'Operation Homefront' helps hundreds of Bremerton-area families

The holidays can be tough for military families stationed far from home, but for thousands, putting food on the table makes it even harder. According to the nonprofit Operation Homefront, more than 28% of military and veteran families struggle to afford enough food. Today in Bremerton, the group stepped in to help with its Holiday Meals for Military event. FOX 13's Shira Matsuzawa was there. As the rain hits the pavement, these men and women are weathering the storm with a smile. Hello! How are you doing? Nonprofit operation Homefront served 400 military and veteran families Tuesday through the Holiday Meals for Military program. This time of the year, it's often very difficult for our military families. They're far from their support systems. As a spouse of a veteran, Senior Regional Operations Manager Laura Scroggins understands how challenging this time of the year can be for military families. They're far from families. Some of them don't have their service members with them. Some of them are celebrating the holidays by themselves. We watched as each family drove up. Hello, how are you? Awesome, thank you for your service. And were greeted with a friendly face and a $100 gift card to Walmart. Sure thing. Each card was then loaded up with soft drinks, community resources, and even arts and crafts for children like Dear Santa letters. And they get to indicate whether they've been good, mostly good, or a little naughty. It's so nice and it's so appreciative too. This is Kaylee Durante's third year here. Her husband has been in the Navy for almost 11 years. It can be lonely. So sometimes when you have the extra sense of community, it is so nice because it really shows you that we're all a family, truly, and you have people even if your family's not here. Kyla Bannis' husband is also in the Navy and has been for almost 18 years. We've been stationed all the way across the world in Japan. And, you know, There's definitely families that don't have their family base over the holidays, and so it's really nice when organizations do stuff like this. Happy holidays, okay? Y'all have a good one. Shira Matsuzawa for Fox 13 News.