Christmas not quite a world away for Indiana soldiers in Kosovo
Although they're more than 5,000 miles from home, some members of the Indiana Army National Guard who are deployed to Kosovo are making the best of their duty to family and country this holiday season.
The soldiers, who are from various parts of the state, including South Bend, Indianapolis, Bloomington and Morgantown, have been in Kosovo since October. They are part of the 300 member strong Task Force Nighthawk, which is on a yearlong peacekeeping mission. The task force's servicemembers are stationed in various parts of the country.
Given the deployment, the holiday traditions many of the soldiers are accustomed to have shifted to being not-so-traditional. But they're making the best of it by keeping in touch with their families as much as they can. Some will make video calls home this Christmas morning to watch their children open presents and take part in other family traditions virtually.
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For the first time in his life, Spc. Caden T. Pawlak, 19, of South Bend, will not spend the Christmas holiday at home. Despite missing the time when grandparents come into town and family meets up on Christmas Eve before a full-blown family gathering on Christmas Day, Pawlak said his deployment has given him a feel for what it's like to be on his own.
"My family is surprised as to why I'm giving them gifts," Pawlak said. He, like many of the servicemembers in Kosovo, are using Amazon and other ways to buy gifts for loved ones at home.
He used his leave to spend "Christmas time" earlier this year with his girlfriend. But the 2021 Riley High School graduate said he is bummed because he will miss her birthday.
He got physically fit for basic training, and he says his biggest lesson he's learned in his deployment is not to procrastinate.
Family safety net
A close-knit family has made 1Lt. Richard Smith's deployment smoother over the holidays.
The Fort Wayne native is the brigade commander's aide, and says relatives are looking after his wife while he's away.
His family lives 10 minutes away from his wife and son, who turned 2 years old in November, and he credits their tight-knit ways to help him with his peace of mind.
"I've spent two years in the Guard, and never deployed until now," Smith said. "I thought it would be a good time, being my son is young and I would not miss any sports, or school events, or miss life events."
Smith usually takes part in the family holiday tradition when family members open a gift on Christmas eve.
This year, presents were sent to him in Kosovo. However, he's not allowed to open them until Christmas day.
"I will FaceTime with my wife and son, and we'll open presents at the same time," Smith said.
Home for a 5K
Sgt. Benjamin Campbell, the commander's driver and protective force escort who is from Greenwood, will be home for the holidays, taking his leave in time to be with his girlfriend, two children, his mother and brother.
He has a duty, however, that requires him to take part in a 5-kilometer run at 3 a.m. eastern time. The base in Kosovo is having a Christmas Day 5K at 9 a.m., which is six hours earlier in the states.
"Back here, I will get up at 3 a.m. and video conference and run a 5K on my phone," Campbell said. "I am not going to get out of it."
The base has had many barracks decorating contests, and the commanders have been good at trying to keep soldiers busy so they do not feel that they are missing out on a holiday.
Santa at the mall
Spc. Dante Destefano of Morgantown was surprised to learn that Kosovars celebrate Christmas.
"We've seen lights here, but in more of the business areas they have gotten into the spirit," the IT specialist said. "I've seen Santa at the mall."
His base has been showing Christmas movies the past couple of weeks, in addition to many other holiday activities that is keeping the troops occupied.
Normally when he's home during the holiday season, Destefano and his girlfriend often view Christmas lights in the area and go to the zoo, he said. He also spends a lot of time with his family. But while he's deployed, he does the next best thing by keeping in touch with them virtually, thanks to the good Wi-Fi and cellular services on his base.
Staying busy
Sgt. Jeffrey Armour of Indianapolis stays busy at the gym, saying that his wife and blended family of four are making the most of his first deployment.
Where Armour is deployed, the power issues have likely prevented the community from doing much decorating with lights. But he says he has been trying to keep in touch, having his wife do the holiday shopping as well as using Amazon for purchases.
Community invites
Getting invited to a Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Kosovo has made the holiday deployment better for Sgt. Allan Clark. The Greenfield resident, who is a military and civilian IT specialist, said the Kosovo communities, which are Muslim, have exhibited a respect for all religions.
"Towns have invited soldiers to Christmas lighting ceremonies," he said.
Clark said his he and fellow soldiers had an ugly Christmas sweater contest, and there is a euchre tournament planned. They even have gotten together a "white elephant" gift exchange so everyone has gifts to open.
It wasn't easy, Clark admitted, to leave his wife and 2-year-old daughter. But regular video calls have helped eased the burden of missing his family.
"It was a tough transition, to go from seeing her every day," Clark said, referring to his daughter.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Indiana National Guard members in Kosovo deployment
