Coxsackie Honors Soldier and Family

FOX 23 News 12/8/2011- Story on Fox News 23 with Video - Another Story in The Daily Mail

Having a loved one serving overseas is tough to begin with, but when Mom or Dad is gone over Christmas, it's even more difficult. That's a fact the Toleman's of Stillwater learned the hard way this year. Mom Rebecca Toleman has had to assume the role of both parents ever since March 17. That's whenher husband Army Staff Sgt. Michael Toleman deployed to Afghanistan.

And being a temporary 'single mom' is no easy task considering that both her 7-year-old, and 5-year-old have had an extremely tough time adjusting to the change. "The first few months were awful. They cried every night. We couldn't Skype him (Michael) because they didn't want to hear his voice because it upset them, they slept with me every night. And then the issues became a little bit less, but then he (Michael) came home on leave in October for 2 weeks, and then we started again when he left with the same type of coping problems," the military wife said. So, on Thursday night, second grader Logan, and kindergartener Bella took a trip out to Wal-Mart to help their mom do some shopping, but instead the pair were greeted by someone special, before they even reached the door. "Santa just gave us a gift card from Wal-Mart," said on child. When asked if he had had any idea that was going to happen, the youngster said, "NO!" loudly, with a laugh. And Santa didn't arrive at Wal-Mart quietly.

Instead, he was riding in the bucket of a Catskill ladder truck, all dressed up and waving with his little helper; an elf straight from the South Pole. "Is your dad gonna be home for Christmas?" Santa asked the two children. Logan and Bella shook their heads 'no.' Then Santa said, "Your dad asked Santa to come here and see you, and take you shopping to get some stuff in the store. How does that sound?" The children said, "Good!" and with that, said "thank you" and went running into the store. Rebecca said, "Until now, they didn't want any part in Christmas. They didn't want to put a Christmas tree up, they didn't want to decorate until dad came home. But dad doesn't come home 'til march, so it was disheartening." "But to get this call and hope that it would maybe brighten their Christmas a little bit, and clearly looking at them, it did," she said.

And the entire surprise was made possible by the workers at the Coxsackie Correctional Facility.

In addition to his Army duties, Michael Toleman is a Sergeant at Coxsackie Correctional. Several weeks ago a group of Michael's coworkers decided to take up a collection to make this dream Wal-Mart shopping trip possible. A special treat for the children of a man they call their 'brother,' a person they've spent so many hours working with at the prison. "Having their father not home for Christmas is probably the worst thing they've had to endure, so this has made it just a little bit easier," Rebecca said fighting back tears. Although young Bella didn't say much, she seemed to handle the cameras, the chaos and the pressure quite well. The little girl went aisle to aisle tossing everything from Barbie's to stuffed dogs and even doll houses into her cart. But half way through the shopping spree, young Logan was still in shock over all the unexpected excitement. "I can't believe this is really happening!" Logan yelled. When asked if he would even be able to sleep when it was time for bed, he said, "Ahhh, probably not!" with a laugh.

The kids' mom admits it's been a long tour for the entire family, adding that this gift from her husbands' coworkers provided the perfect distraction for her disheartened kids. Coxsackie Corrections officer and event organizer Scott Rogers said, "That's what Christmas is about, seeing the faces of those little kids. The little boy was in tears, and the daughter, she was just like mesmerized, I guess that's the best way to describe it. They were so surprised. They had no idea. It was awesome." Also, the gifts the Coxsackie CO's helped to provide didn't stop with the children. The corrections workers gave the deployed soldier's wife all of the makings for a full turkey dinner, and grocery store gift card to pay for food over the holidays. "It makes them happy, it makes them smile, and for that, we're so grateful," Rebecca said. When asked what he would say to his dad if he were at the store for the shopping spree, Logan said, "Well...I miss you daddy, Merry Christmas, and come home safe."