From the Department of Defense, a Thanksgiving wish to the troops:
From us, a Happy Thanksgiving to our troops, wherever they may be:
Whether snow training in Estonia
Army photo by Sgt. Lauren Harra
Conducting machine gun training in Djibouti.
Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Kenneth W. Norman
Manning an M240B machine gun on the guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain in the Pacific Ocean
Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Nathan K. Serpico
On the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Persian Gulf.
Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Robert J. Baldock
In the Caribbean Sea rendering help to Haiti following Hurricane Matthew.
Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Ridge Leoni
Continuing our watch in Afghanistan
Air Force photo by Senior Airman Justyn M. Freeman
And our advice and support in the fight against ISIL in Iraq.
U.S. Army photo by 1st Lt. Daniel Johnson
Taking off from Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, aboard an Air Force KC-135R Stratotanker for a mission supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group.
Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Douglas Ellis
Navigating the USS Bonhomme Richard in the Philippine Sea.
Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class David Holmes
Jumping out of perfectly good aircraft over Yokota Air Base, Japan.
Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Donald Hudson
And in the USA, after an airborne training jump onto Malemute drop zone at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
Air Force photo by Justin Connaher
CODA:
By the way, do you know “how military efforts helped bring about Thanksgiving”?
Thanksgiving is a hallowed American tradition filled with family, food, football and fun, but did you know we can attribute its creation largely to the military?
While conventional wisdom dates the first Thanksgiving back to 1621, when pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts, joined in with local Native Americans to celebrate the fall harvest, it wasn’t a celebration that continued from year to year.In fact, Thanksgiving didn’t really become any kind of tradition until we were trying to unify the nation during two of our biggest early struggles – the Revolutionary War and the Civil War.
Read more here and enjoy your Thanksgiving.
Added:
Also please read “U.S. Service Members Mark Thanksgiving Serving on Global Missions”
Lead photo (Added)): Army Master Sgt. Nicola M. Felder serves lunch to paratrooper from to the 173rd Airborne Brigade during a Thanksgiving luncheon in Vicenza, Italy, Nov. 22, 2016. Army photo by Davide Dalla Massara
