Why? A Poem by Bobby Henline

Military Kids Express their Gratitude

Last week, the Comfort Crew was honored to be a guest speaker at the Operation Military Kids Navy Adventure Camp right here in Austin, TX. We talked with military kids about journaling and expressing your feelings. One of the exercises was writing a letter to a deployed service member. Check out what some of the kids wrote:

Dear reader,

Thank you for doing everything you can in your power to protect our country. You make me and many others feel safe every day. My name is Jacob and I am a military child. I understand about the hardships undertaken by you to protect our country daily.

Thank you for what you do,
Jacob

---

My name is Samantha and I’m 12 and live in Monterrey, California. You are a hero! Thank you so much for serving for our country. I know what it’s like to be away from a family member no matter what position you’re in. I’m a military child; my dad’s in the military and he’s deployed right now. Trust me it’s hard but I know you can get through this.

To the greatest luck for a soldier!

---

Dear Hero,

Thank you for all your service you have done for our country. Thank you for sacrificing all of your time and energy into protecting our country. My name is Natasha and I am 17 years old. I really hope that my words will help to uplift and encourage you even though I am still very young. However, even though I am young, I understand how much it takes for you to do what you do. I hope that one day I can make as much of an impact on as many lives as you do. Thanks from Virginia Beach! =)

---

Hey,

My name is Daniel. I am 17 years old. It may not cross your mind very often, but believe me when I say that every single person that is affiliated with the military thinks about you at one point every day. You are most definitely not forgotten and we can’t wait until you guys get back. Even though I don’t really know you, I have no problem letting you know that you are my HERO and I should wish to get the chance to do something as honorable and meaningful to the world as what you do. You should look forward to seeing your family when you get back, but if you have nothing else to look forward to, think about sinking your teeth into your first BIG MAC when you return.

-Daniel

A Grateful Military Mom

This was from an e-mail we received last week -

"Thank you for coming to our school. My son did not stop talking about your visit all the way home in the car. Then something happened when we got to the house. You see my husband was hurt and he lost part of his leg and my son seems ashamed and angry about what happened. He always wanted to take his anger out by himself and stay locked in his room alone and did not want to deal with his dad. And it was so hard for my husband. He said that kind of pain was worse than his injury. Today when he came home my son wrote a letter to his dad and said he loved him and wanted to help him get better. I am not sure what you said to him but thank you and the USO for your presentation and for helping our kids on the bases. You just don't know how much it means to us. I cannot thank you enough for your help." - Cas

One of our resources is designed specifically with kids of wounded warriors in mind: The Taking Care of You! Support for Injured Heroes Care Kit. The Injury Care Kit features the Taking Care of You! DVD created by the Trevor Romain Company with the USO, and provides resources that help military children understand the types of injuries as well as recovery and reintegration. With this kit, families can encourage and support one another when challenged with the obstacles of reintegration. The Injury Care Kit includes:

• The animated DVD Taking Care of You! Support for Kids of Injured Heroes. This DVD explains injury, PTSD, reintegration, and the challenges of each in kid-friendly language, as well as tips to help your child express and self-regulate his or her emotions.
• A journal with prompts, calendar, map, and activities. The journal is an invaluable tool for helping your child express and cope with his or her emotions. This is a vital step in open communication.
• Caregiver booklet with suggestions and insight
• Coco™, a plush toy mouse offering comfort to children
• An achievement patch
• All housed in a Care Kit Box to keep treasured items safe.

For $42, you can sponsor an Injury Care Kit for a military child in need, please visit our Sponsorship Page.

Memorial Day from a Non-Military Kid

My name is Beth and I'm a new member of The Comfort Crew this year. I am loving this mission to support and comfort military kids, and learning so much about military families & the sacrifices they make for us. 

You see, I don't come from a military family. I don't have any inspiring, sad, or amazing stories to share (unless you count the hula girl/"Honolulu Jerry" tattoo my grandpa got during his four years in the Navy that has become a running family joke). I didn't know anyone who had lost a limb serving her country, or anyone who had to watch the birth of his baby girl on Skype. I didn't know anyone who had given his life to keep our country safe. Growing up, Memorial Day meant school was coming to an end and I'd be free for almost three months. I had no frame of reference beyond that.

I'm not writing this to tell you what Memorial Day means, did mean, or should mean. There are plenty of other blogs doing that. I'm not writing to make you feel guilty if you're not from a military family, or to inspire your irritation if you are. I'm simply writing to ask a favor of military and non-military families alike. Because before I began working at The Comfort Crew, I had no idea about the sacrifices military families make, the pain they face, or the stresses they bear time and time again.

So, my favor is as follows: to all the people who are like me and don't know about the military, please ask! Take the time to talk with the people around you about the holiday, and you may find out that your neighbors and friends were military children or relatives with remarkable stories to tell. Even more respectful than flying a flag is taking an active interest. You will be amazed how just having someone to listen and be aware can help alleviate some of the stress. You may even find out something more you can do to help. And to military families, speak up! There is a community of people around you who would love to connect and help, but have no idea how or why. Reaching out to them will help them to support you during difficult times. It is important to not isolate military families from the rest of the community as they deal with the challenges of military life, but it takes communication from both sides to bridge that gap.

