Semi-Finalist Week # 5: An Army of Five

We are an Army family of 5 - Husband Tim (SM), me -Susanna, Alex 11 years old, Anna with Down Syndrome 13 years old and Tyler 15 years old.


We have been lucky to not have to move every 2 years. I believe in 17 years we've been lucky to have had to move only 7 times, my husband had 3 deployments. Hopefully, this is all behind us. I came to this beautiful country 15 years ago! I finally received my American citizen ship in 2007!
The last 4 years we have been stationed on JB Lewis McChord and we are currently on our way out to Ft.Carson, Colorado Springs.
Not sure what to tell you about us.

Our family is a very active family when it comes to little adventures...duathalons, little adventure races,runs. We love to camp and hang out with friends.


I have started a website militarydutystations.com that was started to help all milspouses get inside information about their new duty station. Getting first hand info about where to live and what schools are good is really essential for a family to move. I am hoping to pull that together on ONE site. I have also collected all the info about PCSing that I could and put it together in an every changing PCS Guide. I really don't want this to just be a plug for my site but this is a big deal for us. As all family members are involved in this (video: moving with a special needs member, Alex and Tyler are talking about their summer plans, Tim is talking about timeline planning, Reba(our 13 year old white lab) is included in a little pet relocation video, Tyler also developed my LOGO, Tim is working on my website LOL it's called free labor! HA)

What else can I tell you?

Regards,
Susanna
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Make your experience count! Tell others about your current or past military duty stations or learn from others about your new installation:
www.militarydutystations.com
follow Susanna on twitter: @mildutystations
connect with Susanna on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/militarydutystations


***Remember---Every weekend between now and Labor Day I will select 1 semi-finalist to highlight here on the blog. ! There are some great prizes to be had. A portion of my annual book proceeds go to ASMBA-STAR--my favorite charity for Vets and their families. So spread the word to all those hard working, dedicated military families out there.***

SEND YOUR STORY TO: sarataneyhumphreys@hotmail.com

Week #4 Semi-Finalist: The St. Amand Family

My husband, Michael, was active-duty in the Air Force for 8 ½ years, and continued to serve 14 ½ years in the Air National Guard and Reserves for a total of 23 years of service to retirement status. We were both young when we got married – Michael 21 years, and myself 18, just out of high school. We came from a very poor and rural Northern French Acadian area along the border of Northern Maine and Canada, when Michael decided to join the Air Force in order to support ourselves and attempt to get ahead in life. We missed our families and rural way of life terribly the first years while increasing our appreciation of the positive aspects of the rural French culture we had left behind.

On the other hand, military life seemed like an exciting lifestyle compared to where we came from. Having hardly strayed far from home during our youth, moving from one city or state to another over the years was exciting, yet daunting at the same time. For a shy country girl, I sure came “out of my shell” quickly overtime and also learned to be very resourceful. We took every opportunity we could to travel and sightsee all the areas we were stationed at. We learned to travel frugally but have fun at the same time and loved it. I had always liked history and geography classes in school, and the traveling opportunities brought those history books to life. Also, being exposed to other cultural areas gave us insight that regardless of the superficial aspects of any culture or race of people humans all have the same basic needs and qualities which we need to respect. Military life is also a unique culture in itself. Once you have learned and lived in it for a certain period of time, you miss it when you leave the service. Each base was its own little community, and the camaraderie of fellow service personnel who were experiencing the same thing was like a second family.

The military also provided basic needs that at most times were unmet while we were growing up, which many people take for granted such as medical care, housing and food. Granted, it may not always top-notch, but nothing is perfect, and something is better than nothing.
I cherish the traveling and touring experiences we have experienced and to this day, I always say that the ability to travel to new places and actually live in that community for awhile is a greater learning experience then just vacationing in a spot for a week or two. In fact, when the opportunity arose for my youngest son in sixth grade to take a three week educational tour to Europe, we made the financial sacrifice to send him, and to this day he talks about it, and would like to go back (but not before I do! Haha.)

