Staff Photo by Laura-Chase McGehee/Chattanooga Times Free Press/ Dec 9, 2010 – Skye Smith, 5, right, looks up at her sister Alia Smith, 8, while they play outside with second hand candy cane lawn decorations while waiting for Christmas Decor to arrive at their La Fayette, GA home Thursday. Their mother, Kaylee Smith, not pictured, entered a contest sponsored by national franchise Christmas Decor that allows military families to have their homes decorated for Christmas for free. The Smith family of eight lives off father, Sgt. Wesley Smith’s, disability and military-provided basic housing allowance and are the regional winners for the Christmas Decor competition.LAFAYETTE, Ga. – Skye Smith watched as a Dawson Lawn Service employee climbed a ladder and began stringing lights along the roof of her house.
That’s not right, the 5-year-old said in her own way, because only Santa should be up there this time of year.
“Santa can fly with the reindeers,” she said.
Skye and her family – three sisters, two brothers and her mom and dad – got a special treat for Christmas on Thursday. Dawson, a Chattanooga-based company that has a franchise from Christmas Decor, decorated the Smith’s LaFayette home for free.
At the holidays, Texas-based Christmas Decor has regional contests to choose military families to receive free decoration services. A spokesman said the company typically decorates from 75 to 150 houses a year.
To enter, families must write letters telling their stories.
In her letter, Skye’s mother, Kaylee Smith, detailed how her husband, Wesley, has served twice in Iraq. Back and head injuries meant he couldn’t deploy any more and he was moved from the Army to the Reserve.
In spite of his status, Wesley Smith, 31, will be going to Fort Hood, Texas, with the U.S. Army Reserve 7239th Medical Support Unit, based in Chattanooga.
This time he’ll be separated from his wife and six children for a year.
“He’s missed a lot of holidays and a lot of birthdays,” said Kaylee Smith, 31.
His frequent absence is what makes Christmas Decor’s actions so special, Wesley Smith said.
“For them to come out here and do this, it just means the world, and I know it’s going mean a lot to the kids,” he said. “I leave when it’s dark [for drill] and come home when it’s dark, so I haven’t had time to be with the family personally, much less do any decorating.”
Dawson crew chief Reiner Hunziker said he’s glad to help.
“We love to help people out and make the holidays better for everybody,” said Hunziker, who helped decorate the Smiths’ house.
The decorations included lights, wreaths and other Christmastime knickknacks. Without Christmas Decor’s help, the family said, the time and money wouldn’t have been there for decorating.
“I’m glad that they get to have something like that this year because I wasn’t going to be home to do something that impressive,” Wesley Smith said.