Each day 22 veterans lose their lives to suicide. That’s one veteran every 65 minutes. Paulette Fryar and the other branch winners from the Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year created the Million Mile Project to bring awareness to suicide prevention.
The Million Mile Project is a way for people to come together and do something even in times when you feel helpless. This project shines a light on mental health and encourages people to get outside and be active. Especially during a global pandemic, Paulette reminds people that your mental health matters.
Paulette is a military wife and mother of 4 grown boys. Now that she is an empty nester, she is driven to help support and mentor the next generation of Military Spouses…through mentoring for Military Mothers of Preschoolers International (known as MOPS) and also through various military spouse all rank, all branch groups. Connection and support is her goal!
Days after being named the Military Spouse of the year, her family was touched by PTSD related suicide and she was inspired to create the Million Mile Project to bring more awareness to Veteran and Military PTSD, and support Suicide Prevention.
#TogetherWeAreStronger is her favorite hashtag-and she loves to bring people together so that no one faces the adversity of Military life alone.
Listeners, if you would like to connect with Paulette on social media via Facebook or Instagram. You can also check out more about Paulette and other Military Spouses of the Year here. You can also find the Million Mile Project Facebook group here.
Don’t forget one lucky listen will get the chance to win a Million Mile Project tee shirt. For a chance to win, simply like, comment, or share any social media post sharing this podcast. We will randomly choose one winner one week after this podcast airs.
Holiday Fun with the Command Team
- Sarah R. shares 5 quick tips for staying organized around the holidays.
- Amanda B. reminds us sometimes we have to pivot during the holidays.
- Brooklyn tells us about Operation Christmas Child. Learn more here.
- Sharita gives us her big tip for keeping stress in check – setting boundaries.
- Jolene talks about avoiding stress with quiet time. Click here to see her Christmas playlist.
- Chrissy lets us in on some of her family holiday traditions.
- Cori shares with us her favorite Christmas traditions.
- Sarah P. is sending special holiday greetings and tidings of joy.
- Amanda K. shares with us her favorite Christmas memory.
- Kayla talks about how Christmas traditions can be different each year.
- Angie shares some mouthwatering holiday recipes.
- Annie walks us through a Christmas market.
- Shopping online, it is very easy to help with Operation Christmas Spirit. You can check them out here.
News 6 with Jolene
Here is this week’s News 6 mashup of stories for the week of Dec. 13, 2021, straight from AWN News 6 Correspondent, Jolene McNutt:
Couple Married for 77 Years Gets Long-Awaited Wedding Photos
After 77 years of marriage, Royce and Frankie King celebrated their anniversary with wedding photos they never got to take. Today reported that “There was no time to get a photographer or even a wedding gown . . . when they got married on [Royce’s] whirlwind, two-day leave in 1944 before he went overseas to fight in World War II.” Royce, 98 years old, served in the Air Force and wore his uniform for their impromptu anniversary celebration.
Office Cubicle Turned into Life-Sized Gingerbread House
Monika Orrey was a new employee when her company announced a workspace competition. She began collecting cardboard and designing her festive entry: a life-sized gingerbread house. “I consider myself very festive, or as my daughter would say, I am ‘extra!’” she told Good News Network. Monika won the competition, but she also said it helped her break the ice with her coworkers.
Need Last-Minute Gift Ideas?
Do you still have some shopping to finish for those who made your “nice” list? I do. I thought I might not be alone, so I compiled a few links with gift ideas just for you. Here are some last-minute gift lists compiled by other sources:
You can check out more of this week’s top stories here.
Encouragement Minute with Juanda Bryant
Your encouragement for today is to set boundaries. The reason why it is necessary to set boundaries is so you can protect your peace, your sanity. You cannot allow everyone access, because if you do – people won’t value your time or energy. Setting boundaries may be not responding to emails right away, not giving time to something that doesn’t benefit you/your well being, or not giving a definite answer until you have thought about it.
Resource Recon with Sarah P. and Chrissy
We want to highlight an organization that’s dedicated to helping service members and their families who are facing hard times during the holiday season.
Operation Christmas Spirit is part of Operation Help a Hero, which supports service members and their families, single service members, and unit events. There are plenty of ways you can help, too. You can host an angel tree, collect gift cards, donate online, host a toy drive, collect gifts for single service members, collect donations for holiday parties, and more.
If you find yourself an Amazon shopper, you can select Operation Christmas Spirit as part of Amazon Smile, and qualifying orders will send a small donation to the organization for every purchase you make. There’s also an Operation Help a Hero wishlist on Amazon, so you can buy from that list and Amazon will take care of all the shipping.
To get donating or to find out more, go to Operation Help a Hero.
Empowerment Patrol Report
Today we are showcasing one of our volunteers, who is our MRE (Motivated and Ready to Empower) winner – Cori Sibley, our Engagement Ambassador.
Cori is a mama of three and an Army spouse of 18 years. She and her husband have a 20-year-old son that attends University of Kentucky, a 12-year-old daughter that plays middle school volleyball, and a 9-year-old son that plays baseball. All that to say, they are always very busy! Cori’s hobbies are going to the gym and making crafts. She also loves to travel, hang out at the beach, and listen to country music. The Sibley family has lived in seven different states and moved 14 times.
We also want to give a huge shout out again to our Band of Bloggers who are always going above and beyond.
Thank you for doing your part to empower military families all across the globe.
Thank You
Thank you for tuning into this week’s episode. Please leave a five-star rating and review on Apple podcasts, then send us a screenshot of your review to info@armywifenetwork.com or DM us on Facebook or Instagram @armywifenetwork to receive a special in-real-life gift as a thank you on behalf of AWN. We appreciate your engagement and support.
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Paulette: YOU. ARE. A. GEM! Love your heart behind the Million Mile Project (legit wearing my purple shirt right now!) and it was such a joy to chat with you for our super special holiday program. Thank you.