After basic training at Lowry AFB in Denver, Colorado Michael’s first duty station was Shaw AFB, in Sumter, SC. What a weather adjustment, from cold, long Northern winters to the hot, humid south. Then on to South Korea for a year. This was my first time on a plane, not to mention it was a long flight from Maine to South Korea. This was our one and only overseas tour. Our desire was to go to Europe, but it never happened. We also kept trying to be stationed at Loring AFB, in Northern Maine, to be closer to home, as it was not very popular with many service persons to be stationed in the Northern frontier bases. As it was, we never did get that assignment, and subsequently, Loring AFB was shut down much to our chagrin.
From South Korea, we were stationed at Castle AFB, Merced, CA. We enjoyed this tour as it was situated in the San Joaquin Valley, the farming belt of California away from the larger cities. Castle AFB is no longer in existence today. Moving on, we went to Lackland AFB, San Antonio, Texas, then on to the Pentagon in the Washington, DC area. At this point, I was pregnant with our first son, and we decided we needed to settle down to raise him in a stable environment and so Michael left active duty service to return to Maine. We tried to restart our lives, but it did not work out as planned, and a second son was on the way, so Michael joined the Air National Guard, which brought him for basic training to Keesler AFB, Biloxi Mississippi and eventually moved on to Bolling AFB, Washington DC metro area, where he become employed with the Federal Government, and became a “weekend warrior” for the Air Force Reserves on the weekends. Having grown up working hard on the potato farms and families struggling to make a living, we carried that same work ethic and resourcefulness with us which helped Michael make positive impacts on his supervisors and career. During his reserve status, he also landed a full-time position working with the Federal Government.

It was at this point after 17 years of marriage, constant moves and apartment living that we decided to take a risk and purchase our first home 85 miles away from the city in the mountains of the Shenandoah Valley, a rural farming area which reminds us of the country life we came from. Michael’s unforgettable comment to me was “You put up with me, my military career and moving for so long, we will buy a small place with a few acres in the country for you to finally get the horses that you couldn’t have all these years since we left Maine.” Once settled in our newly purchased home, it was at this point that I was able to pursue college and invest in a long term career, as it was difficult to maintain an employment career when you were constantly uprooted. Just as I was settled into a good job, it was time to move on. Believe or not, though, after several years of living in our home, we began to get itchy feet, however, traveling days will have to wait until our full retirement age.

Both as a Reservist and federal employee, Michael’s career brought him to the Pentagon. His civilian job eventually transferred to an office in downtown Washington DC a few weeks prior to the 9/11 event. It was emotionally devastating to Michael as he had known some of the victims and some of the damaged parts of the Pentagon were ones he had previously installed equipment in. At that point, Michael was eligible to retire from the Air Force Reserves, but a stop-loss order was in effect, and his retirement was not granted until two years later when the stop-loss was lifted and he was granted retirement status. Michael continues his career as a public servant of the United States. Not surprisingly, our sons are following in his footsteps to some degree. Jonathon, our oldest son enlisted for a short tour in the Navy, and our youngest son is currently enrolled in college aspiring to eventually also become a public servant in the Federal Government for the United States.

During the two years Michael waited for his Air Force Reserve retirement status, we kept holding our breath as to whether Michael would be called back to active duty to serve in Iraq. Fortunately for our family, he did not go to Iraq, but I have the greatest respect for those who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan and their families, as I know what a strain it is to have your husband away from home for long periods of time, even more, to wonder if he’ll even come back alive or in one piece. The times that Michael was away for temporary periods of training or other duties certainly reinforced my abilities to be resourceful and manage the everyday needs of a family and home without any other relatives geographically available to help and depend on. To be on alert 24/7, ready to deploy at a moment’s notice, and miss many family milestones and events, there is no sum of money to compensate for such a sacrifice. They deserve every benefit and support we can give them and then some.

To my husband, sons, and all military personnel and veterans,
“I SALUTE YOU!”

