President Barack Obama thanked hundreds of service members and their families on Christmas Day in his final holiday visit as commander in chief at Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

“It has been the privilege of my life to serve as your commander in chief,” Obama told the crowd of more than 400 late Sunday afternoon in the Anderson dining hall facility at the base in Kaneohe. “Although this will be my last time addressing you as president, I want you to know that as a citizen my gratitude will remain, and our commitment to standing by you every step of the way, that won’t stop.”

Ewa Beach resident Sharonda Estrada-Johnson, a 50-year-old personnel specialist in the Navy/Marine Corps, and her husband, Lawrence, a retired Army first sergeant, met the Obamas for the second year in a row, after a dinner of steak, lobster, sweet potatoes and corn on the cob, which varied from the typical Christmas turkey dinner in the mess hall.

“I guess when you’re sending him off with a bang, you want the creme de la creme,” she said. “They’re always a pleasure to meet. It always feels like home, like you’re going to a family reunion and just meeting up with good, wholesome people.”

The president thanked her before he and first lady Michelle Obama went in for a group hug, Estrada-Johnson said.

“To actually be able to see them for the very last time in that particular position, it was somewhat overwhelming, very sentimental and very momentous at the same time,” she added. “It was truly a surreal experience. I couldn’t have asked to serve under a better president.”

Obama began his holiday greeting with his usual ”Aloha, Mele Kalikimaka!” to service members and their families who eagerly waited for a meet-and-greet with the president.

“I just want to first of all thank … all of you for the unbelievable service that you have rendered our country. This is one of our favorite things to do because it’s one of those circumstances where we get a chance to not just say thank you to our incredible men and women in uniform, but oftentimes we also get a chance to see some families,” said Obama, who wore a blue-and-white checkered shirt and khaki pants, alongside the first lady in a teal-and-blue striped dress. “As Michelle and Jill Biden have worked so diligently to tell the rest of the country, not only do our troops serve, but their families serve alongside them.”

Obama said he called military members stationed overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan on Christmas Eve to thank them for their service, as he does every year.

“Some of them, as we speak, are carrying out missions to defeat ISIL, carrying out missions to protect us from all manner of threat,” he said. “It’s impossible for us to fully repay what you’ve done and the sacrifices you make, but at least it’s important to hear from us that what you do matters and that we know about it and that we’re grateful.”

At the end of his brief speech, Obama joked that he looked forward to seeing the service members “for many years to come.”

“I understand that I still have a little bit of rank as ex-president so I still get to use the gym on base and, of course, the golf course,” he said.