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When I was in the military and my wife became a Mom, I considered her to be a “military Mom.”
She had to put up with separations and absences, suffer through innumerable relocations, share in the rigors and demands of military life and endure many other hardships and frustrations.
But that is nothing compared to the “other” military Moms: the Moms whose sons and daughters are off to war and who worry day and night about their safety and welfare.
They are the few, the proud, the terrified: Their sons and daughters are at war, sweet-faced children they nurtured through skinned knees and pre-teen angst who now face bullets and booby-trapped explosives.
Then there are the Gold Star Mothers: The mothers whose sons and daughters have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our nation while serving in wars and conflicts. The loss and the pain are unimaginable and incalculable.
Finally, “military Moms” are also those brave and dedicated women who are both military and Moms and thus have to balance two of the toughest jobs on earth: motherhood and service to country.
Add to that the fact that many military Moms can also face separation from their children and spouses when they are deployed around the globe.
Yesterday, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, honored all those military Moms and military families at a special Mother’s Day tea at the White House.
First Lady Michelle Obama, accompanied by Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, at left, speaks during a Mother’s Day tea honoring military mothers, May 8, 2015. Military spouses and children, service members who are mothers, mothers with children in the military, and Gold Star mothers were among those who attended the event. Army News Service photo by Lisa Ferdinando
Lisa Ferdinando, Army News Service:
[Mrs] Obama thanked the military moms for their commitment. They face many challenges, she said, including separation from loved ones, career demands, frequent moves and job changes.
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In the midst of everything, whether they are in the service themselves or their loved ones are, military moms always find time to give back to their communities, Obama said.
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“You give us energy. You give us strength. You give us focus and purpose,” Obama said of military moms. The White House tea, she said, is a way to say thanks for everything that military moms do.
Happy Mother’s Day, “Military Moms.”
Lead photo: Army Spc. Sandie De Los Reyes fixes her 10-month-old daughter’s hair in her home on Fort Campbell, Ky. De Los Reyes, whose husband is stationed in Georgia, is the primary caregiver for their three children. File DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
The author is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a writer.