HIGH POINT – One group’s Friday began much as Christmas Day did at many homes, with gift-bearing relatives arriving to the smell of breakfast.

The group members, however, are a different sort of family. They’re fire and police personnel, who always work holidays, nights and weekends.

At High Point Fire Department Station 13 on Ambassador Court, off Eastchester Drive, Capt. Phillip Shields fried country ham as Capt. Mark Holmes cranked out a large pile of waffles. Holmes’ wife, Meredith, heated sausage and egg casseroles and French toast roll-ups.

Platters of gift-wrapped desserts prepared by firefighter Nathan Thomas’ mother Kathy were ready for later in the day.

Shields’ children arrived with gifts to open after breakfast. Engineer Burt Blakely woke his 2-year-old son Lukas at 5 a.m. to open gifts.

Some firefighters on the standard 24-hour shift that began at 8 a.m. came early so those ending their shift could be home when their children woke. “I don’t consider it a burden,” Shields said. “We’ve lost firefighters this year, and I’m thinking more how their families would like to be able to get them up this morning.”

“We’re as close as family anywhere,” Holmes said. “We spend a third of the year together. We’ve got it easy. I think about the troops overseas. We can go home in the morning.”

Across town later in the day, members of the High Point Police Department’s Baker Team took time out of their 6 a.m.-4:30 p.m. shift for lunch at the Leonard Avenue headquarters. For the sixth year, lunch was courtesy of the High Point Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association.

Citizens Academy members provided meals for officers on Christmas Eve and at lunch and dinner Friday partially because most restaurants were closed.

“Also, it’s a way to give back to these guys,” said Margaret King of the Citizens Academy.

Some police officers were able to come in late or leave briefly Friday morning to spend time with their families.

Officer David Albertson came in late so he could start Christmas with his four children, age 6-17. This was Albertson’s first Christmas as a police officer, and while juggling home and work is a tough balance, he said, the overall schedule of four days off and four working allows for family time.

Both Heather Bartley and her husband, Tim, are police officers, and they have two children, Eli, age 2, and Madi, 11 months. The Bartleys work opposite days so one is always home, and Heather went home briefly Friday morning for gift opening.

Each of the police department’s three 10½-hour shifts allows officers to be home some part of Christmas Day, Bartley said.

vknopfler@hpe.com | 888-3601