Fort Sill ‘Adopt-a-Soldier’ program hopes to give trainees Christmas away from home

FORT SILL, Okla. (KSWO) - The Christmas season is a joyous time for most of us, from spending time with our families and opening presents, but not everyone is so fortunate, such as the people attending basic training soon.

You can help make their time away from home just as special.

Fort Sill’s “Adopt-a-Soldier” program continues this year.

It’s where people, whether they’re already enlisted in the military, veterans or DOD ID card holders can volunteer their homes to trainees who wouldn’t get to experience Christmas otherwise.

“A lot of these trainees will have been here for a couple of weeks,” said 1st of the 22nd Field Artillery Batallion Chaplain, Maj. Chris McCarley. “They will have been away from home, have had very little contact, maybe 30 minutes of a phone call on a Sunday. So for their mental health and the break that they get and have a little sense of normalcy at Christmas time is huge and pays dividends for them while they wait out the rest of the Holiday block time frame.”

You can email jerry.mccarley4.mil@army.mil to apply.

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