Tag Archives: deployment

What does it mean to be invited to the White House Community Leaders briefing?

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When I was notified that I had been selected to attend the White House Community Leaders briefing , my first thought was- “My wish is coming true!”

I have been wishing  to share with our government how we can better help our military families experiencing  deployments and returning home for sometime . I faced so many challenges at that time when my daughter was deployed and I knew other families must have faced the same issues, also. 

White House administration for the first time in history has opened up their doors. They have selected  community leaders to share  how they are improving their communities and in hopes of bridging government services to better serve our people.  I was selected because of my work in  educating our military families on deployment and reintegration.  And will be attending this briefing with the White House administration on August 12. It is an all day event.

I was informed by the White House Administration  prior to my visit, to select one of the four  departments to speak to -Small Business, Environment, Health Care /Human Services or Dept. of Education.  I selected the Department of Education.  I think informing the school administration on how to better understand and help the children of military families.  More than half of our military families are living in communities and  do not live on  military base.

I began to think back about the time when our  granddaughters came to  live with us during our daughter’s deployment. And the challenges I faced- changing my entire lifestyle, dealing with concerns for our daughter’s safety, the lack of communication, being a parent again,enrolling children in a new school, trying to find after school care( which I was unsuccessful due to limited space and being mid year), I had no support due to our location, and experienced many mixed emotions or being a parent, again.

Military families need help with many issues they face during deployment. So many of our families are on our own, trying to do the best job they can while their loved one is away.

I thought , wouldn’t it have been nice if I would have known where to get help. Have all the resources at my fingertips when my daughter was deployed? I would have loved to have had an after school care, homework helpers, babysitters -I could afford. Having other deployed children for my granddaughters to connect to, knowing what deployment was like. And maybe, a network of  other families in the same situation.

So now, here is my chance and I can’t wait to speak!

Want to share your story or do you have an idea on how to help other military families you would like to me share with the White House? I would love to hear from you.

Send me your comments.

I spent my Memorial Day as a guest on the Patt Morrison’s Memorial Day radio talk show on KPCC-FM

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Last Thursday I got a phone call from my friend Pat Alivso from  Military Families Speak Out. She informed me that she had forwarded my name and information to staff member of the  Patt Morrison radio program. Patt Morrison’s Memorial day program was addressing challenges military families face, and my friend Pat knew we had a story to tell. The only problem was, I would be traveling home from Lake Havasu on Monday and crossing the desert, and cell phone service is  limited. I was concerned  of the  broadcast time and the phone reception  would not be clear enough for radio broadcasting. I told Pat thank you, but I just couldn’t see how I could be able to call in.

On Saturday I got a call from the Patt Morrison’s program Producer. She shared with me the other guests on the show and the time 1:20 pm for me to call in. She understood that  I would be  traveling and they really wanted to share our story with Patt’s listeners. The time was later than than when my friend told me. At 1:20pm we would be in Indio where the reception would be good. The Producer asked many many questions about our experiences. She then shared with me her vision of a future  forum with a live audience where the audience could ask questions, more interactive and was wondering if I would be interested on being on the forum. Would I, you bet. I love helping those that are now facing what I faced.

On Memorial Day as we were driving home I thought about what questions Patt would ask me and I began to think back about that time of deployment. We arrived in Indio at 1:00 pm. We pulled off the highway and went to a shopping center. I told my husband to park our truck away from any other cars. I was concerned that when I would be speaking the audience would hear additional noise and possible feedback. The weather was mild mid 80”s unusual for this time of the year, but perfect for stopping and stretching our legs. At 1:10 my cellphone rings, it the Patt’s Morrison staff, asking me if I would like to be on hold and hear the conversation Patt was interviewing Tim Kahlor’s father was discussing with Patt his son’s injuries. This father has made our government aware of  his son’ injures during the war,  improper body protect guard and the challenges of medical assistance. It was very interesting. And I realized how fortunate our family is.

Then at little past 1:20 Patt introduces me, sharing the challenges we faced being a grandparent raising our grandchildren, trying to keep the children connected to their mother and the difficulties I faced when the children returned back to their home. Patt’s experience as a reporter for LA Times, Winner of 6 Emmy’s, Golden Mick and received a Pulitzer, she made me feel welcomed and as if I was speaking to a friend. It was a wonderful experience. Before I knew my time was up. It was such a pleasure being on her show. I am really looking forward to the future forum.

How did you spend your Memorial Day?

“Interview with Patt Morrison, 89.3 KPCC-FM | 89.1 KUOR-FM | 90.3 KPCV-FM, Southern California Public Radio”

http://www.scpr.org/programs/patt-morrison/2011/05/30/military-families-and-their-private-front-lines

How military kids are supporting other military children

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This is a very exciting time for my granddaughters,Ivie and Bailey, and myself.  We completed writing  their book- Deployed Kids  and now we have a new website www.deployedkids.com for military children.

After my granddaughter’s, completed their book -Deployed Kids, we talked about how we could further help support military kids. We felt what was needed was a website for military kids to connect with other military kids, like themselves. This enables my granddaughters to share with their peers, how they handle having  parents in the military.  Military kids face many challenges- a military lifestyle, parents deploying and frequent household moves. Children experiencing their parents’ deployment face the  loss of a parent’s personal involvement of their daily routine. Even though these military children’s parents are absent from their children’s daily routine, most children are extremely proud of their parents.

Deployed Kids website will have blog posts of Ivie and Bailey  sharing their thoughts of what they have learned having  their parents in the military. How they cope with their parents past and future deployments. They will include how they presently do not live on a military base, their after school  activities,their plans for summer  and  personal tips of keeping  positive outlook, even when you are dealing with a parent’s deployment. They want other military kids to know how special they are. They too, are serving our Country!

These Kids are the Force  behind our Force.