Members of the Crino family on Christmas, perhaps more than any other day of the year, made sure their cell phones were on with the volume turned all the way up.

As the Olean, N.Y., family went about their Christmas Day traditions, like delivering free meals from the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels, they were hoping to receive a call from their 21-year-old son and brother, Thomas Crino, who was deployed to Afghanistan Nov. 1 as a U.S. Army combat medic.

While they eventually connected, family members didn’t pick up Thomas’ first few calls on Thanksgiving because they didn’t recognize the Virginia area code — his call from a secure line on base was likely rerouted through the Pentagon.

Thomas’ parents, Mark and Colleen Crino, and three brothers, Tim, Ryan and Chris Crino, were determined not to make that mistake again.

“Whatever number it is, we’ll answer it,” Mark Crino said.

“In the back of your mind you know there’s danger,” Colleen Crino added, “but being able to communicate every once in a while, it helps.”

For local military families with a loved one deployed to Afghanistan as part of America’s longest war, just a brief phone call or message can make or break their holiday. A brother, sister, son, daughter or spouse in a combat zone is never easy, families will tell you, so the holiday season can often exacerbate their feelings of longing and anxiety.

However, they’ll also tell you their sense of pride remains strong.

“We sure do miss them, we sure wish they all were here,” said Fred Caya of Portville, N.Y., “but we’re glad they’re doing something that they wanted to do.”

The Cayas’ youngest son, Curtis Caya, was on a non-combat zone deployment to South Korea during Christmas 2016 as a U.S. Army specialist. Curtis Caya is now out of the military, but the family’s second-youngest, Aaron Caya, is now deployed in Afghanistan for the second time as an infantry sergeant with the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division.

Another son, Casey Caya, is a U.S. Army first lieutenant currently stationed at Fort Campbell in Kentucky. Their oldest son, Eric Caya, is a teacher in the local area.

The Cayas said their experience with Curtis two Christmases ago will not make Aaron’s absence this Christmas any easier.

“It’s going to be just as hard,” Fred Caya said.

“It’s always hard, but you get through it,” added the Caya boys’ mother, Melanie Caya.

They, like the Crinos, had hope for a Christmas Day call from their son, but knew it would depend on the phone and WiFi availability of their son’s bases, as well as how busy of a day their sons were having.

Even when a call does come through, the conversations are often brief. Plus, deployed loves ones often have to be tight-lipped about their day-to-day lives on base.

“It’s very brief, it’s very to the point and then all of the sudden he’s gone,” Mark Crino said.

As for sending Christmas gifts to Afghanistan, families are warned packages can take four to six weeks to arrive, if at all.

The Crinos said they’ve been lucky thus far, as their packages to Thomas have arrived within about two weeks. For Christmas, they’ve sent him headphones, as well as plenty of protein — beef jerky, peanut butter, sunflower seeds and tuna.

In fact, the other soldiers in Thomas Crino’s unit will also receive care packages this Christmas thanks to an effort led by Sue Cross. She’s the mother of Thomas Crino’s best friend and fellow 2015 Olean High School graduate, Brendan Cross, who is in the U.S. Coast Guard.

The Caya family also noted community support helps military families get through the holidays.

“I do love how the community comes together and says, ‘Hey, what’s his address? I want to send a care package or something like that for the holidays,’” Melanie Caya said. “ … Just the community remembering them makes a difference.”

The support is needed, too, because getting through the days of a loved one’s deployment can be difficult. Mark Crino said the family says a rosary for Thomas every day, while the St. Mary’s congregation says a prayer for Thomas at Mass every week.

“I think the most sobering thing is when your kid brings his power of attorney to you and his will,” said Mark Crino, whose son handed him the envelope of documents before he deployed.

“You have to have faith to know that this is what could happen — hopefully it doesn’t happen — but you make the plans just in case,” added Colleen Crino. “ … It’s all about faith. This is what he’s wanted to do since he was 14 and he had very good reasons for wanting to do it. We’re not going to stand in his way. It is what it is. We’re going to support him.”

News came out this week that President Donald Trump is planning to withdraw 7,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan, which would be about half of all U.S. troops currently in the country.

For some family members like Fred Caya, who’d want nothing more than for their loved one to come home but also recognize the importance of their loved one’s sacrifice, the news leaves them conflicted.

“I don’t know whether it’s a good idea or bad idea. I’ve heard pros and cons,” he said, later adding “the most difficult part about having them deployed is the immediate danger that they’re in, and knowing that we’re back here, safe and happy and relatively secure, and those guys are over there making sure that happens.”

The families noted having their sons deployed makes moments with them, whether it be during the holidays or anytime of the year, all the more important.

“I think every time they come home or you do get a little bit of time, whatever plans you had personally, you kind of shove them aside because it doesn’t matter,” Melanie Caya said. “I guess you just learn to appreciate the time you get to spend with them because you know they’re going to have to go back to serve their country soon.”

“Every little bit you can get,” Fred Caya added. “It gives you more appreciation for the time that you have because you never know. It’s one of those things.”

(Contact reporter Tom Dinki at tdinki@oleantimesherald.com. Follow him on Twitter, @tomdinki)