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Holiday issues for military families Whether family members are home or deployed, adjustments needed By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN bkeeperman@shawmedia.com DeKALB – When Jay Morrison came home for the holidays after his first deployment in Iraq, he said he found it difficult to connect with his family, and suspects many are in the same situation this season. Morrison, who served 21 years with the U.S. Army and
another three years in the reserves, now leads Northern Illinois University’s Department Military Science. He said one of the more challenging things for families is often differing expectations for when they return. “Most of the problems transpire from everyone wanting to do what’s best for one another,” he said. “When a service member is away,
they are thinking about reuniting with their family members and so is the family. But if they can’t talk about what that will look like, they can have vastly different ideas of what they want that to be.” Communication is key, Morrison said. It’s also important for family members to remember that military experience can change a per-
Violence casts shadow on Christmas in Bethlehem
son. “Regardless of whether a soldier is deployed or has just been away from home at training, they develop and change,” he said. “A lot of these soldiers who have been away are away from home for the first time or exposed to situations and training they’ve never experienced before. It can have a developmental effect.”
Despite that, it’s still important to treat service members like the same people they have always been and remember that the family unit has probably changed as well, he added. “Families are going through experiences at home that the soldier is removed from,” he said. “Both parties develop in the absence, and it takes a little while to recon-
nect.” Another challenge that military families can face over the holidays is when a loved one can’t make it home at all, a situation that Sycamore resident Michelle Tansley knows all too well. Tansley’s son, Jared, was named Soldier of the Year after winning the Army’s
See ADJUSTING, page A5
A TRADITION OF CHRISTMAS GIVING
By DANIELLA CHESLOW The Associated Press BETHLEHEM, West Bank – Christian faithful from around the world Thursday descended on the biblical city of Bethlehem for Christmas Eve celebrations at the traditional birthplace of Jesus, trying to lift spirits on a holiday dampened by months of Israeli-Palestinian violence. The fighting cast a pall over the celebrations. Crowds were thin and hotel rooms were empty. While the annual festivities in Bethlehem’s Manger Square went on, other celebrations in the city were canceled or toned down. “There’s lights, there’s carols, but there’s an underlying sense of tension,” said Paul Haines of Cornwall, England, who arrived in Bethlehem after a fourmonth trek from Rome. Bethlehem has been a focal point for clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian protesters during a three-month wave of violence that has gripped the region. The city was quiet Thursday, although violence raged elsewhere in the West Bank. Israeli authorities said three Palestinian assailants were killed as they carried out or tried to carry out stabbing or car-ramming attacks against Israeli security personnel, and a fourth Palestinian was killed in clashes with Israeli troops, a Palestinian hospital official said. Two Israeli security guards and a soldier were wounded. Lisette Rossman, a 22-year-old student from Albuquerque, New Mexico, said the violence made her think twice about visiting a friend studying in Jerusalem. She said she was glad she made the trip because “it was one of my dreams to come here.”
See BETHLEHEM, page A5
Photos by Danielle Guerra – dguerra@shawmedia.com
Tim Henley of Sycamore smiles as he receives a bag of presents Thursday from Goodfellows of Sycamore/DeKalb volunteer and board member Penny White. Henley was grateful for the help because he and his wife are currently caring for their five grandchildren. White also personally gave him money from her “Christmas Jar,” which she adds to throughout the year to donate to someone over the holiday season. White was delivering the Goodfellows presents with her granddaughters Rayna White, 7, and Elliana White, 4, so Henley caring for his grandchildren on a fixed income really struck a chord with her.
Goodfellows continue an annual ritual
Spirit of the holiday alive in DeKalb County By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN bkeeperman@shawmedia.com
AP photo
A Christian pilgrim prays inside the Grotto of the Church of Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, on Thursday in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Christmas Eve.
DeKALB – Since 1998, the Kolkebeck family has spent Christmas Eve morning navigating around DeKalb County to hand out presents to families in need. It’s made even more special now that son Sean, 9, and daughter Katelyn, 12, have grown into the tradition, which is what their father Denny Kolkebeck said was the highlight of the holiday season in his mind. “Delivering gifts on
Christmas Eve morning is the highlight of Christmas for me,” he said. “Having them be part of this continues to heighten the meaning. … It’s really getting into the true, authentic spirit of Christmas.” The Kolkebecks join the DeKalb/Sycamore Goodfellows each year to hand out presents to families in the community. This year, volunteers distributed more than 700 presents. Goodfellows is a
See GOODFELLOWS, page A5
Goodfellows of Sycamore/DeKalb volunteer and board member Penny White with her granddaughters Rayna White (center), 7, and Elliana White, 4, carries a present bag Thursday for delivery to a Sycamore family.
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NIU’s bad day
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Jesse Severson writes Huskies’ loss tough to review / B1
Pastors remind their flocks of what Christmas is all about / A3
What lies ahead for state residents’ driver’s licenses / A4
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