CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait - U.S. Army Central and the Arifjan Department of Morale, Welfare and Recreation celebrated the holiday season with a tree lighting ceremony and winter wonderland carnival for more than 800 service members on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Dec. 12.
"We organize events like this because it is hard being away from family during the holiday season," said Brenda Thompson, the Camp Arifjan MWR recreation supervisor. "We want to let them know that we care about them and want to ease this time of separation."
The event started with a tree lighting ceremony, followed by a gospel choir performance and finished with the winter wonderland carnival.
"The tree lighting was my favorite part of the event," said Staff Sgt. Mike Pagaduan, a civil affairs noncommissioned officer with USARCENT. "It brought the spirit of the season to the men and women stationed over here."
During the event, service members receive gift-wrapped care packages and tested their skills at games to win various prizes.
"There were great prizes, games and just a fantastic event," said Pagaduan, a native of New Jersey. "It was awesome to experience the camaraderie with other Soldiers in such a fun environment."
The event had more than 35 volunteers from Camp Arifjan. The volunteers manned the games and distributed prizes and holiday items.
"My unit is participating in the Make a Difference Day program that encourages people to volunteer in their community," said Master Sgt. David Miller, an event volunteer and integrated storage elements noncommissioned officer-in-charge with 4th Battalion, 3rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment. "We chose this event because we wanted to spread cheer and have fun in the progress."
The MWR's mission is to invest in delivering the highest quality programs and services, which reflects its commitment to Soldiers, families, civilians and retirees.
"We will continue to provide events like this for service members stationed in Kuwait," said Thompson. "Our next event is the New Year's Eve Party, where we will have music, dancing and food."
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