By Terri Moon Cronk
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 9, 2015 – First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr.
Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, yesterday welcomed military
families to the annual White House Mother’s Day tea, drawing service members,
spouses, children, wounded warrior caregivers and veterans, as part of the
Joining Forces initiative.
Obama and Biden welcomed the families into the State Dining
Room on a day that also marked National Military Spouse Appreciation Day.
“We couldn't have picked a better day to show you how much
we care and how grateful we are for the service that you provide for our
country,” the first lady said.
Obama greeted Deanie Dempsey, wife of Army Gen. Martin E.
Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and Mary Winnefeld, wife of
Navy Adm. James A. Winnefeld, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The general and the admiral both attended the tea with their wives.
“Mary and Deanie … are perfect examples of the kind of folks
that we have here today -- women who are juggling families and careers,” the
first lady said.
Military Families Make Sacrifices
Obama noted that military families move from state to state
every couple of years, start new jobs, put their children in new schools and
build new communities for themselves, over and over again.
“You’ve been separated from your loved ones, whether you’ve
been deployed yourself or you’ve had someone overseas,” she added.
The first lady emphasized how members of the military
community are the first to volunteer to help others in their communities in the
midst of their already active lives.
“You're always stepping up, always trying to figure out how
you can help,” Obama said. “And that's inspiring … which is why we thank you,
because you give us energy. You give us strength. You give us focus and
purpose.”
“And I want you to know just how much we appreciate
everything your families do in serving our country,” said Biden, whose son,
Beau, is a major in the Delaware Army National Guard and an Iraq veteran.
“We ask a lot of our military families,” Biden continued,
“and I believe that each of us -- no matter where we live, no matter whether
we’re connected to military ourselves -- all of us should make our best efforts
to show our military spouses, kids, siblings and parents how much we appreciate
their service and their sacrifice.”
Supporting Military Spouses, Veterans
The first lady said the Joining Forces initiative she and
Biden established four years ago in April has blossomed into a large support
system for veterans and military spouses, with 850,000 veterans and spouses
gaining employment in that timeframe.
“Four years we’ve been at this work and it feels like we’ve
been doing it a lot longer because we’ve [made] so much progress,” Obama said.
“We’ve been highlighting our local veterans’ centers, which
a lot of folks don't know exist,” the first lady said. “And those are out there
for our veterans. They're modernizing. They're different. They're accommodating
the needs of the modern-day veteran in ways that many people wouldn’t imagine.”
Joining Forces also has highlighted nationwide efforts to
end veteran homelessness, the first lady said.
“Cities like New Orleans have actually ended veteran
homelessness,” Obama said. “And we’ve got many cities on the way to reaching
that goal. We’ve been able to celebrate the new commitments to reach, hire and
train our veterans, our transitioning service members and our military
spouses.”
The first lady added, “We’re moving the needle step by step,
lowering the unemployment rate among our veterans, and making sure that
employers know the value that you all add by hiring the quality of folks that
you represent.”
Joining Forces supports military families in many ways,
Obama said. She announced that Blue Star Museums will again this summer
starting on Memorial Day provide active-duty military family members free
access to more than 2,000 museums across the country in an initiative with Blue
Star Families, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Defense Department.
“[It’s] just one of the many ways that organizations from
across this country are teaming up to thank all of you for the service that you
do for us. That’s what Joining Forces is all about,” the first lady said.
Honoring Military Families
Hosting the White House tea for Mother’s Day, Obama said, is
an opportunity to honor military families in “a small way that we can say,
‘Thank you.’ To open up this house … to just enjoy a day where you can look
good, feel grand.”
As a finale, musical artist Ben Folds performed for the
families.
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