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Guam Guard Holds Alternative Celebrations Due to COVID-19

Dec. 21, 2020 | By MARK SCOTT
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Smiles and joy were spotted on Guam just in time for the holiday season as Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero, Army Maj. Gen. Esther Aguigui, adjutant general, and Santa Claus himself made appearances at Guam National Guard drill weekend holiday events, Dec. 12, 2020. 

A woman helps Santa give gifts.
A woman helps Santa give gifts.
Guard Gifts
Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero, left, helps Santa deliver gifts to children of Guam Air National Guard members on Andersen Air Force Base on Dec. 12, 2020. The event, which included a holiday gift drive-thru and a National Guard birthday celebration, was held during the Guam Guard's drill weekend.
Download: Full Size (1.63 MB)
Credit: Mark Scott, Guam National Guard
VIRIN: 201212-Z-RJ317-5074M

Beginning with a holiday lighting ceremony and gift drive-thru event on Saturday, the Guam Air National Guard's 254th Air Base Group kicked off the weekend-long celebration. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Sheleena Cruz, family programs coordinator for the ABG, was the lead planner of the event. 

"We were trying to think of something safe for the kids to do, because we couldn't do our normal holiday meal due to COVID-19," Cruz said. "But it's okay because all the units came together to start a new tradition.  It's just overwhelming — all of the support that we got."

A mother embraces her son.
A mother embraces her son.
Holiday Hug
Army Lt. Col. Marleen Tarusan-Legaspi, left, and her son Army Pfc. Nikolas Legaspi, celebrate the National Guard's 384th birthday at a holiday meal grab-and-go event at the Guam National Guard's Barrigada Readiness Complex on Dec. 13, 2020.
Download: Full Size (993.28 KB)
Credit: Mark Scott, Guam National Guard
VIRIN: 201213-Z-RJ317-1108M

On Sunday, it was the Army's turn with a 384th National Guard birthday cake-cutting ceremony and holiday meal grab-and-go for the troops. These events ere also attended by the governor and adjutant general. 

"The message is hope," Cruz said. "Although we're going through crazy times, we can adapt, and change can be good. All we want is for the kids and families to leave here feeling a sense of hope."

(Mark Scott is assigned to the Guam National Guard.)

Spotlight: Coronavirus: DOD Response Spotlight: Coronavirus: DOD Response: https://www.defense.gov/Explore/Spotlight/Coronavirus/

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