Operation Holiday Surprise Serves Ramstein

From Thanksgiving through December, Operation Holiday Surprise, operated by the Ramstein Enlisted Spouses Association, paid 200 checkout bills for commissary shoppers in the Kaisersiautern Military Community. The gifts paid for more than $14,000 in grocery bills for shoppers E-4 and below. The result, said Eva Culbreth, association president, was “unbelievable — ranging from tears to hugs.” Some patrons refused to believe it when an association member stepped in to wish them a happy new year and tell them to put their money away. An expectant mother broke into tears at the checkout area the previous evening. The husband also developed tears in his eyes in the parking lot when the bagger refused his tip in keeping with the holiday surprise. Handling the operation required last-minute, close coordination between the commissary director and cashiers who switched on a blinking register light when they had an eligible customer.