President Proclaims November as Military Family Month

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1, 2010 – President Barack Obama has signed a proclamation designating this month as Military Family Month.

Here is the text of the president’s proclamation:

We owe each day of security and freedom that we enjoy to the members of our Armed Forces and their families. Behind our brave service men and women, there are family members and loved ones who share in their sacrifice and provide unending support.

During Military Family Month, we celebrate the exceptional contributions of our military families, and we reaffirm our commitments to these selfless individuals who exemplify the highest principles of our Nation.

Across America, military families inspire us all with their courage, strength, and deep devotion to our country. They endure the challenges of multiple deployments and moves; spend holidays and life milestones apart; juggle everyday tasks while a spouse, parent, son, or daughter is in harm's way; and honor the service of their loved ones and the memory of those lost.

Just as we hold a sacred trust to the extraordinary Americans willing to lay down their lives to protect us all, we also have a national commitment to support and engage our military families. They are proud to serve our country; yet, they face unique challenges because of that service.

My Administration has taken important steps to help them shoulder their sacrifice, and we are working to ensure they have the resources to care for themselves and the tools to reach their dreams. We are working to improve family resilience, enhance the educational experience of military children, and ensure military spouses have employment and advancement opportunities, despite the relocations and deployment cycles of military life. Our historic investment to build a 21st-century Department of Veterans Affairs is helping to provide our veterans with the benefits and care they have earned.

We are also standing with our service members and their families as they transition back into civilian life, providing counseling as well as job training and placement. And, through the Post-9/11 GI Bill, our veterans and their families can pursue the dream of higher education.

However, Government can only do so much. While only a fraction of Americans are in military families, all of us share in the responsibility of caring for our military families and veterans, and all sectors of our society are better off when we reach out and work together to support these patriots.

By offering job opportunities and workplace flexibility, businesses and companies can benefit from the unparalleled dedication and skills of a service member or military spouse.

Through coordination with local community groups, individuals and organizations can ensure our military families have the help they need and deserve when a loved one is deployed. Even the smallest actions by neighbors and friends send a large message of profound gratitude to the families who risk everything to see us safe and free.

As America asks ever more of military families, they have a right to expect more of us -- it is our national challenge and moral obligation to uphold that promise. If we hold ourselves to the same high standard of excellence our military families live by every day, we will realize the vision of an America that supports and engages these heroes now and for decades to come.

Now, therefore, I, Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 2010 as Military Family Month. I call on all Americans to honor military families through private actions and public service for the tremendous contributions they make in support of our service members and our Nation.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fifth.

Barack Obama

Family Matters: Halloween Opens Doors to Community

By Elaine Wilson

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 29, 2010 – I went for a long walk the other night and found my new neighborhood had been transformed into an otherworldly lair. Ghosts hovered from branches and skeletons from rooftops. Toothless pumpkins, faces frozen in eerie smirks, leered at me from nearly every porch as I passed by. But rather than feel the onset of fear, I felt a sense of satisfaction. I've got a sneaking suspicion I moved into my new neighborhood just in the nick of time.

I moved to Maryland about a month ago, a journey I've been blogging about over the past several months, detailing my challenges with everything from house hunting to picking the right school for my kids. But now it's time for the final stage of my move: meeting the neighbors.

In my last community, I must admit I didn't spend much time on social endeavors. I had a newborn, two elementary-age children and a husband to balance with work, which kept me busy. But people didn't seem to gather for street-side chats each evening there, something I sorely miss from my military days.

I remember gathering in my cul-de-sac in Turkey with other military families just about every evening, watching the kids from folding chairs on the sidewalk until it grew too dark to see each other.

I'm always amazed at how military families create such strong bonds and a sense of community in such a short time, and while juggling very difficult demands. They are always willing to pitch in to help another military family in need, whether it’s with child care, a last-minute ride home or just a shoulder to cry on. I know I was the recipient of much of that support when I was a single mom on active duty.

Military families have an amazing gift of empathy and adaptability. And I hope I can put some of those social skills to work here, since I plan to establish roots and settle in for the long haul.

Hence the walk. I not only wanted to get the lay of the land, but also to see if I could meet and greet some neighbors. I ended up seeing more creepy crawlers and spider webs than humans, but Halloween is just a few days away.

As I escort my bear cub, woodland fairy and Darth Vader down the street this weekend, I hope to make some connections that will last over the long term. The holiday, after all, is the perfect excuse to knock every neighbor's door. I'm looking at the holiday this year as a chance to gather new acquaintances, as much as an opportunity to score some candy from my kids.

I may meet a few ghosts and goblins along the way -- and, I'm sure, a few Lady Gagas and Justin Biebers this year– but I also hope to meet a few great people.

Happy Halloween!

An American Family in World War II

On January 22, 2010, Conversations with American Heroes at the Watering Hole will feature a conversation with Dr. Sandra O'Connell on An American Family in World War II.

Program Date: January 22, 2010
Program Time: 2100 Hours Pacific
Topic: An American Family in World War II
Listen Live: www.americanheroesradio.com/american_family_world_war_two.html

About the Book
According to the book description of An American Family in World War II, “On the morning of December 7, 1941, life for families across America was forever changed by events over which they had no control, but were to witness and play a part. An American Family in World War II is the moving story of one of those families — told largely in their own words. When Ralph Minker Jr. entered U.S. Army Air Cadet training in 1943, he began a correspondence with his parents and two teenage sisters; letters that describe the rigors of pilot training and ultimately his life at “this air base I call home,” as he flew 37 combat missions over Nazi Germany. The letters from the family members to Lee bring a vibrant reality to the home front — rationing, bond drives, and the daily tension of war — through the people who lived it. Woven together with commentary by the editors, this is an intensely personal and richly detailed account of life in America during the harrowing days of WWII.”

About Captain Ralph Lee Minker
Captain Ralph Minker, USA “was 18 when he entered Army Air Cadet training on his way to becoming a B-17 bomber pilot. He exchanged letters with his parents and two sisters throughout the war. After completing combat in 1945, he returned to Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1947. Ordained a Methodist Minister in 1952, Reverend Minker served eight churches in the Delaware and Maryland Conference of the United Methodist Church before retiring in 1990. In 2005 Ralph Minker was inducted into the Delaware Aviation Hall of Fame. Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease in 1995, Rev. Minker was active in planning the book and proud when it was published. He passed away from complications of the disease on August 5, 2008.”

About the Guest
Sandra O'Connell and Ralph Minker were married in March 1980. Reading the Minker family correspondence and a meeting in 2000 with WW II historian, Harry Butowsky, led inevitably (after five years of work) to An American Family in World War II. She was the lead researcher and writer on Ralph’s missions and the home front issues. Prior writing experience includes nine years as technology editor for HR Magazine. Sandra has a Ph.D. from New York University.

About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a Criminal Justice Department chair, faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in Law Enforcement, public policy, Public Safety Technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in Law Enforcement.

Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole:
www.americanheroesradio.com/american_family_world_war_two.html
Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530