Military families get a make-up Christmas
Holiday music filled the air as children danced on the stage, ornament-adorned garlands covered the walls, the kids got festive hats and cookies.
And yes, Santa was there, just in front of a lavishly decorated Christmas tree.
The message: Christmas isn’t just a date on a calendar. It’s in the heart.
It all happened Saturday at “Christmas You Missed,” the San Diego Armed Services YMCA tribute to military families who spent Christmas apart. Held at Murphy Canyon Chapel, it was the 11th such event.
The children, from infants to adolescents, didn’t seem to care that the second Christmas took place in early summer. They were too busy with the cookies, with Santa, getting their faces painted, or just taking in the scene.
And since the children were happy, so were the parents.
The event began as a way to help compensate those families for the Christmases they didn’t have together, said Tim Ney, the organization’s executive director.
“It was started in San Diego by our staff, and it is spreading to our other branches across the country,” Ney said.
“The genesis around it was about military families who miss something special with their families,” he said. “And it’s not just Christmas, but anniversaries, birthdays, in some cases the birth of a child.”
“We realize, as an organization, that we’re not going to recreate the holidays or Christmas for somebody, but it is one special added memory a family can have together,” Ney said.
Last Christmas, Henry Seeger, a Navy crew member on the USS Somerset, was at sea.
“On our ship alone there were 300 people,” he said. “That’s a lot of families.”
But Saturday, the entire family was there: Henry and his wife, Rachel, along with their children, Cole, 4, Ryan, 3, and Savanna, 8 months.
“I think they’re excited,” Rachel Seeger said. “It’s nice to have them celebrate Christmas with both of us.”
Brandy Thorpe, a YMCA volunteer and wife of Navy rescue swimmer Robert Thorpe, said her husband has been frequently deployed with the USS John C. Stennis, causing him to miss the holidays. They have four children, Cody, 16; Kaden,12; Liam, 8; and Izabella; who will be 6 next month.
“They love it,” Thorpe said. “They enjoy playing with the other kids. It makes it special for them.”
James Aweh, also with the Navy, has four children, Julia, 11, Jordan, 9. Jeremy, 3, and Janelle, 2.
“I want to say thanks to the organizers of this occasion,” Aweh said. “It means a lot to us as military members.”
Christmas You Missed was sponsored by corporate partners, including Wells Fargo, David C. Copley Foundation, A1 Self-Storage, USAA and GEICO.
Wells Fargo’s iconic stagecoach was parked in front, and volunteers from the banking giant gave children toy ponies.
Ethan Cook, a Wells Fargo volunteer, is on the company’s veteran team member network committee, which informs veterans of jobs within the company.
“This is a great opportunity to give back to our service members,” Cook said.
bradley.fikes@sduniontribune.com
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