An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Article Display

Joint base hosts Hearts Apart holiday event

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Lauren Pitts
  • Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHRUST, N.J. - --  The Military and Family Support Center hosted the 2015 Hearts Apart Holiday Party at the Tommy B's Community Activities Center here, Sunday, Dec. 6.

The annual party celebrates the families who experienced deployments or extended time apart   during the year.  Although Hearts Apart is generally an Air Force program, joint base MDL opens it to all branches of the military to support and boost morale of the families.

"It doesn't matter if the service member has just returned, just left, or is about to leave," said Tech. Sgt. Michael Cruz Cintron, 87th Force Support Squadron MFSC Family Readiness NCO and Hearts Apart program manager. "This is a way for us to close out the year of deployments, and focus on the families."

However, it's not just the end of the year that the program was celebrating, but the holidays themselves.

"The holidays in general are a very sensitive time of year," explained Cruz Cintron. "It just makes today that much more meaningful."

The celebration started with a buffet-styled brunch followed by plenty of entertainment for all ages. After each child had their balloon-animal of choice, the magic show began. There was also trivia games for the older kids and adults. The party closed out with a surprise visit.

Mr. and Mrs. Claus were able to meet with every family in attendance and handed out gifts that had been donated by the USO and other organizations.

"Thanks to all of our volunteers, no child will go home empty handed," said Master Sgt. William Lonergan, 87th FSS MFSC Family Readiness NCO and co-coordinator, who personally understands the importance of these support events.

"I've been deployed over the holidays, and this can really help with some of the tough times," explained Lonergan. "As a kid, it's nice to know that even if your mom or dad is gone there are other people around that will take care of you."

The mission of Hearts Apart has always been to support and help military families network while their service member is away; a mission that Lonergan and Cruz Cintron feel they accomplished.

"Overall, we're here to emphasize that the military is a big family," said Cruz Cintron. "We need to make sure that we take care of our family and take care of each other. It is all about support."