MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Growing up is not always easy. Throw a military parent into the mix and suddenly a child has a unique set of obstacles. From frequent moves to parents on deployments, military children must adapt and overcome just like their parents.
April is the Month of the Military Child. Since 1986, military commands and communities have taken the month as an opportunity to recognize the importance and sacrifices military children make for the mission.
Marine Corps Community Services Iwakuni will sponsor the “Month of the Military Child Celebration” scheduled for April 11, 1 to 5 p.m. at the Multipurpose Activity Center Dome, which is located near the Northside football field.
The event will host an array of fun opportunities for children, including everything from music and dancing to races and prizes.
“Kids are our most valuable assets,” said K.C. Rich, the public affairs specialist for MCCS Iwakuni. “It’s important to support our children because they are our future.”
During a parents 20-year military career, some children may experience up to nine moves.
Moving can be extremely difficult for children. They have to change schools, leave friends and adapt to new environments.
Parents can ease the pain by getting their children involved in the moving process. Talking and having discussions about a move can give a child a better idea of what to expect.
“Whenever I would find out that we were moving I would always tell the kids,” said Shermona Hart, a victim advocate at the counseling service center here. “Leading up to the move, my sons and I go on the Internet to see what kind of things we can do at the place we are moving to. It always helps us get excited, and it helps them get on board.”
Moving can be difficult for children of all ages, but from personal experience Hart thinks it gets easier with time.
Hart said now that her boys are older they have grown into the military lifestyle, and not much surprises them anymore.
The military lifestyle has become routine for Hart’s family. What has not become routine, is the exciting places her children get to go.
“They think it’s cool that they get to travel around,” said Hart. “Not many kids their age have had a chance to travel overseas like this. There are adults who haven’t even left the United States before.”
Whether a family thinks raising a child in the military is a bad or good thing is a matter of opinion. What is undeniable is the level of recognition military children deserve.