I know that sometimes it can feel like you are all alone in this crazy military community. When emergencies happen, it is easy to feel like the military is mission first, family never. But if you know where to turn when things get tough it can make lives rocky moments a little less hard to handle. Here are just a few military-centric non-profits that are out there solely to help families like yours, no matter what that family may look like.
The American Military Partner Association (AMPA)
It is 2017. No longer does the military family look like a Norman Rockwell painting. The days of only seeing married men with stay-at-home wives serving our country have passed. Today, the military family may stem from a wife that decided to follow in her fathers’ footsteps and enlist. Families may consist of two working parents trying to balance soccer practice with budget meetings. Maybe a family is just two people who fell in love and decided that a family of two (and three fish) is good enough for them.
Or may, just maybe, the military family you are a part of is also a part of the LGBT community. If that is the case, then the AMPA is a group you need to know about. According to its website, the AMPA is the “nation’s largest organization of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender military families and their allies.” The goal is “connecting, supporting, honoring and serving the partners, spouses, families and allies of America’s LGBT service members and veterans — our ‘modern military families.’”
This group works to ensure that all LGBT military families understand their rights within the military. They have counseling resources as well as inclusive religious and spiritual resources that can help connect LGBT families with the guidance they may be seeking to navigate the military life a little more smoothly. Much like other military specific groups, the AMPA strives to make the chaos that comes with serving a little less rough for all family members through PCS-ing, deployments, and challenges that may arise for families with children.