The Joshua Harris VFW Post #2868 in Brookfield will again host United States military recruits for Thanksgiving.
“This year we’re hosting about 50 sailors from the [Great Lakes Navy Station],” said Shawn Ligeikis, a post member who served in the U.S. Navy from 1994 to 1998.
Ligeikis and another member will take a bus up to Great Lakes Thanksgiving morning to transport the recruits to the post. Once they arrive, the recruits will have breakfast and full access to the post, as well as telephones, Xboxes and laptops for social media engagements. Televisions will be tuned to football games. The big Thanksgiving meal (all home-cooled) will come later.
“They will be able to call home or whoever they want to call,” Ligeikis said. “A lot of post members and people in general donated phones and computers.”
U.S. Navy veteran Dave Kivi has been in charge of hosting the dinners since the early to mid 1980s.
“As a veteran sailor, I remember what it’s like being away from home on the holidays,” Kivi said. “Recruits can’t go home and may not have a chance to call home [whey they’re on base] so myself and the commander at the time and a couple of other members decided it would be a nice idea.”
The recruits are grateful for the Thanksgiving meal and to experience a bit of civilian life, according to Kivi.
“They express to us that they are thankful to have a chance to talk with their moms or girlfriends, wife, husband,” Kivi added.
According to naval regulations, relatives are not allowed to attend the dinner.
“Years ago, they were allowed to be taken to private homes but with the 911 incident and all the security stuff, they don’t do that anymore,” he said.
Thanksgiving meal will be served at about 1 p.m. Recruits have to be back on base by 8 p.m. Not being back on time constitutes absence without leave.
“All the food will be cooked at various homes, nothing is cooked here at the post,” Ligeikis said. “It’s a lot of home-cooked meals that people volunteer to cook. We had a signup sheet at the post and people signed up for what they wanted to cook.”
Recruits will feast on about five or six turkeys, seven or eight hams, stuffing, potatoes, green bean casseroles and more. Dessert will also be served.
Members and nonmembers are allowed to interact with the recruits and have dinner with them.
“Some people come and stay for an hour and some people stay all day,” Ligeikis said.
Post #2868, on May 24, officially was re-dedicated as the Joshua Harris Brookfield Memorial Post #2868 in honor of the 21-year-old Brookfield resident who was killed in Afghanistan on Sept. 17, 2008.
Harris volunteered for the U.S. Army National Guard while he was still in high school. The Walther Lutheran High School graduate was in Afghanistan for just a few weeks when he and three other soldiers were killed by an improvised explosive device (IED).