When my father, Odysseus, and his men sailed off to the Trojan War, they were confident their gods favored a quick victory. Instead, the siege of Troy lasted ten years. After Troy fell, the survivors made their way home to Sparta, Mycenae, Pylos, and elsewhere in the ancient Peloponnese. Neither my father nor any of his troops arrived home with the rest. We waited for years as the news grew worse. Odysseus was dead, we were told,or imprisoned, or, worst yet, he had married another woman and abandoned my mother Penelope, my brother Telemachus, and me.


If he is alive somewhere, his thoughts may wander to Penelope and Telemachus, but he won’t be thinking of me. I am the daughter he doesn’t know exists. Odysseus went off to the Trojan War when his son, Telemachus, was barely old enough to walk. His wife, Penelope, was a teenage bride, and is now a young wife, mother, and queen who has to try to rule Ithaca without him.


I was born seven months after he left. I am a hero’s daughter and a princess of his realm, but I have lived my entire life without a father. I’m nineteen now, and still waiting.


All over the world, and throughout history children grow up as I have. This website will focus on the children of those men and women who have gone off to fight America's wars, and provide information and resources for all who care about military families and want to help.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Readying Families





Between now and October,thousands of Marines and sailors will deploy to Afghanistan. Among them will be the Camp Pendleton-based 1st Marine Division headquarters element; 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment; 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment; 1st Combat Engineer Battalion; and the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion.


At Camp Pendleton, just north of Oceanside, California, Karen Gough is the family readiness officer for the 47,000-strong Marine Expeditionary Force, which oversees the Marine units coming home and heading out. Married to a former Marine officer who recently retired, Gough works with 130 other family readiness officers to assist the troops, their spouses and children before, during and after a combat assignment.


"We help with everything, from making sure they have their wills and their shots to making sure single Marines are keeping their parents in the loop," Gough explains. They also work closely with the children of deployed troops, conducting information sessions and gatherings. The focus includes helping younger children understand what the departure of their deployed parent means. "We let them know what Afghanistan is like, what's involved in a deployment and answer their questions so they have a good understanding," Gough said.


About halfway through a deployment, the family readiness officers also help prepare children for a parent's return from war. "We explain to them that Mom or Dad may have changed a little bit and seen some tough things over there," Gough said. "We also tell them that their parent might need some time by themselves." For younger kids, a final session is conducted after their parent returns.


Gough said the work with families today has changed from what she remembers as a military wife."We used to worry more about the spouse," she said. "The spouse is still much of the focus, but we had found that many of the issues were with children, so we've also concentrated on working with them. It's made a big difference."
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Posted by About AART at 7:35 AM

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