TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Working through the holidays isn't easy.
But from restaurants to first responders somebody's got to do it.
Over at Tallahassee Fire Station 11 -- a relatively quiet Christmas after Thanksgiving cooking fires kept this crew busy last month.
"On Thanksgiving, we had three so we're thankful everybody's been safe and unharmed and enjoyed that family time," said Lt. Sarah Cooksey.
Lt. Sarah Cooksey has been a firefighter for about 18 years.
She's one of three holding down the fort for the holiday so others can enjoy time with family.
"I try to do that for the younger guys that have smaller children because back when I was younger I missed a lot of family time so I made a vow to not let the other guys do that. My son is actually a firefighter as well," said Tommy Aldridge.
At Munchies Pizza the heat is on.
Owner Eric Riser plans to cook up a storm, as one of the few restaurants open in town on Christmas demand can be high.
"For anyone who has an emergency or isn't able to cook. Also, there's some college students who are in town because they weren't able to go home for Christmas," said Riser.
Munchies just opened in June.
And though it mostly caters to college kids and vegans he expects plenty of business.
"Usually it's just chains that are open on Christmas so we're local, we make our dough in-house...Our pizza has been very, very popular since we opened about six months ago and we just want to be available for everybody," said Riser.
And though he's working Riser won't be alone for the holiday his parents will pitch in when evening traffic picks up.
Whether it's a dinner rush or a rush to help.
There are plenty of people on the job while you're on break.
"We want to make sure everybody in our community is safe and happy and enjoying that family time," said Lt. Sarah Cooksey.
Cooksey got off her 24 hour-shift at 6 p.m. on Wednesday evening.
To make working the holiday a little easier some of those working at Fire Station 11 had family come to the station to keep them company.
