• Mar 28, 2024
  • 12:20 PM

Air Force Christmas – From Very Needy To Very Merry


By Chuck N. Baker 

(Las Vegas) — The current holiday season (well yeah, were still celebrating the new year during January), is like no other in recent times. But as in the past, many military families are in need of some comfort and assistance, be it small or large. And also as in the past, Americas military services and its auxiliaries provide help whenever they can. With Las Vegas located where it is, a great portion of that help is aimed at Air Force families stationed at nearby Nellis and Creech Bases. The Air Force serves the nation from the sky, but several organizations employ tireless efforts to give down here on terra firma. One of those outreach programs is the U.S. Air Force Adopt-a-Family, a strong part of its overall Operation Warm Heart. USAF First Sergeant Krystal R. Rankin with the Nellis 99th Security Forces Squadron explained that Operation Warm Heart is a year-round organization that provides various charitable services depending on the season. Various organizations contributed to the program this year, including the civilian-run Nellis Support Team, a group of veterans and non-veterans that donates financial aid to needy airmen. And the local Thunderbird Chapter of the Air Force Association donated $4,500 to help the cause. 

The first step is that each air squadron identifies which family needs assistance,” Rankin said. This year is a little bit different because there were quite a few families. We take the list and I reach out to community partners asking how many families they would like to support. Some organizations supported as many as 65 families. Once they get matched, they purchase gifts for the children. Most families dont even know they have been nominated.”  Rankin, who has been in the Air Force for 19 years in air field management, was quick to point out that she is just one part of a five-airman team that coordinates the adoptions. A different sergeant is named to take over each year. The families chosen come from both Nellis and Creech Bases and the Air Force Reserve, all in Southern Nevada. 

Operation Warm Heart is led by Nellis and Creech First Sergeants and is a private, non-profit organization. In addition to Adopt-A-Family at Christmas time, its mission is to provide emergency financial assistance to local airmen and their families as well as to promote the health, welfare and morale of service members living in the Las Vegas community. “Throughout the year, we look for opportunities to help others in a direct and tangible way. We do this through random acts of kindness, by taking the financial burden off of airmen during crisis situations, and through support during the holiday season,” Rankin pointed out.  

The holidays can be especially challenging for airmen and their families in Nevada as many of them — if not the great majority of them — are dislocated from their families and hometowns. The Adopt-A-Family program is designed to identify financially-challenged families and match them with a sponsor during the holiday season.  

These are certainly challenging times for us all and in times like this, were reminded of how interconnected we really are,” Rankin noted. Unfortunately the current virus situation is also a reminder of how interconnected we are in a negative sense. But fortunately organizations such as Operation Warm Heart and others like it can uplift families and individuals in a positive and helpful way. By working together to counteract what might otherwise be a lump of coal” Christmas, the goodness and kindness of others makes the holiday a warm and caring fireside experience.  

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