The Heroes Christmas Tree
The Blue Star Mothers of NH are once again hosting Heroes Christmas Trees around the state. What started as one tree here in Laconia in 2006 has grown to trees all over the state.
Stars of gold, black, and blue adorn the trees bearing the names of United States service members past and present. Blank stars are available for those who would like to add the name of someone currently serving or a past veteran to the tree.
Blue Star Mothers sponsor local trees and decorate them for display in local business, Town Halls and schools. Recently, the Hero Tree has been found in faraway places such as Afghanistan and South Korea. Our troops have expressed their appreciation for the honor of being remembered in this way during the holiday season. For more information where Heroes Christmas Trees are being hosted, check our website: www.bluestarmothersofnh.org.
May God bless our sons and daughters this holiday season, those who are now serving and our veterans, our Blue Stars; they stand for hope and pride.
May God bless those we will hold forever in our hearts, our Gold Stars, for their sacrifice to the cause of liberty and freedom.
May God bless those for whom we are still waiting for their return, our Black Stars; they represent our POW/MIA’s. (6 Vietnam POW’s).
Blue Star Mothers of NH
bluestarmothersofnh@yahoo.com
YOUR SOLDIER, YOUR ARMY: A FAMILY GUIDE ~ by Vicki Cody
If you are reading this book, you probably have a loved one serving in the Army. This is the new and revised edition of my original book, Your Soldier, Your Army—A Parents’ Guide, published in 2005. A lot has changed since then and I, along with the Association of the United States Army’s Institute of Land Warfare, decided it was time to update the original book.
Download SR-2017-Your-Soldier-Your-Army-A-Family-Guide.pdf (8.55 MB)
Copies of this publication are available free of charge. To order, please e-mail ILWResources@ausa.org and include your name, a shipping address and how many you'd like to order.
NH Veterans Count
About Veterans Count
Our Mission
Veterans Count, the philanthropic arm of Easterseals Military & Veterans Services (MVS), provides critical and timely financial assistance and services when no other resource is available to service members, veterans and their families, to ensure their dignity, health and overall well-being.
We continue to ensure that 90% of net dollars raised for Veterans Count is spent to provide services and grow resources for NH service members, veterans and their families.
Our Story
It Began with this Question: “How Can We Help Service Members and Their Families?”
Veterans Count was conceived in 2007 when Easterseals’ NH Board Member, Mike Salter sought to bring comprehensive, emergency aid to veterans and their families whose quality of life was significantly impacted by deployment to war zones.
A veteran of the US Army Special Forces, Mike and the Easterseals NH President and CEO, Larry Gammon, approached the NH Joint Force Headquarters (NH National Guard) and the NH Department of Health and Human Services for assistance in designing a compassionate, responsive, highly-targeted care program for veterans and their families who were “falling through the cracks,” as a result of service to their country.
Easterseals developed a Care Coordination model centered on highly skilled clinicians meeting one-on-one with service members and their families to address critical issues while building trust and working toward developing long-term self-sufficiency. Care Coordinators met the immediate presenting needs such as food, shelter, transportation and mental health intervention. Once a trusting relationship was established, Care Coordinators were then able to address deeper issues such as Post Traumatic Stress, sustainable employment, and long-term housing.
Critical to the services provided by Care Coordinators were the philanthropic funds, which directly address emergency needs while providing a conduit for Care Coordinators to assist service members and veterans with more chronic and entrenched challenges.
As Easterseals Military & Veterans Services began to execute its mission, it became clear that more community assistance and fundraising was needed to provide adequate aid. Federal, local and national grants provided for the training and services of Care Coordinators. Yet, the need for additional funding for basic necessities such as food, clothing, housing, etc. was apparent. A task force comprised of business leaders was developed and Veterans Count was formed.
Veterans Count has received the highest praise and support from our national and local elected officials and is viewed as a comprehensive and successful model being emulated throughout the country. As more and more service members and their families continue to struggle with the challenges of multiple deployments, the need to provide support continues to grow.
Since inception, more than 14,800 individuals have been served. Philanthropic dollars, totaling more than $3.8 million, have been distributed to provide financial support that may include food, utilities, housing, transportation, fuel, and vehicle repair.
Significant Outcomes to Date as of July 2019
6,638 service members, veterans and their families (14,856 individuals) have been served
Care Coordinators have intervened in 119 cases of significant suicide risk
Homelessness has been prevented for 1,531 families at risk of foreclosure or eviction, and an additional 1,112 families have received Care Coordination services that addressed housing stability
2,463 individuals were successfully engaged in treatment for mental health or adjustment problems
23,408 referrals have been made to community and military resources
1,313 program participants have obtained employment
Emergency financial assistance provided by Easterseals Military & Veterans Services through Veterans Count for July 2019
$6,319 was spent on transportation or car repairs
$1,200 was spent on food and/or grocery gift cards
$200 was spent on medical expenses not covered by insurance
$2,881 was spent on emergency dental services
$3,562 was spent on mortgage payments to prevent foreclosure
$9,681 was spent on rent payments to landlords
$3,283 was spent on utilities such as electricity, heating fuel, water, phone, sewer, etc.
$6,010 was spent on other miscellaneous expenses
$33,136 is the total emergency financial assistance released to NH service members, veterans and their families
To learn more please contact us.
For the Love of the Blue Star Mothers
For the past 77 years, Blue Star Mothers of America have gathered. They serve behind the scenes while their children serve America on the front lines all around the world. They support one another, share each other’s burdens, comfort and listen. They pack care boxes to send overseas to the troops. They throw baby showers for young military moms and families. They raise money to buy wreaths to lay atop the graves of our fallen warriors at Arlington National Cemetery and other places of rest. They have round table discussions about PTSD and the risk of veteran suicides. They work through the stresses of the deployment cycle and hold each other tightly if the most terrible news comes to their doorstep.
From the first recorded and official meeting of the Blue Star Mothers in Flint, Michigan, the call has gone out across America to join hands and work together for the common good of military families and our nation. The need for support was great in 1942, and a shocking three hundred mothers showed up at the Durant Hotel in response to a notice in the Flint News Advertiser. With World War II raging around the globe, these mothers knew better than anyone else how critical it was to mobilize in support of their fighting sons and daughters serving in all branches of the Armed Forces.
During those dark days of the War, Blue Star Mothers worked together in hospitals, schools, churches and train stations to pack and ship packages to the troops, roll bandages, organize community recycling programs, and write letters together. They hung their Blue Star Banners in their front windows with pride in country, pride in family.
The moms in 1945 with their official uniforms.
Today a fresh generation of mothers hang banners and fly American flags. They still volunteer and support the troops and military families across our great land. They provide support for active duty service personnel, promote patriotism, assist Veterans organizations, and are available to assist in homeland volunteer efforts to help our country remain strong.
Blue Star Mothers of NH
Nearly every state has chapters of this good organization — check their website to find a group near you or Blue Star Mothers of NH . If there is no organized chapter near you, then by all means, find four other moms and start one!
Like the children they have raised, they are brave and resilient. Love for the United States of America runs deep within their veins. They still pray for each other and the sons and daughters who are deployed far and away.
May God bless the Blue Star Mothers.
