My first Thanksgiving away from home was in Hawaii. We were en route to Japan for a year. Instead of snow, there was sand. We ate turkey with pineapple. When I called home to Chicago, my family was just finishing Thanksgiving dinner, and each of 14 family members wished us Happy Thanksgiving and said how much we were missed. There I was in an island paradise, with palm trees swaying outside my window, and I cried for two hours.

I can't imagine how the soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan must feel with the holidays approaching. I asked Ret. Chief William von Zehle of the Wilton (Conn.) Fire Department about his time in Iraq. When he served as a first sergeant with the 4th-11th Civil Affairs Battalion in East Baghdad, Von Zehle said holidays were just "another day."

"In the mess hall, they did a canned turkey and tried to make it special," Von Zehle said. "It was tough on the young soldiers that were a year ago living at home and now were living away, but your team is your family while you were there -- but it was my fourth time away."

Holidays away from familiar faces and routines can be tough the first time -- even the second time.

Eventually, each holiday season my husband, daughters and I stayed overseas instead of coming back home did get easier. While my weeping jags got shorter over the years, I also realized that my Christmas-back-home memories were always more perfect than reality.

Last month, we asked our readers to submit the names of any firefighters who were currently serving as American soldiers overseas, and this week we post the names and addresses of our family of firefighters serving abroad. (See Firefighters, Soldiers at War.) We send our thanks to all who contributed names to the list; we received quite a few from across the country -- the list includes firefighters from Chicago, Glendale (Calif.) and Tempe (Ariz.); small towns, big towns and in-between towns.

A card, a patch or a word of news from the "folks" back home may mean more than you might think. Please take a moment to send holiday greetings to those firefighters far from home this year and pray for their safe return.

Have a safe, Happy Thanksgiving.

Janet Wilmoth, Editor