Happy Mothers Day!

This Sunday, moms across the country will be treated to breakfast in bed, homemade cards, bouquets of flowers and fancy dinners in restaurants. But for military mothers who are serving and those mothers who have sons and daughters fighting wars overseas, Mother’s Day won’t be all roses.

The term "Military Mothers" describes two distinct groups of women. On the one hand, it describes mothers whose sons and daughters are members of the military. On the other, it describes mothers who are themselves members of the military.

Though many military mothers have grown used to their children’s absences on Mother’s Day and other special occasions, it doesn’t make those times any easier especially for moms whose sons and daughters are in the line of fire in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Mothers whose children are in the military and deployed to military bases around the world or serving in a war zone far from home, live with daily fear and worry for the lives of those to whom they gave birth, and nurtured into the fine young men and women they are. They worry that those children may return home with missing limbs or with PTSD, and may not be the same person who deployed, or that they may return in a flag-draped casket.

And mothers, who must leave their children behind to go to a war zone far from home, live with daily fear for their own lives because they worry about the possibility that their children may have to grow up without a mother. And they worry about the impact their absence will have on little psyches, and whether that impact will be lasting.

And to the mothers who still wait for news that their POW/MIA is coming home, we bow our heads..

We assure you, all groups are heroes.

And we'd like to wish them, and all the other mothers out there, a Happy Mother's Day!

A Holiday Prayer for Military Families

Remember those at home while their loved ones are deployed during this holiday season.

by Edie Melson

Sometimes it’s easier to think of the military troops who are deployed during the holiday season but not their families. Today, let’s remember those families and lift them up in prayer to the One who can provide the comfort they need:

Dear Lord,

I’m praying for all those who have a loved one on deployment around the globe. I know this time of year can be a challenge, even if the deployment isn’t necessarily in a war zone. Being separated from those we care about is always hard.

I’m asking that you give these families a special peace this holiday season. Give them lots of opportunities to spend time in communication with their loved ones—through whatever means available. Thank you for all the different ways we have now to communicate around the world. Make sure packages and letter arrive in a timely fashion. Keep the digital and telephone lines clear and free from static.

Fill the days with activities to take their minds from the emptiness they feel. Surround them with friends and family who understand their struggles and can support them in ways that provide just what they need. Put people in their lives to be Your hands and feet during this stressful holiday season.

Remind them of the blessings that still surround them. Don’t let them withdraw. Instead help them to take part in the joy of this season.

Most of all, give them tangible proof that You are there with them and with their loved one. Remind them of Your great love and all the ways You watch over the entire family, those at home and deployed.

Amen.

He heals the brokenhearted and bins up their wounds. (Psalm 147:3, NASB)

What does it mean to be a military parent?

It means we sat with the recruiter listening to every word uttered to our child. With a catch in our heart, we either signed papers to allow our 17-year-old child to enlist or watched as our new young adult signed on the dotted line, over and over, the paperwork never seeming to end. Some of us may have had tears in our eyes, others may have smiled from ear to ear. Each of us knows that the life of our son or daughter would forever be altered.

We express our pride and gratitude for having a child in this tumulus world willing to do what only 1% of the entire U.S. population will ever do, put on the uniform of the United States military to uphold all we hold dear.

We watch with a catch in our throat and an ache in our heart as the recruiter drives away with our beloved child, or we sit at MEPS with pride swelling in our breast as they raise their right hand and utter the oath “I “state your name”, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against ALL enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”

We put them on buses and planes and send them off to mysterious lands in Great Lakes, IL; Parris Island or San Diego, CA; Fort Benning, GA, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, or Fort Leonard Wood, MO; Cape May, N.J. or maybe Lackland AFB, TX.

We’ll look for groups of people who understand what it’s like to send your child off to the military, join facebook pages for support, peruse the official military pages for a glimpse of our child. We’ll wait for that phone call home, depending on branch and base, but they are pretty standard, “I’ve arrived safely, please do not send food or bulky items, I will contact you in 7-10 days via a letter with my new mailing address, thank you for your support, Goodbye for now.” Next, comes the “letter” the very first one – it’s scripted with barely any information but it’s precious to us. Then we receive the dreaded BOX that thing that contains everything civilian our child had with them on arrival and we wait.

We wait, we worry, their time can range from 7-12 weeks depending on the branch. They may or may not call, they’ll likely write. They may be sad, they may cry, and our hearts will break. Then comes that magic moment when they make it through the crucible, the reaper; battle stations; or victory forge. This call tells us that you’ve now become A Marine, A Sailor, A Soldier, a Coast Guardsman, or an Airman.

After the long weeks, we watch with pride as you march across the parade deck with others who’ve achieved the same goal and the first hug is nearly like a rebirth. Then we send you off to your MOS, A School, or AFSC school where you’ll learn your trade. Another graduation and you join the fleet. You may be stateside or overseas but you’ve now become a new person.

Even those of us that served are still mystified by being a military parent. We attempt to learn all we can, we become motto and wear everything that signifies our service members branch of service, with pride.

There’s a strange new thing called the “green dot” that becomes a mainstay for parents whose military member is serving overseas. We wait for phone calls or letters, we worry, but we also feel a unique pride in knowing that our child is the best of the best. He or she is a member of the United States Military, the most amazing military in the world.

Smart enemies fear us, dumb enemies try us, we hear the news, we know what ISIS, the Taliban, and that little turd in North Korea are up to and we worry – but we also remind ourselves and others that our child is the crème d’ la crème. Our child is a Marine, a Sailor, a Soldier, a Coast Guardsman, or an Airman. We know our child is trained and ready for whatever comes at him or her.

We rest well at night knowing that should the enemy force our hand our government will release the “Teufel Hunde – Devil Dogs” the Marines a name given by the Germans – “The Bloody Bucket – US Army” – “The Blue or Grey Ghost – U.S. Navy” – each of these nicknames reminds us of the fury of the American military member when protecting all the homeland holds dear.

We are proud of our kids, we know they worked hard to earn the title they bear. We know that while we worry they stand ever ready, ever watchful. We know that the branches tease each other about who’s the best, but we also know that when the crap hits the fan there is no other force in the world that compares to the United States Military Forces.

Every night we say a prayer for our service member and every single military member out there, regardless of branch, regardless of job specialty, regardless of rank. We all weep together when a son or daughter is lost, when another mother, father, wife, husband, child, or family earns the classification “Gold Star.” We sleep well at night knowing that our sons and daughters are ever ready to defend the homeland. We know the terms Oohrah, Hooyah, hooah, and realize they are terms of motivation.

Sleep well America – and know that your United States Military has your back. Know that the military parents support their sons and daughters who’ve written the "check payable to the United States of America for the cost of up to and including my life." These are kids, every single one of them, who’ve volunteered to serve during a time of war.

**Dawn Schwarz-Gay

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.