It's Starts With You

Military and your involvement. The big picture. Not only can us as civilians help military families but we can also spread the word about the awareness of the every day struggle active duty members may face.  For the example the Wounded Warrior Project mission is to "honor and empower wounded warriors." This project raises awareness and asks for the public's aid in helping with wounded soldiers. Civilians graciously have provided  programs and service. As of May 1, 2013 there are over 30,000 WWP alumni."Wounded Warrior Project^® (WWP) takes a holistic approach when serving warriors and their families to nurture the mind and body, and encourage economic empowerment and engagement." Their success rate in helping with wounded warriors and their families has been over 85% each time. As civilians having the ability to give back to the people who serve to make the country safer for everyone is a privilege. The picture below represents the sites they have around the nation. Even though it may not seem like a lot the Wounded Warrior Project is making a great step into being a vital resource to help tell soldiers that they aren't alone. So let's step back and look at the big picture and realize that making a different starts with us!

http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/

Universal Reassurance

      Universal Reassurance. With being a military family wherever you go provides a great deal of questions and concerns. Will they have child development centers in the country? Is the curriculum the same and do they have the same mission statement with helping military families? Having these questions and concerns answered and to have even more support can provide a sense of reassurance that no matter where you are the teachings of the CDC will be the same. Training and Curriculum Specialist, LaVone Bradley at the Patrick Wade CDC answers the probing questions that most active duty families would have.
     One concern is if the curriculum is the same and how could this be beneficial to everyone. Ms. Bradley explains that, "Child Youth Programs are based on a universal assessment tool called, “Creative Curriculum Gold”  This system allows teachers to observe each child three times a week in certain goal areas (social, cognitive, physical, the arts, etc.) and then with those observations, the teachers make meaningful connections to curriculum activities to scaffold each child’s developmental milestones.  It is beneficial for parents to know “what their child is learning” because military children tend to spend the majority of their waking hours away from home (in a center setting)." Having the same goal around the world to help children enables the child to start where they left off at the last duty station. This universal resource to help children develop ( even when in different countries) I believe is a very helpful tool to make the child's life a little easier. LaVone Bradley presented herself as very knowledgeable and takes a pride in the work that she gets to do to help military families and their children. 
 

Joining Forces

     Recently re-elected President Barack Obama and the First Lady Michelle Obama have been taking strives into making this nation a better one. To Michelle Obama's "Let's Move", to help bring awareness to childhood obesity and Barack Obama's fight for America's nurses. With their giant steps in helping every aspect of the nation one has to think what have they done to help veterans and their families. In the economy that we seem to be in the work field is becoming more competitive. When soldiers retire it's already hard to transition into the civilian world. With the competitive work force many retired veterans may have struggles trying to find a job.  In 2011 "Joining Forces" was created to recognize and support military families and shine a light on all who served and sacrificed to serve the country. Mrs. Obama and Dr.Biden main concern was to try to get as much available resources to the military families about job hunting and the options they have. The video below shows the great strength and the banning together of society with helping veterans find jobs. 

http://www.whitehouse.gov/joiningforces

Don't Ask Don't Tell

     Homosexuals for decades have encountered daily struggles to get their voice heard in society. In the military their voice is no different. Running back since the 1950's President Truman signs a code that discharges homosexual service members. In 1993 President Bill Clinton shines a light of (DADT) "don't ask don't tell policy", that states that people aren't allowed to ask about sexual orientation in the military. The true brutal meaning of that policy is telling homosexuals that they aren't allowed to be who they are without getting punished for it. Twenty-nine year old Alexander is stationed in Fort Bragg and she is married to her same sex. In the Huffington post she says, ""I'm married to my best friend, who just happens to be of the same sex as me.We fight for everyone else's rights, but we're treated as second-class citizens." Alexander is one of many men and women of the homosexual community that has been pushed aside and yanked of opportunities just because of their sexual orientation. Through the years there has been constant debate on whether this policy should be appealed.
    Past presidents and supreme court leaders that thought this compromise was for the best of the people were dead wrong. This "resource" didn't help with relations inside the military but it made a strain on what connections people were allowed to be involved in. As a new president, Barack Obama came into the picture seeing the need for change and wanted to repeal the policy. On September 20,2011 after years of suffering and keeping quiet homosexuals are finally allowed to freely be apart of the military and having the chance to serve something greater than themselves. Even taking the next positive step forward Barack Obama declared that June be "Gay Pride Month". This participation gives a clear message that everyone does matter and can get recognized for great accomplishments or being themselves! 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/politics/dont-ask-dont-tell-timeline/

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1553878/Dont-Ask-Dont-Tell-DADT

Its Never Too Late

     "In fact, the number of U.S. soldiers who have died by their own hand is now estimated to be greater than the number (6,460) who have died in combat in Afghanistan and Iraq." This wide range of suicides is becoming a crisis, no in fact an epidemic, that writer Anthony Swofford writes in his article for The Daily Beast. Swofford explains when soldiers return home they may deal with post-dramatic stress. Some may feel isolated and alone even when they have family all around them. Even once back home many active duty may have a hard time transitioning from what and where they have been living for months. Dr. Jonathan Shay gives insight on how multiple deployments may cause an active duty member to question what is right and wrong and who they will be able to trust. 

         How can we stop this epidemic and help veterans and soldiers alike to make them realize that they are not alone? That is where The Soldiers Project presents itself. This project is a private nonprofit organization that has volunteer licensed mental health professionals. The Soldiers Project helps military members and their loved ones with resources that will answer their pressing questions. With the programs psychotherapy help many military members will be able to fight the urge of becoming just another statistic in a ongoing epidemic. This one small step can make military families realize that they will never be alone and its never too late. 

http://www.thesoldiersproject.org/getting-help/

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/05/20/anthony-swofford-on-the-epidemic-of-military-suicides.html

Sesame Street 1,2,3

          Can world renounced famous furry characters answer questions that some parents simply don't know how to answer about military life? Many children have a parent that is in the military. In result of these many kids Sesame Street decided to make a workshop just for them. "This critical outreach tool helped military families and their young children cope with the challenges of deployment and build resilience in times of separation and change." This kid friendly TLC, Talk Listen and Connect gives families information through the voices of their favorite characters.
       Since 2006, this program has been very influential and has been continuing to expand. Through this project preschool and school age kids have the ability to have "online space that provides new ways to express themselves, communicate within their own family networks, and stay connected with loved ones." Our furry friends have made for an excellent tool for all military families to have their questions answered in a fun but informational way. 
         
http://www.sesamestreet.org/parents/topicsandactivities/toolkits/tlc

Don't Break the Bond

         When becoming deployed parents might lose some of the connections they have with their children. Before deploying it is essential to have an important conversation on how the family will continued to stay connected even though a parent is deployed. Being proactive and finding what communication devices can be allowed is one big step to how you can chat everyday to your loved ones. Getting a calender in the household and looking at the schedules or events that will happen in the future can help you plan for gifts. With the help of a spouse or a family member that is taking care of the household can make for better communication both ways. 
           Today children or teenagers that have parents that deploy are beginning to adapt to the roles of being in the military. Having a certain deploy plan in every household can make for a easier transition for the family. Having parents that are deployed could be emotionally challenging for certain kids. By having these sort of devices they would be able to have better days until their parent comes back home. Virtual communication is becoming the main communication device for the average deployed family. 



http://www.militaryonesource.mil/parenting/communicating-with-your-kids?content_id=268708