Florence Gators' Family Readiness Group

02/10/2010

DeCA Scholarship Deadline Approaching
The February 17, 2010 deadline for students to apply for DeCA's 2010Scholarships for Military Children Program is fast approaching. Alleligible students encouraged to submit an application, which includes anessay on the following topic: "You can travel back in time, however, youcannot change events. What point in history would you visit and why?"Applications, essay, and eligibility requirements are available incommissaries worldwide and online through a link athttp://www.commissaries.com and directly athttp://www.militaryscholar.org.

Lose weight, get in shape and maintain good health with advice- packed weekly columns and an open question and answer forum.

02/10/2010

Military Families Gain Access to Free, Online Tutoring
By Elaine WilsonAmerican Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26, 2010 - The Defense Department has launched a free,online tutoring service for servicemembers and their families.
The site - http://www.tutor.com/military -- offers round-the-clockprofessional tutors who can assist with homework, studying, testpreparation, resume writing and more.
Marine Corps and Army families have had access to the program for morethan a year. Seeing the value, Defense Department officials decided toexpand the service to encompass all servicemembers and their families,officials said.
"Providing 24/7 academic and career support for military families duringa time when so many parents have a deployed spouse has been an importantand well-received benefit for Marine Corps and Army families," saidTommy T.Thomas, deputy undersecretary of defense for military community andfamily policy.
"We are pleased to expand this program to all U.S. military families andprovide peace of mind that their children are never alone when it comesto learning - there is always a certified, professional tutor availableto help," he said.
Active-duty servicemembers, National Guard and reserve personnel onactive duty in a deployed status, Defense Department civilians in adeployed status and their dependents are eligible to participate,officials said. Along with test preparation, the site is open tostudents of any age - from kindergartners to high school seniors - forone-on-one help in math, science, social studies and English.
Many of these students, officials said, are making the most of the live,one-on-one help. "Thanks for having this service when our family isseparated at this time due to deployments and training," a 6th grader ofa Marine commented. "My father is unable to help one-on-one."
"I really appreciate this," another program participant, a 9th grader,said."It really helps me understand my schoolwork. It's going to really helpme ace my exams coming up! I am definitely going to use this veryoften."
Tutor.com's network includes more than 1,800 professional tutors andcareer specialists who have delivered more than 5 million one-on-onetutoring sessions since 2001, officials said. Each tutor is certifiedthrough the site, and all sessions are recorded for quality control.

All U.S. military families have free, unlimited access to Tutor.com provided by the DoD. Work with a certified, professional tutor online 24/7 to get help with homework, studying, test prep, resume writing, and more!

02/10/2010

Military OneSource Special Needs Resources for Military Families Webinar
Special Needs Family Support Program Manager, Isabel Hodge, isconducting two Special Needs Resources For Military Families Webinars onFebruary 23rd and 25th, 2010. Isabel is providing a comprehensiveoverview of government and non-government resources useful to militaryfamilies with special needs.Additionally, Military OneSource Consultant and Coordinator of Clinicalservices, Cyndy Brissenden, will provide an overview of the MOSspecialty consultants and other valuable MOS information. Interestedfamily members should visit Military OneSource(http://www.militaryonesource.com) to register for the webinar.

Military OneSource is a valuable tool for military members and their families.

02/10/2010

Helpful link to help reduce stress in your life and work

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02/10/2010

Information on Free OIF/OEF Veterans Expeditions
Through generous funding by the Military Family Outdoor InitiativeProject, a joint partnership of The Sierra Club and The Sierra ClubFoundation, The Anschutz Family Foundation, and The Disabled AmericanVeterans, are offering fully underwritten Outward Bound programs toVeterans. This is a tremendous opportunity for adventure andself-discovery to our veterans of combat operations in Afghanistan(Operation Enduring Freedom) and Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom). OutwardBound have over 20 years serving our nation's combat veterans through along partnership with the Disabled American Veterans organization, wherethey have offered enriching wilderness expeditions specifically designedfor war veterans at no cost to the participants.
Their newest programs offer numerous wilderness adventures exclusivelyfor war veterans, and are fully funded for all participants, to includetheir roundtrip stateside travel costs between home and the excursionsite. Their goals include helping participating veterans build asupportive community with other war veterans; facilitating discussionson readjustment and transition challenges; and re-energizing andreinvigorating our veterans' spirits with adventures and challenges inthe beautiful outdoors.
Click here to see all available open enrollment courses for veterans.
http://www.outwardbound.org/index.cfm/do/cp.course_search_result/coursedetailfocusid/18

Program Details -

Who is Eligible: Under this program, all Operation Enduring Freedom(OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) veterans, who were deployed tothese countries, including current and former members of the Active andReserve Components of the United States military. It doesn't matter whatyour current military status is (active, inactive, discharged, retired)as long as you deployed in support of OEF or OIF combat operations whilein the military. Military family members are not eligible to participatein this OEF/OIF program. However, please see,www.sierraclub.org/military for other programs for military familymembers funded by the Sierra Club.
Enrollment Options: There are two types of courses available, eachoffering wilderness expeditions year-round.
Open Enrollment Courses: Outward Bound has scheduled expeditions whereindividual war Veterans sign up for the course of their choosing, attendon an individual basis, and meet other war veterans from around thenation. Each course will have 7 to 12 participants. They have severalhundred slots available for our OEF/OIF veterans every year. Click here to see all available open enrollment courses forveterans. To apply for the course you want to go on, simply click theapply link and fill out/submit the form to them.
Custom Courses: They will schedule customized expeditions upon requestfor groups of war veterans; these customized expeditions can be tailoredto specific needs. These courses are for organizationally establishedgroups of veterans along with their counselor or therapist (mentalhealth worker, outreach specialist); and/or Unit Leader. In order to runa custom course with Outward Bound, in most cases a minimum of 9participants is needed. These courses can be scheduled at any time ofyear and at nearly any location where Outward Bound operates. The courseactivities can be customized to a variety of ability levels. If you area counselor, therapist, or Unit Leader, who wants to schedule a CustomCourse, please contact one of their Veterans Program Course Advisors [email protected] , or call866-669-2362 ext. 8387. They will refer you to an account executive.
Cost: Free-of-charge. All costs, including round-trip stateside travelbetween home and expedition location; lodging en route; and food,lodging, equipment, and instruction while on the course, are fully paidby the Military Family Outdoor Initiative Project. Military FamilyOutdoor Initiative Project

01/11/2010