 

And of course, we at The Comfort Crew would like to extend a huge thank you to all of our service men and women, and military families. We appreciate so much your dedication to our country!

What National Military Appreciation Month Means to a Former Military Child

In honor of National Military Appreciation Month, we sat down with Alison, a military child who is now a freshman at the University of Texas, to get her thoughts on what the month means to her, and what it was like growing up as a military kid.

As a military child, what does National Military Appreciation Month mean to you?

To me, the month of May is a time to recognize our soldiers and the support system behind them. It doesn’t matter to me what someone may decide to do to acknowledge their appreciation- every little bit counts. Whether it’s googling the effects of PTSD or saying “Thanks for your service” to someone in uniform- these are the things that make us feel supported and connected in a difficult time. 

What are some of the common issues that military kids face?

All the problems that accompany moving and uprooting were difficult to deal with growing up- new schools, new friends, losing touch with old friends, and explaining to new friends the reasons for your frequent moves. For kids attending schools with largely civilian populations, it can be tough to find a support group that understands the emotional challenges that accompany moves and why they occur so frequently in the life of a military kid. Understandably, deployments also make life tough. People assume that military kids “get used to” loved ones being gone, but that simply isn’t the case. To a child, the importance of whatever event is being missed doesn’t matter- seeing other peers with both of their parents at a soccer game, an awards ceremony, or a meet-the-teacher night at school makes you miss your service member. For me, it was hard just realizing my dad wouldn’t be home for dinner, let alone my Senior Academic Awards Banquet.

How did you cope with those challenges?

When I made new friends, I tried to better explain where I was coming from if they didn’t already understand. The emotional strain of deployments is very hard to grasp unless you’ve experienced it, and I tried to let my peers know what that means to so many Americans with loved ones serving overseas. I also tried to stay busy, to find new hobbies and ways to connect with my community. Building a support system within the military community or without can be more helpful than you may realize. Doing something as simple as going bowling with the Family Readiness Group from my dad’s Battalion really helped relieve some anxiety I had during my dad’s deployment.

How do you feel you would have benefitted from support from an organization like The Comfort Crew for Military Kids

I would have loved to get a Comfort Crew Comfort Kit growing up. It’s important for a kid to know someone knows what they’re going through and can sympathize. Especially because I lived abroad for several of my dad’s deployments, I often felt alone in what I was feeling- my neighbors didn’t agree with our country’s involvement in the Middle East and though they understood how important that one phone call a week from my Dad was, they couldn’t empathize with the issues with deployments and moving caused.  Everything in the Comfort Kit lets a military child know someone is thinking about what they’re going through.  I journaled growing up, but I think if I received a journal similar to one another kid going through similar issues received, I would have felt a stronger sense of togetherness. Meeting kids through camps would have helped with the times I lived in areas that were farther away from a military base, and didn’t have the same support group as I would have on a post or base.

What's the best way for those outside the military world to support military children and families?

I would encourage people to educate themselves about the lifestyle. I find a lot of comfort in people I talk to understanding certain aspects of the military lifestyle. For example, the difficulty with reintegrating and readjusting after returning home. Regardless of how someone might feel about the military in general, respect for what service members and their families go through is important for our families.

Holocaust Remembrance Day 2012

Today is Holocaust Remembrance Day, a day when we remember the persecution of millions of people and make a firm commitment to never allow that to happen again. The theme of this year's remembrance day is "Choosing to Act". This page talks more about what that means - here is a short excerpt:

"Confronted with the persecution and murder of Europe’s Jews, witnesses had a choice of whether or not to intervene. Getting involved meant running the risk of severe punishment, and most people—even those who disagreed with the Nazis’ policies and practices—opted to do nothing... We must never forget, however, that for each person who was rescued and survived the Holocaust, countless more were killed. As we remember stories of rescue, therefore, we must first honor the memory of Holocaust victims by countering indifference with vigilance and apathy with action."

It is really a wonderful article and one that we highly encourage you to read. In thinking about this, our minds turned to a matter close to our hearts - military children, and children in general. So often, in schools, children are teased or bullied simply for who they are or how they choose to behave. Today - and every day - let's remember that those actions are a form of persecution. We challenge you, as we are challenging ourselves, to talk with your friends and children about not simply turning away when we see someone being "picked on" or maligned. Stand up with confidence to those who would try to bring harm or sadness to others. It is important that we all treat each other with kindness and respect. Isn't that what you would want for yourself and your children?

Story from a Military Mom

Below is an email we received from Kimberly, whose son is in the military, and recently returned from deployment to a 10 month old baby (Joey) he hadn't seen in person since Joey was 2 months old. We're so happy and honored that we are able to support and comfort military kids like Joey!

Good morning,

I was very pleased to have the opportunity to have learned more about your organization and your efforts to reach out to the military children.

Attached is the photo of my now 10 month old grandson Joey, watching his daddy read him a story from Afghanistan on the computer.

Please feel free to share it, I still am moved so much every time I look at it. Now I don't cry everytime though since his Daddy is home safe and sound.

When Casey - my son - left, Joey was 8 weeks old and when Casey returned Joey is now 10 months old. I was concerned there would be transition problems with Joey, But he follows his daddy everywhere, crawling just as fast as he can to get to him.

Take care and God Bless you,

Kimberly