As the Holidays draw near, snow begins to fall, wish lists begin forming, and families come together to celebrate. However, for the Behrens family, this Thanksgiving and Christmas look a little different.
Travis Behrens–a Legend High School 2012 graduate and former Parker Cadet Squadron Civil Air Patrol cadet–is currently in his first deployment to Afghanistan. Travis has been serving for 6 months and will come home February 2014.
After graduating, Travis enlisted in the United States Army.
“Honestly, I was against it. I was and am very proud of him, but the thought of him being in harm’s way was very difficult for me as his mother,” said Debbie Behrens when she found out Travis was interested in the armed forces.
Having Travis gone for the holidays has not only affected Ms. Behrens, but it has also affected his sister sophomore Karli Behrens, and his younger brother Lucas Behrens, an eighth grader at Cimarron Middle school.
“We try not to think about [Travis being gone], and we try not to think about how he is being attacked daily, also we take our mind off of it by talking with friends and with Travis on the phone,” said Karli.
Even though Travis is overseas, the Behrens family still is able to talk to him on the phone whenever they can.
“We are blessed with the age of technology. We are able to talk to Travis through Skype several times a week, plus the good old Facebook chats,” said Ms. Behrens.
While he is overseas serving, Travis operates as an “Aviation Operations Specialists. He works with flight plans and preparing for missions,” said Ms. Behrens. With all that working, the rage of war care packages and gifts from home are extremely important for soldiers such as Travis who are fighting for our country.
The Behrens family is creating a care package for Travis with “junk food–mostly all the treats and snacks that he loves, mostly Pop Tarts and Sour Patch Kids and candy corn, as well as the holiday candies he loves,” said Ms. Behrens.
Holiday plans are being doubled–even quadrupled–for the Behrens family this year.
“We will celebrate how we normally would, except we will have a second celebration when Travis comes home in February,” said Karli. The grand homecoming is one of the most anticipated times for the Behrens family.
“We will be noisy at the airport with signs and a crowd! Also, we will celebrate his birthday, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas with one big bash while he is home,” said Ms. Behrens.