Family tries to soldier through the holidays

[unhappycamper]

Family tries to soldier through the holidays
By Lerone Graham - The Roanoke Times via The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday Dec 6, 2008 15:54:09 EST

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. — When Chris Hetherington came home for a visit nearly three weeks before Thanksgiving, he found a Christmas tree in the living room.

The 19-year-old soldier with the Army’s 82nd Airborne, stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., was a little taken aback by the sight.

But on this Christmas morning, when the Hetheringtons gather around the tree to exchange presents, Chris won’t be at home.

By then, the 2007 Pulaski County High School graduate and his unit expect to be among the 146,000 U.S. soldiers stationed in Iraq. At its height, the coalition numbered about 300,000 soldiers from 38 countries. October saw a peak of 170,000 U.S. soldiers, but that number has since declined, according to the Associated Press.

Chris expected to have deployed before Thanksgiving, but in the military, exact deployment dates are subject to change. Today, he remains on standby and could be deployed at any time.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/12/ap_earlychristmas_120508/%2e