Snowball Express 2012 heads to Dallas

PENSACOLA, Fla. (WALA) - On Friday, November 30, more than two dozen spouses and children took off on a special trip to Dallas courtesy of the Snowball Express.

They embarked on a flight headed for Texas. Even though the trip was free, all of these families have paid a dear price, and certainly deserved some time off.

Inside Pensacola International Airport, more than two dozen spouses and children were treated like royalty.

The Patriot Guard stood at attention, while the Blue Angels entertained, and outside their aircraft arrived in grand fashion, with two fire trucks spraying water into the air.

This warm hospitality is in honor of those who could not make it.

Everyone at the gate is related to a service member who died for our country; heroes like Navy Chief Joel Baldwin, who was killed by a suicide bomber inside a mess hall.

"(The suicide bomber attacked) December 21, 2004. It was right before Christmas. He killed 23 people that day,” said his wife, Claudia.

Nearly eight years later, the pain is still fresh for this widow.

Claudia Baldwin said, "We are part of a family we didn't want to be a part of. But we're glad that we have each other, and so especially during the holiday time period."

And that's the purpose of the Snowball Express. These families are going on an all-expense paid four-day trip to Dallas,

The snowball express is flying in more than 1,700 children and spouses from around the world.

They have a lot of fun things planned like a trip to Six Flags, and they'll take part in a parade.

This allows them to join others who share the same pain during the holidays. Folks like 16-year-old Mia Corser, who lost her Army father in a motorcycle accident this summer.

Corser said, "People tend to get to where they just kinda stop caring. They don't really care about hearing it anymore. After a while, they're just like, 'Why don't you move on?' And it's just not that easy."

This trip allows them to step away from the pain for a while, and heal together.

Baldwin said, "It's an unspoken language too. Nobody has to say anything. We just meet eyes, we embrace each other. We'll smile, we'll cry and we're just there for each other and we understand. We know that we know, and nothing really needs to be said."

As the Snowball express takes off, it's more than just a short vacation. You could call it, a family reunion.

They fly back on December 4.