★2018 Top 18 AFI Base Spouses of the Year★

Congratulations to the Top 18 Here are the Top 18 Base Level Spouses of the Year who will be moving on to the Branch Level voting. Branch Voting opens on February 20th!

See all Base Winners

National Guard Stefany Buckley Connecticut National Guard I hope to continue to spread awareness of the employment issues that military families face. I hope to encourage more states to create licensing accommodations for military spouses; not just for attorneys but for other licensed professions as well. I also hope to bring more awareness to the contributions of the National Guard and advocate for more resources for families of our Guard and Reserve components. Read more about Stefany here ! Shelia Brookins Kentucky National Guard I would like the civilian community to understand that our service men and women are the 1% that not only serve their country but they are also local citizens too. Their spouses, children, parents, family, and friends are a part of the community. The reason they do what no one else wants to do is because of the love they have for their community. I want the community to be educated on the differences as well as commonalties that exist in Active, Reserve, and National Guard and what they can do to support all branches and the families that live in their community. Read more about Shelia here ! Lorén Westerfield Texas National Guard So few service members feel like their country and the American citizens understand their scarifies. It's hard enough to be gone, but exponentially so when they don't feel like it is appreciated. I would want to use this opportunity to educate the public about what it is like to be a military family, how they can get involved with supporting our uniformed military and their families, and why it's so important to our military's morale to show that support in tangible ways. Additionally, support our military spouses and kids in their sacrifices. They never swore an oath to support and defend, but their strength is equally as vital to the strength of our nation. Read more about Lorén here ! Navy T.T. Robinson Norfolk Naval Station We've all heard of the civilian military divide, and after 17 years of war, it sometimes seems the rest of the world is unaware of our increased op tempo and the fact that we're being asked to do more with less. The fact is, our military families - especially our spouses - are doing incredible, important, amazing things... and too often those outside our military community aren't hearing about it. I've spent the last year and a half interviewing and telling the stories of our military families, veterans and service members on Humans on the Homefront, and with the Military Spouse of the Year title, I want to elevate the stories of our spouses and amplify their voices, from the companies they run to the volunteer work they're doing, to how our civilian neighbors and friends can best support and encourage our community. Military spouses are some of the most impressive, resilient, giving, brilliant people out there... and it's time the rest of the world knows it, too. Read more about T.T. here ! Brian Alvarado Naval Base Point Loma The Military Spouse of the Year title is just that, a title. What you do with it and how far you go with it, has been unique to each winner. Imagining myself in that role is a humbling and exciting thought. The MSOYs that I have had the pleasure of knowing are leaders with compassion, role models with class, and strong advocates with passion. One thing I would want to accomplish with this title is to follow in their footsteps, make them proud, and take the MSOY Program to an even higher level of visibility and exposure. This program and the people in it have the power to change the world for the better and if I was to carry the torch I would want to grow and continue to reach and strengthen our community. This is all about what you do and who you effect and understanding that is the most important piece of this amazing process. Read more about Brian here ! Melissa Nauss Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans As the Military Spouse of the Year I would love bring recognition to the military spouses that give so selflessly to our communities each and everyday. I would love to speak with organizations and employers and help them understand the asset that a military spouse would be to their team and encourage military spouse employment. I would also love to connect military spouses seeking employment with the partners featured on the Military Spouse Friendly Employers List and local resources that can help with resume preparation, job interview techniques and practice, and employment assistance. Read more about Melissa here ! Army Yvonne Coombes Pentagon It would be an honor to be named Military Spouse of the Year. It could help shine some light on Operation Deploy Your Dress which would be amazing because we want to grow. Not to make money off of it. This "job" has only cost me money and I'm fine with that. It's important to shine light on Operation Deploy Your Dress to grow and help more people. I have a vision to get this into as many (if not every) military community possible. This is about being the MILITARY spouse of the year and through the work I am doing with Operation Deploy Your Dress I am helping ALL the military, plus forming bonds and connections to the civilian population as well. This organization has helped every single branch of the military and we want to continue to expand our reach. I'm not saying that a spouse who helps a single branch isn't doing amazing things and having a tremendous impact. I do think it is important to unite the military community though and also tie in some connections between the military and civilian communities across this country. Read more about Yvonne here ! Krista Simpson Anderson Fort Lewis I am the spouse of an active duty Special Forces soldier as well as the Gold Star Spouse of SSG Michael H. Simpson KIA 1 May 2013 AFG. One day I was a military spouse. The next I was a military widow. I want other military spouses to see through my journey that we all have the strength to get through anything. I want to bring awareness to who we are as military spouses and what we do for our nation through our families. I want to be a light for those who may be sitting in the darkness. I want people to be able to ask my the hard questions because my answers will be honest and true. I want to show others that military spouse are fierce and graceful. I want to empower not only military spouse but all women. I want to prove that following your husband doesn’t mean your weak and highlight the selfless service we provide daily. Read more about Krista here ! Lindsay Teplesky Fort Carson One thing I would strive to accomplish with the Military Spouse of the Year title is increased awareness of the challenges faced by career-minded military spouses and actual military initiatives to address these challenges. While there are many civilian corporations and non-profit organizations attempting to put a dent in military spouse underemployment and unemployment, I would like to see more initiatives, such as allowing military members to