Fewer Navy recruits available for holiday dinner

NORTH CHICAGO, Ill. -- Far fewer families will open their homes to recruits at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center for a home-cooked meal this Thanksgiving than did last year.

But nobody is complaining.

Officials said it's not that anybody has forgotten the recruits. Rather, there aren't as many this year because sailors aren't leaving the Navy in the numbers they once did.

Last year, about 4,100 sailors-in-training signed up to leave the base to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner as part of the Adopt-a-Sailor program. This year, about 1,600 recruits were available.