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, December 10, 2010

The Mission Continues

News Photo
Whatever else one might think of Goldman Sachs after the economic meltdown it contributed to, the company has stepped up to serve military children.  I wrote a few months back about the imminent loss of Operation Purple summer camps for children of deployed and wounded military.  The funding source for those camps dried up as a result of the financial woes of the time.  Goldman Sachs has now announced a $20 million partnership with The Mission Continues, an award-winning national non-profit organization. The investment will be used to fund a network of non-profit organizations that serve returning veterans and their families over the five year life of the program. 
Though the primary focus of the partnership will be  professional development, personal growth opportunities, a future employment plan, and job placement for veterans , another goal is family support and counseling. The first  partner in this mission will be the National Military Family Association, which will receive a grant of $1 million for its Operation Purple ® camps for military children.  A program which looked as if it was headed for closure will now have spaces for 2500 children of servicemembers.“
“Goldman Sachs Gives is proud to work with a network of veterans organizations, like The Mission Continues, that are providing a range of support services for wounded veterans and their families,” says Dina Habib Powell, managing director and Global Head of Corporate Engagement. “Supporting our veterans can have a significant impact both in the lives of individuals and the broader communities where they work and live.”

Posted by About AART at 7:43 AM

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)