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Community Corner

Armed Services Y Helps Military Families Stay Strong

The ASYMCA offers support and encouragement to military spouses and their children

YMCAs are known for helping support families and communities, and that's especially true for the Armed Services Y at Fort Bragg.

Unlike civilian Y programs that tend to emphasize physical fitness and team sports, the Fort Bragg Y is geared toward addressing the specific challenges of a military lifestyle, said Lynne Grates, executive director of the ASYMCA.

"We don't do fitness and aquatics, because all that is free on post," Grates said. "Our goal is to tailor programs to what military families need."

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Take Operation Kid Comfort, for example. When a client stopped by to visit with Grates several years ago, she talked about the emotional needs of young children whose parents were serving overseas.

"She had both a son and son-in-law who were deployed, and was concerned about the young children who were left behind," Grates said.

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That discussion led to the startup of Operation Kid Comfort, a program that now touches thousands of families annually.

According to Grates, younger children may not clearly remember a parent who has been absent for a year or more, while older children often have concerns about what to expect when their dad or mom returns to the household.

Special quilts and pillows featuring photos of the deployed parent are provided through the program, helping strengthen memories and family ties.

Since getting its start at Fort Bragg, the program has spread to ASYMCAs around the country, Grates said.

Many of the adult volunteers who help sew the unique textile creations say they also gain something through the program.

"I was hooked the moment I saw a kid come in and pick up a quilt," said Elizabeth Cripts, 31, whose assists with sewing for the project. "It was really special."

Cripts, who grew up in a military family and whose husband was deployed to Iraq last January, said volunteering with the ASYMCA helps her avoid feeling isolated, even when her husband is far away.

"It makes a world of difference being involved."

Other popular programs at the ASYMCA include Holiday Hearts, which provides toys and other Christmas gifts for more than 800 families annually, and Baby Bundles, that provide a layette for newborns delivered at Womack Army Medical Center.

Other programs include Mommy and Me arts and crafts classes for children ages 2 through 5, after-care for elementary school-age kids, and a Tween Center, where slightly older students can hang out after school and watch movies, play video games and engage in other fun, age-appropriate activities.

The ASYMCA at Fort Bragg serves families at Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base. A separate facility with similar programming serves families at Camp Lejeune, Grates said. The Y is funded entirely through grants and donations, she added.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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