Military Spouse of the Year Award Now Accepting Nominations

Nominate an Outstanding Military Spouse to Be 2009 Honoree

PITTSBURGH, August 18, 2008 – Military Spouse magazine (MSM) today announced that it is now accepting nominations for its 2009 Military Spouse of the Year (MSOY) award, sponsored by USAA. The MSOY honoree represents the millions of military spouses who are unsung heroes maintaining the homefront, giving back selflessly to their communities, and providing support to our nation’s troops. Often, these spouses also have full-time jobs and raise families.

In recognition of their countless contributions, MSM will honor one exemplary military spouse from each service branch and also select one overall winner. The 2009 MSOY will be announced and honored nationally in the June issue of Military Spouse magazine and at the second annual MSOY Awards Ceremony to be held during the week of May 4, 2009 in Washington, DC, in conjunction with National Military Spouse Appreciation Week. The winner will make additional public appearances, write a monthly column to appear in Military Spouse magazine, and maintain a blog during his/her reign, which will last through May 2010.

MSM and its readers will select the winner based on his/her inspirational representation of all military spouses. Nominees must be the spouse of a current member of the U.S. armed forces. Criteria for selecting the recipient include: impact on community change, volunteerism, personal sacrifice, education and career pursuits and other military spouse-related efforts. Last year’s award generated hundreds of nominations from across the country, culminating in the selection of Army wife Chelle Brewer as MSOY 2008 (www.milspouse.com/msoy2008).

MSM encourages individuals to submit a nomination for either themselves or an eligible nominee of their choice. To submit a nomination, individuals must complete the nomination form online at www.msoy.milspouse.com. The nomination period runs from today through October 8, 2008. Judges will review all submissions and select ten finalists from each military service branch, after which readers will select one branch winner. Judges include a hand-selected portion of MSM’s “Who’s Who of Military Spouses,” a list of influential military spouses.
“This award is MSM’s opportunity to thank all military spouses for their invaluable contributions, in addition to recognizing them for the challenges they overcome every day,” said Babette Maxwell, Military Spouse magazine co-founder and executive editor.

“The reason USAA exists is to help military families with their financial security and the peace of mind that brings – especially to the military spouse who shoulders so much responsibility,” said Joe Robles, USAA’s CEO and a retired major general. “I know I couldn’t have done what I did for the Army if my wife, Patty hadn’t taken care of everything else. Being the title sponsor of this award is a natural for us. We feel honored to honor military spouses.”

About Military Spouse
Military Spouse magazine and www.milspouse.com, published by Victoria Media, is the leading national magazine and online destination for the nation's 1.1 million current and 20 million former military spouses. The company also publishes G.I. Jobs magazine (www.gijobs.net) and Vetrepreneur magazine (www.navoba.com). For more information, please visit www.milspouse.com.

About USAA
USAA, a diversified financial services group of companies, is the leading provider of financial planning, insurance, investments, and banking products to members of the U.S. military and their families. Named by BusinessWeek as No. 1 Customer Service Champ in 2007 and 2008, USAA provides highly competitive financial products to its 6.4 million members. For more information about USAA, or to learn more about membership, visit www.usaa.com.