As the song says, "There's no place like home for the holidays." Many people are celebrating this Christmas Day by opening presents, attending church services and sharing a meal with family and friends.
But not everyone. Hospitals, police stations, firehouses and other essential services don't stop for the calendar, and neither do their workers. What's it like to spend Christmas on the job?
"It's not a gloomy place at all," said Patricia Nelson, manager of the brain injury department at Shepherd Center, a catastrophic care hospital in Atlanta. "The hospital is full of people. Families come to visit patients, various groups will sing carols, and our staff will share a potluck dinner of homemade goodies."
Nelson is bringing the brownies and working ICU today, filling in for a co-worker. "She has a 4-year-old, and Christmas is such a magical time for a child that age. She should be there," she said.
Nelson plans to open gifts with her husband and enjoy dinner with friends this evening after her 12-hour shift.
"I've worked Christmas Day for years, and my husband is OK with it," she said. "Our big family holiday is Thanksgiving, when about 75 of us gather in a different city each year."
Nelson's tradition of working Christmas began with her first job as a home health nurse in Alabama. She had gone twice a day for six months to care for one patient, until he got better and didn't need the service. When he had a relapse, the family asked Nelson to come back.
"I had switched jobs by then but juggled my schedule to do it. He died early Christmas morning, and I stayed with him. His family wanted and needed someone who knew them to be with him at the end. That's what everyone wants," she said.
At Shepherd Center, staff members get to know the patients well, because many have long stays.
"We know whose family can't come because of distance or other reasons, and those patients will get extra attention," she said. "We'll go the extra mile to make it a positive day for everyone. Working here just makes me than
kful for life. At the end of the day, I feel very lucky to be going home to my family."Firefighters in Cobb County work every three days, regardless of date. It takes years of seniority for anyone to be able to get vacation time on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, but there's plenty of switching among workers.
Todd Higa wasn't scheduled to work this year, but he reported yesterday and today so that others could be home with their families.
"My family is on the West Coast, so being here works for me, too. Instead of sitting home alone, I'll be at the station with guys I know well, who are like family," said Higa, firefighter and EMT with Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services.
Higa has worked many Christmases and said that it's always a festive atmosphere at the station.
"We'll spend three or four hours cooking an elaborate dinner; one time we made prime rib. There's a tree, and people exchange gifts. Families of the guys working come eat with us, and there are tables set up everywhere," he said. "If there's a call, we go as usual - but, then, firefighters are used to cold meals."
One of his most memorable holidays happened several years ago, when a family's house burned down just before Christmas.
"We invited them to spend the holiday at the station with us, and the whole community got wind of it and brought a pickup truck full of gifts and toys for the kids," he said. "People in the community always bring sweets to the station during this season. You can just count on putting on three or four extra pounds."
Darren Maloney, public information officer for the Gwinnett County Police Department, remembers fondly the supervisors who opened their homes to working officers during Thanksgiving and Christmas.
"One sergeant always told his guys how to sneak into his house if they weren't up. We knew we had to be quiet in the middle of the night, but we felt free to raid the fridge, and his wife was a great cook," Maloney said.
Police officers know when they sign on that they will work their share of holidays and probably miss some important family events. They learn to celebrate a day early or late. Being scheduled to work Christmas can be the luck of the draw, but officers often switch and fill in for one another.
"Once, when I was a road officer, my supervisor allowed me to be assigned to the zone where my parents lived," said Maloney. "I was able to drop by and spend a little time with them that day."
Maloney has made his share of arrests on Christmas Day, usually for domestic violence."There's a marked increase in family blow-ups at this time of year, when emotions are running high and alcohol is involved. We respond to those calls," he said. "But generally people are nicer and more forgiving during the holidays. Many precincts will decorate, and neighboring fire stations will invite officers to stop by for some good food."
And, of course, there's always Waffle House.
"Exactly," said Teresa Tillman, regional vice president. "That's our busiest day of the year, and every supervisor - from the president of the company down - works Christmas. It's wonderful."
Tillman will hit as many of her restaurants and visit with as many customers and associates as possible today. She'll wash dishes, bus tables - do whatever needs doing.
When her children were small, the family started getting up at 4 a.m. to open presents together. The children would play with their toys, watch the parades and spend time with their grandparents while Mom went off to work.
"They'd all come in sometime during the day to visit and eat with me," she said. Tillman would go home late in the afternoon, prepare a holiday dinner, eat with her family and then go back to the restaurant.
"My kids grew up not knowing how to spend Christmas any differently," said Tillman. "One year when they were in college, we decided to open gifts Christmas Eve instead of getting up so early, but the next year they wanted to go back to the old schedule. That's Christmas for us."
For Tillman, Waffle House is the place to be today.
" The regulars will stop in to say hello. Families of associates will come in to share a meal. People without family have a place to come, and travelers, a place to eat," she said. "It's a wonderful thing when you go to work and people say thank-you for being there."