Ohio Military Kids believes in helping our military youth to grow & succeed by providing them with any available resources. We know that military life can be challenging, and that is why we are committed to supporting the families and youth of those who have served our country. In this post, we’ll highlight three programs that are working to support military families: The National Military Family Association, Purdue University’s Military Teen Adventure Camps, and the six Troop and Family Assistance Centers throughout the state.
The National Military Family Association (NMFA)
The National Military Family Association has served military families for more than 50 years through programming, advocacy, and responsive solutions. NMFA addresses food insecurity, difficulties finding child care, unemployment & underemployment of military spouses, and reported low well-being in military teens and young adults.
Military Spouse Scholarships
NMFA offers scholarships ranging from $500 – $2500 to military spouses to assist with gaining any type of degree from a GED to a PhD, starting a business, gaining professional licensure, supervised clinical hours, and continuing education courses.
Interested applicants can apply here: Military Spouse Scholarships (militaryfamily.org)
Operation Purple Camps
Each summer, NMFA hosts free Operation Purple Camps around the country. Eligible campers are 6 – 17 years old, and are connected to one of the following: any uniformed service branch, National Guard and Reserve components of each branch, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, or the United States Public Health Services Commission Corps.
Operation Purple Camps are weeklong overnight camps. This summer there will be six different campsites – each with different dates and age ranges.
Military youth are only eligible to apply for one Operation Purple camp each year. Ohio Military Kids’ camps are separate so it is absolutely possible for your military youth to attend both a Operation Purple camp, as well as Camp Kelleys Island!
Apply for Summer 2023 Operation Purple Camp here: Operation Purple Camp – National Military Family Association
Operation Purple Family Programs
In addition to their overnight camps for youth and teens, NMFA hosts one-day and weekend-long family retreats. These retreats are aimed at families who are experiencing reintegration after deployment or preparation for an upcoming deployment. The service member must be present to be eligible to apply.
Aimed at families of service members who have been wounded, experienced emotional trauma, or had illness related to their service, NMFA also offers weekend-long Healing Adventures for the entire family.
Learn more about Operation Purple Family Programs here: Operation Purple Programs (militaryfamily.org)
Bloom Military Teens
An extension of NMFA, Bloom Military Teens is a resource website & blog written by and for military teens. Their resources include an amazing field guide about the MilTeen lifestyle which can be found here: The Field Guide to the Military Teen | BLOOM (bloommilitaryteens.org)
Research
NMFA and Bloom have surveyed military youth & families to gain useful insights and to develop toolkits for caregivers, communities, and educators. These findings & insights can be viewed at: National Military Family Association Research and Insights.
Military Teen Adventure Camps (MTACs)
Through a partnership between the Department of Defense, Military Community and Family Policy, Office of Military Family Readiness Policy, Children, Youth, and Families, and the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Purdue University Extension will offer almost 20 different camp experiences to military teens this summer.
These camps are located across the country in Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington. MTACs are amazing experiences which can include whitewater rafting, horse trail riding, climbing, and kayaking.
To view camps by date or location, visit this site: Military Teen Adventure Camps (purdue.edu)
Ohio Troop & Family Assistance Centers
Throughout the state of Ohio are 6 regional Troop and Family Assistance Centers and 4 Wing Family Readiness Program Centers. These centers work to provide support to service members and their families – with an emphasis on providing support during deployments.
Troop and Family Assistance Centers can connect you with a variety of resources including emergency family assistance, youth programs, reintegration services, educational resources, and more.
To find your county’s assistance center, visit this site: Ohio Troop and Family Assistance Centers | Ohio 4-H Youth Development (ohio4h.org)
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