MONTH IN REVIEW: April 2019 – Month of the Military Child
Posted on: May 3, 2019 | Posted in: Community Blog
April was a busy month for the San Diego Military Family Collaborative, featuring one of our Military Transition: Spouse Edition (MTSE) workshops at Newbreak Church Tierrasanta, and our Monthly Convening at Mission Valley Library, celebrating Month of the Military Child.
April is known in the military community as Month of the Military Child, and SDMFC takes great pride in honoring the trials, tribulations, and sacrifices made by our amazing military kids.
Watch the Facebook testimonials from these awesome military kids!
On Friday, April 26, we hosted our fourth Monthly Convening of 2019, celebrating Month of the Military Child at Mission Valley Library. A huge audience of nearly 80 service providers, To kick off the convening, a few clips were shown from the 2016 documentary, Resilience: the Biology of Stress & the Science of Hope. KellyAnne Rodriguez, a Community Health Promotion Specialist with the County of San Diego, facilitated a group discussion regarding the featured documentary segments. Participating attendees identified stressors impacting military kids, such as divorce, academics, deployment, relationships, and a variety of others. Following a second video segment, participating attendees identified resilient behaviors and things that military kids can engage in to overcome their stressors, such as building a network of friends and family for emotional support, being comfortable allowing their emotions to show, and connecting with other military families who may have similar life experiences.
Following the video reflections was a panel discussion featuring Reed Vickerman of the New Children’s Museum, Beth Sondak of Kids’ Turn, Wendy Paganos of FOCUS, and Wendy Hartrick of Serra High School. Check out the video below (apologies for the cut-off, the Internet connection was very weak in the library!):
Check out the PANEL VIDEO!
Enjoy the informative FactSheet from the Convening: DOWNLOAD IT HERE!
The SDMFC was also proud to host our third Military Transition: Spouse Edition (MTSE) workshop on April 16 at Newbreak Church in Tierrasanta. The smaller, intimate group worked very well and attendees surveyed responded that they would highly recommend the workshop to other separating/retiring military families. If you or anyone you know is transitioning out of the military soon, please have them register for one of our free workshops! There are five more workshops available in 2019 – the next is an evening course scheduled for 5:00PM on May 16, at SAY San Diego on Viewridge Avenue. You can RSVP by clicking here!
Check out the MTSE 2019 Flyer below, or DOWNLOAD IT HERE!
We know that for active duty families, time with the kids is tough to get and goes by far too fast. It is hugely important to have quality family experiences together, and for parents to do their utmost to foster a positive and healthy relationship with their children. Luckily, there are many things to do in and around San Diego County this year – stay tuned for our next blog post featuring some of these fun activities!