remain at a duty station for longer than 2-3 years, brought before military leadership so that we can treat the underlying cause, not just the symptoms. Read more about Lindsay here ! Marines Sunshine Hafner MCAS Miramar I would like to bring more awareness to the military child's need for a consistent educational experience, whether they are special needs or in an accelerated program. Read more about Sunshine here ! Akina Goodson Camp Pendleton The one thing I would like to accomplish as military spouse of the year is to have more businesses and organizations around the world (especially areas with military installations) come into agreement and put in place an action plan that not only offers jobs in multiple career fields but guarantees to hire a certain percentage of military spouses within their organization. Read more about Akina here ! Jolynn Lee Camp Lejeune If I were chosen Military Spouse of the Year, I would want to bring attention to trauma related issues suffered by those in my community. REBOOT has shown me firsthand that there is hope for recovery and restoration. Whether it is childhood trauma, sexual assault, or combat issues - you do not have to walk alone. Trauma hurts, but there is hope for healing! Read more about Jolynn here ! Air Force Lauren Klempel Osan Air Base I have numerous goals that I hope to accomplish as military spouse of the year. The most crucial goal for me is to inform and empower spouses and military members alike. I want them to know that anything is possible and if you set your mind to something and give it your all, that you will come out on top every time. We will all have roadblocks along the way, but they need to know they are not alone in this journey. The important thing is to always learn from mistakes, and to move forward from them. It is important to always utilize your resources, and reach out if you need anything. I hope to lead by example and show men and women both that we should be so grateful for being a part of something so amazing. Read more about Lauren here ! Mike Peters Hill AFB I have many goals I wish to accomplish. From creating a community of spouses, all spouses who build and support each other, to more specifically reaching our goal of building an All Access Playground for our EFMP community at Hill AFB. As a military child and now spouse I know the importance of play, friendship, and having a place for every military child. We have approval from base leadership and a partnership with off- base community groups to build a $100,000 facility that will show our 500+ Special needs families that they matter to this community as much as any other person, spouse, or child. Hill AFB, as an example, has 12 playgrounds, none of which serve our special needs community. I am sure this pattern plays out across the DoD. I envision this goal at Hill AFB growing into a DoD wide initiative to provide recreation areas for ALL our children, where relationships and friendships can grow. I know we are stronger when no one is excluded from these basic joys of life. In our military lives and our children's lives, these joy of play and friends for military children is life altering. However, more so than a single project, I would like to have the message resound without debate that spouses are leaders: adaptable, strong, and courageous. We all have so much potential to make a REAL difference in so many ways. We have goals to help our children, our Airmen, and ourselves. My vision, "Empowering Every Spouse" is bold; there will be hundreds of reasons why it can't be done and plenty of doubters. However, I say to them, If not us, then who? If not now, then when? We WILL come together. From the wife of the E-1 with two months of service to the husband of the General with thirty years of experience; We are Military Spouses. Our integrity and moral courage CAN meaningfully change lives. This is who we are and this is what we DO. Thank you for reading. Now we must make the difference. Read more about Mike here ! Kristen Christy Peterson AFB I heard a saying a few years ago, which resonated with me. Life is a tough teacher; we take the test first and THEN learn the lesson. We cannot necessarily be there to help others through the pop quiz, but we can help tutor through the lesson. Suicide prevention is something I have been working on as an aspect of an overarching issue of helping people overcome obstacles in their teaching/lesson moment. Let us use our resiliency and lessons learned to help others transition from PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) to PTG (Post-Traumatic Grow). My family has experience the anguish of a suicide and the lasting effects. If I could go back in time, well I'll just say hindsight is 20/20. After 10 years, we are ready to share our story. Let our 20/20 hindsight be others 20/15 foresight. Read more about Kristen here ! Coast Guard Natalie Zeni District 1 One thing I would like to accomplish as the MSOY of 2018 is to make our Spouses Club, FRG, and Ombudsman groups more active in every base, every branch, no matter their size. Transitioning is a big issue for our military spouses and families when it's time to PCS. I believe that the groups mentioned above can provide all active duty families with a safety net. It gives them a sense of stability and provides information about local resources, and a variety of programs and opportunities that are fitting for each family. Read more about Natalie here ! Jennifer Dexter-Edsall District 8 I would like to use this accomplishment to bring attention to charities that are near and dear to my heart, as well as to help shine a light on how civilian communities are enriched by the military men and women who share that community. Read more about Jennifer here ! Stacy Bilodeau District 14 This past year I had the wonderful opportunity to be on the board for the Joint Spouses' Conference. Which is a yearly non-profit conference that gathers over 500 active duty, reserve, retired and Gold Star Spouses from all Military branches for a day long conference on Oahu; filled with workshops, speakers, meals, music, entertainment, a retail and a information Marketplace. It's a full day of just fun for Military Spouses, selecting form a verity of workshops such as paddle board, historical tours, self-defense/workout classes to presenters such as Space A travel, money saving tips, empowering yourself and career. With the Military Spouse of the Year title I would like to partner up with Military Spouse Magazine and bring this conference to the mainland, doing one on the East Coast and one on the West Coast. Seeing the joy of over 500 Military Spouses come together, connect, have fun, gain Military Lifestyle Knowledge, meet new people and take a day for themselves was something I wish all Military Spouses across the United States could and should experience. Even though our Service Members are in different military branches, we all have one thing in common, being a Military Spouse. And that is a special bond that should be shared and celebrated. Read more about Stacy here ! Connect with us on Facebook!

★2018 Top 18 AFI Base Spouses of the Year★

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