be in good spirits. well, while the u.s. military has now left iraq, tens of thousands of american service members remain in afghanistan for the tenth christmas in a row. the holiday was able to make its presence known among them so far from home. merry christmas! reporter: tonisha starts off christmas at camp acres as she does every day, reaching out to her home. a mother and a wife, she knows the pain of being this far away, especially at this time of year. it s her job to make things better as a morale officer. she helps them fight depression and alleviate stress. we are here to do a job, but in order to do it effectively and productively, you have to have a peace of mind. reporter: she reminds troops that folks back home care, handing out goodies sent by grateful americans. and she sets up special events like this jingle bells race,
special events, like this jingle bells race, making spirits bright. merry, merry christmas! reporter: but no fun and games at the post office. oh, mercy. reporter: they re busy sorting and handing out christmas cheer, and the 292,000 pounds of holiday mail that arrived at camp eggers this month alone. the packages that we get from our family members and everything means so very much. reporter: a big smile on specialist cooper mcpherson s face. we make it easy on each other. reporter: he shares his care packages with his band of brothers, following the time-honored tradition, the gift of giving. there are some festive moments, but all over afghanistan, troops are carrying on as usual today, serving their country and fighting a war. this quick response team is heading out on a mission, responding to enemy activity. it s business as usual for this colonel mark mcmenikal, who oversees training of afghan police. 26 years in the army and it s still hard to be away. i ve got