“When one family member is serving in the military, the entire family is serving in the military.” — Claudia P. Kennedy, retired U.S. Army General
These supportive book, curriculum, and educational events were developed to address the need to deliver support, gratitude and comfort to 1) children of the U.S. military for the many sacrifices they make on behalf of our freedoms, and 2) to cultivate awareness and gratitude among their civilian classmates.
Impact of Book and Initiative:~80K students, family members, and educators in the U.S. and abroad.
The book, curriculum, and theme song were written and developed in ongoing consultations with 15 U.S. military-connected, global organizations, including the USO, Association of the US Army, Marine Corps League, Air Force Association, Navy League, Coast Guard Foundation, DoDEA’s Teacher of the Year.
The delightful Little CHAMPS song, written by Jen Fink, was recorded with fellow musicians, featuring children’s voices. Children in DoDEA schools world-round learned and enjoyed singing and dancing along! Enjoy this empowering song, right here!
To amplify the impact of this book, curriculum, storytelling and song, I was deeply honored to serve as the key performer and ‘edu-tainer’ during several USO tours. On tour, I advanced messages of support and gratitude to military-connected students in DoDEA schools across Japan, Okinawa, South Korea, Germany, Italy, and the U.S. To this end, I delivered multi-modal events – programs that I had developed for my entourage – to tens of thousands of students, each receiving their own copy of the book to propel literacy and express gratitude.
Additionally, while on tour, I conducted professional development sessions with educators, served as an ambassador of good will with officials and generals, and entertained wounded warriors in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany.
These USO tours were the greatest honor of my professional life.
