Whether a service member is single or married, deployed or otherwise living thousands of miles away, it’s difficult being away from family.
Troops and families are often involved in formal or informal activities to make the holidays better for the military community; whether it’s spouse clubs baking cookies for troops living in barracks, parties for military families to provide food or toys for children.
However, plenty of others are at work during the holidays — and some, all year long — to bring some extra cheer to troops and families.
Here is a curated list of activities that have been happening around the globe this holiday season, including military families who give back to their local community.
Fun, treats and toys
A number of organizations have long-standing traditions of events for military families, not just during the holidays, but all year. The nonprofit Operation Homefront has served more than 13,000 military families at about 100 holiday events across the country this season. Their Holiday Meals for Military primarily supports junior enlisted military families. Families received meal kits (and/or pantry staples) and grocery gift cards.
Armed Services YMCA’s branches around the country provide different Operation Holiday Joy events, such as allowing military families to go in and “shop” for gifts for their children, such as toys, books and bikes. Some chapters, such as Killeen, Texas, near Fort Hood, deliver the fixings for holiday meals. That YMCA chapter alone has provided 2,400 people with holiday meals, while the Alaska Armed Services YMCA hosted a Winter Holiday Train for 450 riders on Dec. 7.
Army Emergency Relief distributed over $150,000 in $100 gift cards to soldiers in 34 Army units around the globe from Germany to Korea, said Sean Ryan, spokesman for AER. Installation sergeants major and installation sergeant Audie Murphy club members helped with the distribution.
The nonprofit Trees for Troops has provided 326,273 fresh Christmas trees to service members since 2005. And while they are still tallying the numbers, they expect to exceed 19,000 trees this year at 94 bases, said Rick Dungey, executive director of Trees for Troops. The trees are supplied by more than 300 family-owned Christmas tree farms in more than 25 states.
Troops are feasting
The Defense Logistics Agency has already delivered the fixings for holiday meals for troops stationed around the world. While planning starts in the spring, they had to pivot to meet challenges, including when the Gerald Ford Carrier Strike Group was diverted to the U.S. Southern Command to support Operation Southern Spear.
Another challenge was avian bird flu import restrictions in Japan, which hindered the prime vendor from finding turkeys for service members there. They located turkeys elsewhere that met the requirements and were able to ship the birds into Japan, officials said in a press release.
Here’s what’s been delivered around the world:
- 101,943 pounds of turkey
- 85,439 pounds of beef
- 40,615 pounds of ham
- 24,495 pounds of shrimp
- 4,339 cans of sweet potatoes
- 6,426 cases of pies and cakes
- 1,496 cases of eggnog
- and other holiday treats
Giving back to others
Military families have a tradition of giving back, and that often steps up during the holidays. Throughout the holiday season, treats and necessities were delivered to veterans at local VA hospitals as well as to families staying at the local Fisher House. Others continued to help feed the needy and bring some Christmas cheer to children’s hospitals or orphanages.
For example, Air Force’s 492nd Fighter Squadron hosts an annual Christmas party for the East Anglia Children’s Hospices in Cambridge, England.
Operation Santa Claus has provided gifts, toys, backpacks and books to children in remote Alaskan communities since 1956. The Alaska Air and Army National Guard and the Department of Homeland Security, along with volunteers from the Salvation Army and the Alaska National Guard Child and Youth Program, hosted families from Kipnuk and Kwigillingok at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage, Alaska, on Dec. 14, 2025.
This year’s event supported families who were displaced following Typhoon Halong.
Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
