Thankful and Grateful: Military Family Edition

November is a month full of thankfulness. Veteran’s Day – when we thank those who have worn the nation’s cloth for their service. Thanksgiving – when we give thanks for the abundance in our lives.

It seems to me that while we say “thank you” – the expression has become a tradition rather than a true feeling based on understanding, a reason for another sale or discounted meal. In a month filled with “official days” of appreciation and a rush to “Black Friday”, we as Americans may have lost our true sense of heartfelt gratitude.

At the National Military Family Association (NMFA) we focus our gratitude on military families. Every November, our nation marks Military Family Appreciation month, but the reality is we give thanks for military families 365 days a year.

As we consider the abundance in our lives – we know that abundance is the result of our democratic republic and the freedoms it affords us. We also know there are many amongst us who live less abundantly but who also have hopes and dreams, whose pursuit of happiness is secured by our Constitution.

Those hopes and dreams, and that Constitution, are protected by the men and women who serve in an all-volunteer force — a force comprised of family members. They are our brothers and sisters, daughters and sons, spouses and partners, cousins, and grandchildren. For every service member, there is a military family. The family that stands beside and behind them and holds down the homefront, while their service member patrols the frontline down range, the high seas and the wide blue yonder.

Our abundance is safeguarded by a collection of willing volunteers – over 2.1 million active duty, guard and reserve soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, coast guardsmen and space professionals. They stand sentry for our nation, yet they make up less than 1% of our total population. In an all-volunteer force – military service is becoming a family business: 80% of those who serve today are military connected; they are the children, siblings, nieces and nephews, cousins, and grandchildren of those who also served.

In addition to those 1% who serve in uniform today, there are 2.6 million direct family members (spouses, children and adult dependents), a figure that doesn’t include those members of the modern military family that are not counted because they aren’t entitled to benefits. That figure also doesn’t include parents and siblings and extended family members.

You don’t need a Department of Defense ID card to be part of a military family. No matter how they are recognized, these families - chosen, made, or codified - bear the weight of a family’s commitment to service.

Military spouses pay a particularly high price professionally and financially – enduring an unemployment rate of 24% … pre-COVID. When required, these families care for their service member as they recover from the visible and invisible wounds of service. And some families make the ultimate sacrifice when their loved one dies while serving our country.

At the National Military Family Association, we are grateful for those who serve and support our country, and by doing so serve us.

We are also indebted to those who join us as we celebrate and care for our military family. The community leaders who recognize the military families in their communities, who welcome and integrate them. Corporate leaders who see the value of veterans and military family members as part of their team – recognizing that they bring a set of characteristics, skills, and resilience, that were honed through a challenging lifestyle. Philanthropists and donors who understand that military families need supports that are often not met by the policies and programs of our government. We are encouraged by our sister/brother service organizations that have stood beside NMFA for the past 50 years as we serve our military family. As we say at NMFA, together we’re stronger.

As the leader of the National Military Family Association, I’m thankful for, and blessed by, the opportunity to labor alongside an amazing collection of military family members who believe serving and supporting military families makes our country stronger. It’s a heartfelt labor of love; we do it because we are grateful.