Page 49 - Best Chapter Spring 2017

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spouse ends up being a single parent while their ’ .- ,__ 0. J ’ ‘ \ _
partner is away.” _- fig?‘ *5, ' p "‘ I ‘
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Across Ohio, there are more than 50,000 military ; ‘« 1 l ~ ' . *5,‘

men and women and more than 32,000 military _, ' ' ' ’ "

children. And while that may seem like a lot, there _ " - _ ly, 7- " ; _ , ‘

are children in communities across the state that l 7'-'3'” | P‘; 3

. . . . - I r - .‘ « - v - .

are the only military children in their entire school ‘ " ’ -_', ' »~ " } _;V

or community. That leaves a big void for children, ._ ‘

particularly when it comes to identifying with their ‘__ I _ : 0

peers and where they belong. “v '5 X’ '*" ’ I

“There are a lot of hard questions that kids face,”

Ferrari said. “Other children don’t understand, and

they might ask ‘Does your dad kill people?‘,’ and

they don’t realize what impact that has on the child.

Military children don’t always want to talk about , ‘_

their experience with other children simply because -:1 : ~ - '

other children can’t relate, and it makes them feel __ K‘

different and alone.” H" " "-‘ '

In 2002, the country was quickly changing. The A '
Global War on Terror was ramping up after the ' 0 '7‘ "’ ’ A‘ " " "K

9/11 attacks, and members of the National Guard 0 '

were rapidly being deployed to Iraq. These families ;_-_;_“‘ “T? ‘= - 4.‘-:37’ '

became known as “suddenly military,” indicating ;‘ ' ' . ‘ ' .

that families whose parents were in the service often ' -- ”"‘ " ‘ 7‘ -

experienced an extreme lifestyle change as service I”! _ E ~ ' —

members were called to duty. Children who may "_ _ ‘ _‘ ~ '

have never even realized or known that their parent I_i ‘ J _ ' _.

was in the service were suddenly saying goodbye to «El ‘ ' - \ \ .

their mothers or fathers for a year at a time. .23 t ’- I _

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That’s when military and youth program leaders A ,' Q i _~ l ‘ /.
realized that there was a growing need to support ; ‘ V ,5!’ ‘ ” - ,.
these families and, in particular, the children who '7‘ ‘ g _' ’ \ ‘ — ~
were learning to cope with being part of a _‘ \“'-7-; '—._.£\. - ’_‘ p -‘I.’ p _
military family. T is

“Leaders from 4-H National Headquarters met with 'l A 1.‘ _ \

those at the Oflice of the Secretary of Defense,” said I \‘ lg \.

Ferrari. “Those leaders all decided that it was time to > ‘V ‘ -~‘.’,' ~—- g

‘ \ I‘ 2. A»
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Campers keep active, whether it's climbing to new heights, skimming along the water,
paddling a kayak, or pedaling a healthy smoothie on the blender bike.
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