwait, with additional missions to Jordan, Iraq and Afghanistan. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by 1st Lt. Rebekah Malone)
