Choruses of “Happy Thanksgiving” and “How can I help you?” rang throughout the Legion Dining Facility at Fort Stewart as the 3rd Infantry Division hosted its annual military Thanksgiving dinner.
Black and gold ornaments lined the dining hall to greet soldiers and family members as they joined the serving line for a helping of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and other holiday foods. Keeping up with army tradition, the 3rd Infantry Division hosted its annual Thanksgiving meal where the base’s leaders served food and food personnel got a chance to show off their culinary skills. The 3rd Infantry Division served meals from 11:30 am to 2:30 p.m. at the dining facilities at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield.
Capt. Nathaniel Balough, operations company commander, gave guests a little show before dinner as he flipped and twirled plates before handing them down the food assembly line.
Balough was one of 70 people to help decorate dining halls and prepare food for more than 200 soldiers that come to the holiday event each year.
Officers donned aprons and gloves to serve their soldiers in a different way Thursday afternoon.
“It gives a chance to give back to our soldiers,” Balough said. “Everyday they give us everything they have. So this is our chance to give back to them. The decorations are amazing and I think that shows people are wanting to give their time to them.”
This Thanksgiving the dinning halls were filled with a little more holiday cheer than usual due to soldiers’ recent homecoming from Afghanistan, Balough said.
The dining hall was filled with various works of food art including ice sculptures, butter carvings, decorative cakes and even a turkey sculpture made out of tortillas. The facility featured a 1920s theme, where some servers sported flapper dresses and the tables were dusted in glitter.
The theme was chosen as an opportunity to be creative and do something different than the traditional Thanksgiving decorations, Balough said.
Chatter filled the decorated halls as service members chowed down.
Among them was Sgt. Felicia Huling, a transport coordinator.
Huling said she was used to being away from family during the holidays, referring to her time served in Afghanistan, Iraq and Korea, and said she really appreciated the work put into the event.
“It’s always good to see leaders doing something like this,” she said. “We’re a big family here in the military, and for a lot of people, we can be the first family. It’s very nice what they do. I love the stuffing, the mac and cheese — I love the food.”
The base spent up to a month preparing for the event, according to officials. Spc. Camden Thoeming and Staff Sgt. Gerald Crawford spent six hours carving ice sculptures for Thursday’s event.
“It feels good to be a part of this because people look at you and appreciate it,” Thoeming said. “For all the soldiers that can’t be with their families, it’s nice for them to be able to come here and eat and have a Thanksgiving of their own and feel that holiday spirit. This is probably the most detailed dining facility that I’ve been a part of.”