Survivor Outreach Services staff and volunteers decorate a tree dedicated to fallen military members located in the Lee Club’s lobby. About 40 decorators and helpers supported a Deck the Fort event Nov. 29 at Fort Lee, Va. (U.S. Army photo by T. Anthony Bell)

Kim Hodder, American Red Cross volunteer, adjusts hanging clips on an ornament during the Deck the Fort event Nov. 29 at the Lee Club on Fort Lee, Va. She was among 40-or-so volunteers from local units and organizations who helped to transform the Lee Club into a spectacle for the Yuletide season. (U.S. Army photo by T. Anthony Bell)

A customized Army Logistics University bulb stands out among various decorations at the freshly decorated Lee Club. About 40 decorators and helpers supported a Deck the Fort event Nov. 29 at Fort Lee, Va. (U.S. Army photo by T. Anthony Bell)

Pok “Lee” Sprader, a Survivor Outreach Services volunteer and Gold Star mother, reaches high to place decorations. About 40 decorators and helpers supported a Deck the Fort event Nov. 29 at Fort Lee, Va. (U.S. Army photo by T. Anthony Bell)

Carol Wittman hangs an ornament to honor her son, fallen Army Sgt. Aaron Wittman during a Deck the Fort event Nov. 29 at the Lee Club on Fort Lee, Va. (U.S. Army photo by T. Anthony Bell)

Deck the Fort volunteers dine during the lunch hour at the Lee Club. About 40 decorators and helpers supported the Nov. 29 event at Fort Lee, Va.

T. Anthony Bell, USAG Fort Lee Public Affairs Office

FORT LEE, Va. – The Lee Club here buzzed and sparkled with sights and sounds of the holiday season Tuesday morning as volunteers lent hands to an event aiming to transform the historic facility into a holiday spectacle.

Deck the Fort, an annual event hosted by the Fort Lee Area Spouses Club, brought together various community organizations to help project the holiday spirit inside and out.

“The whole idea is making spirits bright and bringing the holidays to the historic Lee Club, so those who utilize the facility have a wonderful yuletide experience,” said Rachel Monique, FLASC’s first vice president.

About 40 decorators and helpers supported the occasion, according to Monique. The volunteers included representatives of the CASCOM schoolhouses; Holiday Helper; Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers; the American Red Cross; Survivor Outreach Services; Army Women’s Museum; Girl Scouts; Crater Silver Chapter of the U.S. Army Warrant Officer Association and others.

Volunteers embellished doors, walls and more than 25 trees as holiday music played over the loudspeakers and hot refreshments awaited those breaking from the action.

Among the most poignant trees were those sponsored by the SOS, which featured the images of fallen military members in enclosed glass ornaments, and the AWM, which adorned theirs’ with images of retired Lt. Gen. Arthur J. Gregg and the late Lt. Col. Charity Adams. A federal panel recommended changing Fort Lee’s name to honor the two in October.

Deck the Fort is an occasion that goes back to at least 2017, Monique recalled.