While many families across North Texas gathered at home for Christmas, firefighters at Dallas Fire Station 27 spent the holiday on duty. As they work to protect the city, they also lean on one another as family.

” I just love being a firefighter, just spending time with my second family here,” Francisco Amaro said.

Amaro is the driver engineer for Engine 27. He’s been a firefighter for more than a decade.

Even on Christmas Day, the station remained fully staffed, with firefighters working long shifts and responding to calls as usual. Though they missed being home with loved ones, the crew created holiday traditions of their own.

“All of us would probably rather be at home with our families on Christmas Day or on Thanksgiving, things like that. But we try to have a good attitude,” Lt. Justin McKinney said.

McKinney has served the City of Dallas for nearly 14 years.

“With us being here, that means the other people that work different shifts, they get to be home with their families,” McKinney said.

Inside the station, the sounds of preparation filled the air as firefighters split wood, fired up a smoker and cooked a holiday meal together.

The menu included familiar favorites like ham, mac and cheese, and sweet potato casserole.

One firefighter made cinnamon rolls from a recipe older than the station itself.

“This is my great-grandmother’s recipe,” Holly said.

“We’re going to smoke some meat out on the smoker,” said McKinney. “We try to make it feel as traditional as possible.”

While most of us were unwrapping gifts and gathering around the table…Some Dallas crews were clocking in at one fire station, where Christmas looks a little different, but is still full of heart and familiar traditions. NBC 5’s Alicia Barrera reports.

For many firefighters, the station has become a second home. Crew members say they spend a significant portion of their lives together, relying on one another both on and off the job.

“It’s like our second family. We spend a third of our lives with these people,” McKinney said.

This Christmas, firefighters also welcomed the ones who support them most, bridging the gap between duty and home.

McKinney said the sacrifices of working holidays can be difficult, but the work remains meaningful.

“I’ve always wanted a job that was kind of bigger than me,” McKinney said. “Being there on somebody’s worst day and being able to hopefully make a difference in somebody’s life, I get a lot of value out of that.”

For some, the distance from home is felt most during the holidays. Firefighter Chad Russ said he asked for a simple Christmas gift this year. He wanted something to remind him of his family while responding to emergency calls.

“It’s just a little insert that goes into our helmet. It kind of helps me remember, stay safe, while I am away from the house, no way I can come back to them,” Russ said.

The insert features a picture of his wife Holly and their two daughters Parker and Spencer.

“When you take it off after a fire,” Russ said, “you can look at it and know you’re going to make it home to them.”

As Christmas came and went, the firefighters of Station 27 remained ready for the next call, supported by tradition, teamwork and the families who help keep them going.

ATLANTA – A former senior executive at Atlanta Housing is expected to plead guilty in the coming weeks to federal charges of defrauding more than $60,000 from Section 8 and COVID-19 relief programs, according to federal prosecutors.

The backstory:

Tracy Jones, who served as the agency’s senior vice president of the Housing Choice Voucher Program since 2017, was arraigned last week on charges of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, wire fraud and credit application fraud. Jones oversaw one of the largest Section 8 programs in the country before being charged.

What they’re saying:

U.S. Attorney Theodore Hertzberg announced that Jones has indicated she will enter a guilty plea to all three charges. 

During the arraignment, Hertzberg detailed a complex web of deception used to carry out the fraud.

“She used a shell business entity, she used a false affidavit,” Hertzberg said. “She convinced friends to lie and present false documents on her behalf. She used a fake name.”

The investigation revealed that Jones allegedly used an alternate identity and multiple business entities to siphon funds intended for the community’s neediest residents. While her attorney, Samuel Joseph, declined to comment on the charges, prosecutors expect the case to be resolved with the upcoming plea.

The other side:

In response to the legal proceedings, Atlanta Housing released a statement: “As this is an active legal matter, Atlanta Housing is unable to comment at this time. We will follow all appropriate protocols related to both internal and external reviews of all claims.”

The agency has already moved to fill the vacancy left by Jones’ departure, appointing Shannon Linsey to the post on Monday.