Category Archives: military spouse

What Is Military Appreciation Month?

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It seems like every time we turn around there is a trendy new themed month or day to celebrate or honor. Your social media news feeds are often filled with content about anything from Zombie Awareness Month to National Donut Day. Although many of these months and days might be fun, there are a few lesser known days that should grab our attention. Military Appreciation Month is certainly one of those.

In short, Military Appreciation Month is a time for the members of our nation to reflect on the sacrifices that our civil servants and their families make each day to keep us safe.

Military Appreciation in May

The United States Congress established Military Appreciation Month in 1999. They decided that the month of May would forevermore be a time to honor servicemen and women of all ranks and modes of service.

If you’re familiar with some of the other military centered days on the calendar, then it is probably no surprise that Congress picked May. Some of these days include Loyalty Day, Victory in Europe Day, as well as Memorial Day.

Little Known Patriotic Holidays

May 1st is known as Loyalty Day.

This is a time for citizens of the United States to reflect on our country and remember our heritage. The origins of this day can be traced all the way back to 1921. Whether you are a first generation immigrant or you can trace your ancestry all the way back to the Founding Fathers, this day is for you to celebrate your love of this country! Although this holiday is not as widely celebrated as it once was, there are still some communities who host parades in honor of Loyalty Day.

May 7th – 13th is known as Public Service Recognition Week.

As you know, our military men and women operate in service of the public and the greater good. However, there are many other individuals who operate at local, county, and state level that also serve our communities. This week is set aside to commemorate the sacrifices of Peace Officers, Firefighters, and more.

May 12th is Military Spouse Appreciation Day.

Our Soldiers’ husbands and wives also serve our country and deserve a show of appreciation. This holiday is celebrated on the Friday before Mother’s Day each year and its purpose is to thank military families for their support of our service men and women.

Military Appreciation Month Final Thoughts

You can find a full list of all of the Military Appreciation Month days of celebration here!

Military Spouse Appreciation Day – We Thank You!

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At Forward March Inc. we appreciate the military spouse that has supported our team members from deployments to long days in the office and through so much more.  As Veterans we can never say thank you enough for their sacrifice, support and sustainment of our military families.

In 1984, President Ronald Regan declared May 23 as the first Military Spouse Day. Soon after, U.S. Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger standardized the date by declaring the Friday before Mother’s Day as Military Spouse Appreciation Day. Later, in 1999, Congress officially made the observance a part of National Military Appreciation Month.

Military spouses don’t sign on any dotted lines or deploy in defense of our country, but they serve just the same. Their experiences help develop them into the strong, competent, thoughtful, resourceful, engaging people who make up our military community.

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The Military spouse population is large. There are more than 680,000 active duty spouses who play and important part in the military community. Due to their spouses’ military duty they face many unique challenges. Spouses are and have always been an essential part of the military Family and they contribute to readiness by allowing military members to remain focused on their missions. They are the “force behind the force” and support military members with courage through difficult circumstances, which include numerous household moves as well as stressful deployments.

The Strength of our military members comes from the strength of their Families and the military spouse is the backbone, the support and strength.

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We Thank you!

In honor of Military Spouse Appreciation Day, DoDLive blogger Josiah Wilson pulled together some quick facts about military spouses and featured them in this fantastic infographic.