FORT SILL, Okla. (Dec. 4, 2014) -- Fort Sill's four dining facilities served formal Thanksgiving meals to the Lawton-Fort Sill community Nov. 27, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Between 6,000 and 7,000 Soldiers, family members, retirees and civilians dined at Green Hall, Garcia Hall, Bamford and Blockhouse dining facilities (DFAC).
"Thanksgiving is the Super Bowl for food service, so we started planning for this six months ago," said Sgt. 1st Class Derrick Smullen, Garcia DFAC manager. "Everyday, we feed Soldiers, but on Thanksgiving we get to feed the entire community, including the great Soldiers who paved the way for us. It gives us a great sense of pride."
The menu featured 8,500 pounds of turkey, 7,000 pounds of ham, said Jonathan Williams, Installation Food Program manager. Also featured were Cornish hen, roast beef, fried shrimp and shrimp cocktail, corn-on-the-cob, macaroni and cheese, vegetables, home-made rolls and corn bread, and traditional Thanksgiving desserts, such as pumpkin pie.
The cost for civilian diners was $7.70, and they could go back for seconds, Smullen said. "You're not going to find another meal like this in Lawton, for $7.70," he said.
For all meals, the DFACs post calorie cards showing the caloric content of foods, but "calories don't count today you can live your dreams," Smullen said.
For the festivities, the DFACs featured themed culinary displays including ice sculptures, chocolate tallow models, cornucopias, cakes and gingerbread houses, created by food service specialists, or military occupational specialty 92G. Garcia DFAC had a Mardi Gras theme, a special section for children featuring face painting and grab bags, and the 77th Army Band Jazz Ensemble playing holiday tunes.
Thanksgiving meal is the biggest dining event in the Army, even bigger than the Christmas meal because many Soldiers go home for Christmas, Williams explained. He said he wasn't expecting there to be to many leftovers, but if there were they would have been served for the Thanksgiving evening meal, and the next day.
The day of thanks is a special time for food service specialists, said Staff Sgt. Michael Gardner, 4th Battalion, 3rd Air Defense Artillery.
"I absolutely love it doing it for the Soldiers," Gardner said. "They are a lot of Soldiers who don't have the opportunity to go home for Thanksgiving."
Donned in dress uniforms with aprons and white food-serving hats, senior noncommissioned officers, and officers manned serving lines and carving stations, and served junior-Soldiers and families as part of a longstanding Army tradition.
At Green Hall DFAC, which is on the training side of Fort Sill, the servers included drill sergeants. About 4,500 Soldiers were expected at Green Hall, Williams said.
First Battalion, 40th Field Artillery sponsored about 10 aged vets from the Lawton-Fort Veterans Center to dine at Green Hall DFAC, said 1st. Lt. Derek Wahl, E Battery, 1-40th FA executive officer.
"The veterans are going to sit with Soldiers in Basic Combat Training, swap stories and have a good meal together to celebrate the holiday," Wahl said, shortly before their arrival.
Gardner supervised a group of Soldiers who were creating culinary displays at the old Guns and Rockets DFAC before Thanksgiving. The food service specialists had been putting in 12- to 14-hour shifts for two straight weeks in preparation for the holiday meal.
At Guns and Rockets, Pvt. Aignokhsi Dirisu, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Air Defense Artillery, carefully sculpted a rose basket. He said Thanksgiving allows food service specialists to be creative beyond the regular three rationed daily meals.
"Thanksgiving is a time where we get to showcase our skills to let people know what kind of products we can produce," Dirisu said. Despite the extra hours, he said: "It's a fun time for me."
Spc. John Densham, 69th Forward Support Company, said the food service specialists were learning new techniques and drawing from each others' experiences.
"I love learning and we going to start sugar work -- it's not something that I have ever had experienced," Densham said. "And, I'll be teaching others."
Gardner, who is a member of the Fort Sill Culinary Arts Team, said the young food service specialists were dedicated and worked as a team.
"They have put in countless hours, and if they're not happy with their display, they will tear it up and do it over," he said.
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