Susan St. Amand

***Remember---Every weekend between now and Labor Day I will select 1 semi-finalist to highlight here on the blog. ! There are some great prizes to be had. A portion of my annual book proceeds go to ASMBA-STAR--my favorite charity for Vets and their families. So spread the word to all those hard working, dedicated military families out there.***

SEND YOUR ENTRY TO: sarataneyhumphreys@hotmail.com

Week #3 Semi-Finalist: The Crouch Family

I remember when I signed up for this 14 years ago. Sounds like I'm the one in the Army, doesn't it? I've been married to an Army soldier for 14 years. My husband Robert has been in the Army for 15 years. It really does feel like you join the Army too, when you marry a soldier. Robert and I have 2 beautifully devious children. Our daughter Hayley is 11 going on 20 and Joey, our son is 9. We have moved 9 times in the last 14 years. We go where the Army sends us. We have managed through 1 deployment to Iraq and are preparing for a deployment to Afghanistan this fall. So many near scares have come our way and I won't lie, it's not easy to answer the phone at any time when my husband is away from us. The feeling of terror when you see any military person approach your door when your husband is deployed is palpable. Once you have been through any of this, you are never quite the same.

My husband works as a physician's assistant providing medical care to the soldiers within his unit. He trains medics to take care of wounded in battle and takes his job very seriously. We are immensely proud of him. With the stress that comes with a job of this magnitude, I do what I can to make his life easier. The Army's slogan is "Be All You Can Be" and it's the same for the spouses. We have to be the best we can be in order to be good parents and spouses. We adapt and overcome as a family and our lives are truly filled with joy by just being together. We appreciate each other on a level that I don't think people not associated with the military can fully understand and I am grateful.

Kathy Crouch- Proud Army Wife
Major Robert Crouch- United States Army Physician Assistant- Father- Husband
Hayley Crouch- Proud Army Daughter
Joey Crouch- Proud Army Son

***Remember---Every weekend between now and Labor Day I will select 1 semi-finalist to highlight here on the blog. ! There are some great prizes to be had. A portion of my annual book proceeds go to ASMBA-STAR--my favorite charity for Vets and their families. So spread the word to all those hard working, dedicated military families out there.***

SEND YOUR ENTRY TO: sarataneyhumphreys@hotmail.com

Week #2 Semi-Finalist- Crystal Weatherington

Hello

I am not going to tell you how difficult that life can be as a military family, because I am sure that you know first hand what life is really like.

A little about the Weatherington Family:

I am a stay at home mother and wife to a wonderful 5 year old little boy named Trenton. When my son was just 2 years old we all moved from the warm sunny state of Florida to support my husband in a military career. We had a huge shock the minute we crossed the state line into upstate NY. Always living in Florida this was a huge shock for us, to go from sun and sand to snow and endless months of winter. Anyways, enough about being up here in New York at Fort Drum, like I was saying we all moved up here to support my husbands military career, and we all couldn't be prouder of him. He is an Air-traffic controller in the US Army! We are getting ready to hit our second deployment in 3 years, I have found alot of things important by being a military spouse. Like lending a hand to a wife in need, or being there to listen and lend support. I am still a young wife (26) but I have learned alot in the time we have been here. My FRG was such a welcomed family I was happy to help when asked to be a key caller, not only did I get the opportunity to connect with alot of military families but I had the pleasure of learning what military family is really like. I was recently asked to be the new FRG leader and cannot wait. I love my military life and wouldn't trade it for anything.

As a side note....children are so invaluable that when my husband deployed for the first time my 4 year old son came to me one night while I was crying and said "mommy it's ok, don't be worried I am the man of the house now and will take care of you!" Children in the military live a completely different life from most children, my son has grown up so much...

Well I am sure this is long enough...

Thank you for reading
Crystal Weatherington

**I hope you enjoyed Crystal's story! I know I did. Keep those entries coming!!! Send your story to sarataneyhumphreys@hotmail.com and YOUR story could be next!**

Vlog: Following the Dream

I'll be posting the Week #2 semi-finalist for the Military Family Contest later today. However, I thought I'd share this video with you. It's a peek at my experience yesterday at the open casting call for Oprah's reality show. Hope you'll get a kick out of it! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N93atH0jC6o