SJAFB airmen provide holiday meal at city Boys and Girls Club
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Published in News on November 27, 2014 1:34 AM
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News-Argus/MELISSA KEY
Kemaura Carter-James, 7, receives her Thanksgiving dinner from Staff Sgt. Cassandra Czechowicz during a meal hosted Monday at the Boys and Girls Club by Seymour Johnson Air Force Base's Group 5/6.
For some, Thanksgiving has many meanings.
But for 7-year-old Travon Moore, explaining the holiday is pretty simple.
"It was when the Pilgrims and the Indians met each other and hung out," he said.
Laimear Lofton, 7, sees it differently.
For him, Thanksgiving is about friends and, of course, football.
Laimear and Travon were two of nearly 150 children who learned Monday what the holiday means to members of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base's 5/6 group.
For the airmen, it is a chance to give back.
The 5/6 provided a traditional Thanksgiving feast this week to those who call the Boys and Girls Club a second home.
There were eight turkeys, 30 pounds of mashed potatoes, enough stuffing to feed an army and green beans aplenty.
But the children seemed particularly interested in the desserts.
Staff Sgt. Camesha Chive said their faces "lit up" when they saw the cookies, cupcakes and other sweets provided by the base's Enlisted Spouses Club.
Staff Sgt. Alina McDowell noticed the same thing.
"They are really, really excited about the desserts," she said.
And the members of the 5/6 were excited, too.
4th Fighter Wing Commander Col. Mark Slocum said the group was "very dedicated" to the Boys and Girls Club, but this was its first time helping with Thanksgiving.
And they didn't just help.
In fact, were it not for Seymour Johnson, the meal might not have taken place.
"We decided to take it on," Staff Sgt. Cassandra Czechowicz said.
The airman was among those who helped organize the buffet-style feast.
But it was the base commissary and other local businesses that donated enough money to ensure the event was a reality.
Slocum said it was humbling to, again, see his airmen pay back those living outside the Seymour Johnson gates.
"It is an honor for all of our airmen to give back to a community that has given so much to us," he said.