[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 55 (Tuesday, April 8, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H2020-H2022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NATIONAL MONTH OF THE MILITARY CHILD
Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to
the resolution (H. Res. 265) honoring military children during
``National Month of the Military Child,'' as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 265
Whereas more than 2,750,000 Americans are demonstrating
their courage and commitment to freedom by serving in the
Armed Forces of the United States;
Whereas 50 percent of the members of the Armed Forces, when
deployed away from their permanent duty stations, have left
families with children behind;
Whereas no one feels the effect of those deployments more
than the children of deployed service members;
Whereas as of March 15, 2008, approximately 3,400 of these
children have lost a parent serving in the Armed Forces
during the preceding 5 years;
Whereas the daily struggles and personal sacrifices of
children of members of the Armed Forces too often go
unnoticed;
Whereas the children of members of the Armed Forces are a
source of pride and honor to all Americans and it is fitting
that the Nation recognize their contributions and celebrate
their spirit;
Whereas the ``National Month of the Military Child'',
observed in April each year, recognizes military children for
their sacrifices and contributes to demonstrating the
Nation's unconditional support to members of the Armed
Forces;
Whereas in addition to Department of Defense programs to
support military families and military children, various
programs and campaigns have been established in the private
sector to honor, support, and thank military children by
fostering awareness and appreciation for the sacrifices and
the challenges they face; and
Whereas a month-long salute to military children will
encourage support for those organizations and campaigns
established to provide direct support for military children
and families: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) joins the Secretary of Defense in honoring the children
of members of the Armed Forces and recognizes that they too
share in the burden of protecting the Nation;
(2) urges Americans to join with the military community in
observing the ``National Month of the Military Child'' with
appropriate ceremonies and activities that honor, support,
and thank military children; and
(3) recognizes with great appreciation the contributions
made by private-sector organizations that provide resources
and assistance to military families and the communities that
support them.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
Guam (Ms. Bordallo) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wittman) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Guam.
General Leave
Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
on the resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Guam?
There was no objection.
Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might
consume.
Madam Speaker, I stand before you in support of House Resolution 265,
honoring military children for their personal sacrifice and recognizing
the month of April as the National Month of the Military Child.
Currently, 2.75 million Americans are serving in the Armed Forces of
the United States. Of that number, 1.7 million who have served or who
are currently serving have been deployed, nearly 600,000 members have
deployed more than once, and close to 260,000 are currently deployed.
These are important points for us to take note of and reflect upon
today because today there are nearly 1.2 million military children in
families whose parents proudly serve in the uniform.
Unfortunately, 50 percent of the servicemembers who are currently
deployed away from their duty stations are separated from their spouses
and their children.
Long-term and multiple deployments have shown undesirable effects on
both servicemembers, their families and their children. They sometimes
experience severe emotional, psychological and fiscal problems over the
course of these deployments. Over extended periods of time, anxiety and
strain become a part of the daily lives of both spouses and children
who sacrifice unduly.
Approximately 3,400 military children have lost a parent serving in
the Armed Forces during the preceding 5 years. Military children are
making personal sacrifices in support of this Nation.
During National Month of the Military Child, we need to ensure that
we support all the American children who faithfully share their family
in order to protect our way of life.
House Resolution 265 encourages public and private sector support for
both military children and their families through direct contributions
to scholarships, grants and donations, action which promotes family
readiness.
So it is appropriate to celebrate the children who are loved by these
brave men and women in uniform. The health and the well-being of these
children is important to the overall readiness of our forces.
We therefore appreciate the leadership shown by our distinguished
colleague from Northern Virginia (Mr. Moran) in sponsoring this
important resolution.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support House Resolution 265,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WITTMAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
might consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of House Resolution 265, as
amended, which honors military children during National Month of the
Military Child.
Today we are a Nation at war with more than 2.75 million men and
women in uniform and more than 280,000 deployed worldwide. The men and
women
[[Page H2021]]
of today's Armed Forces are all volunteers, but as never before in our
history, they are also married and have families. At any given time,
when deployed away from their home bases, 50 percent of the members of
the Armed Forces leave behind families with children.
While the numbers and statistics are interesting, the real message
here is that the sacrifices and commitments made by the members of the
armed services are very often directly felt and experienced by their
family members and especially their children. Each of the military
services and the Department of Defense go to extraordinary lengths to
provide the resources and environment to support military families and
children. Preservation and support of families is recognized as a
military readiness requirement.
I fully support those efforts. The resolution today strives to ensure
that proper attention is focused on sacrifices, spirit and
contributions made by the children of military families. This
resolution also seeks to bring the recognition and thanks to both the
Department of Defense and private sector programs that support military
children and families.
I want to thank my friend, Mr. Moran of Virginia, for sponsoring this
important resolution and urge my colleagues to support it.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to
my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran) who is
the original sponsor of this important measure.
Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I thank my friend, the distinguished delegate
from Guam, for yielding me the time.
I thank the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wittman) for his kind
comments as well. I am glad to be joined here by the Chair of Military
Construction, Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee, Mr. Chet
Edwards.
Madam Speaker, a child's process of growing up is difficult, but
imagine what it must be like when one parent or even both parents are
deployed abroad as part of their duty in our Armed Forces.
While friends and relatives pray for their safe return, no one feels
the impact of deployment more than the children of servicemembers in
combat overseas. We are learning more about the impact that living
under this shadow of uncertainty has on our children.
The incidence of military children needing psychological counseling
has increased dramatically. Last year Children's Hospital in the
District of Columbia had over 1,000 visits from military children
suffering from behavioral and mental health problems. These are just
normal kids who want what any child wants, their mothers and fathers at
home to tuck them in at night reassuring them everything will be all
right.
Today more than 2,300,000 Americans demonstrate their courage and
commitment every day to our Nation by serving in our Armed Forces. Of
these men and women, most have families subjected to frequent moves
from one installation to another, long deployments abroad, and the fear
that their loved one serving overseas might never come home.
{time} 1430
Fifty percent of our troops deployed overseas have children that are
left behind. That is more than one million children with at least one
parent deployed overseas. Those figures, statistics, can too easily be
ignored sometimes because they are abstract. But here is one that can't
be dismissed: 3,400 children have already lost a parent serving in the
Armed Forces over the past 6 years.
When I introduced this resolution 2 years ago, the number of children
who had lost a parent was 1,000 and now it is 3,400. The Department of
Defense understands that without the families' support, they will never
have the soldiers' full support.
In 1986, Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger declared this month
the ``National Month of the Military Child.'' Every year since, events
at military bases, forts and other installations across the Nation have
been held to celebrate the military family, replete with lots of lofty
rhetoric but not enough true attention to their needs.
Two bases in my own district, Fort Belvoir and Fort Myer, hold annual
events providing military kids the chance to be distracted a bit by
just being a kid with other kids in similar situations. But the
Congress needs to step up.
Today I am glad to join with my colleagues, particularly with my
colleagues who will speak here today, to offer this resolution
officially recognizing the month of April as the National Month of the
Military Child, and dedicating the Congress to pay more attention to
the children and the spouses of our soldiers.
My colleagues on the other side of the aisle, Representative Issa and
Walter Jones of North Carolina are bipartisan sponsors for this effort.
I thank them for their support and leadership.
This resolution is just a small way that Congress can recognize the
sacrifice these youngsters and their families are asked to make, but it
is an opportunity to commit ourselves to doing much more.
Specifically, the resolution joins the Secretary of Defense in
honoring military children, recognizing that they too share the burden
and are making a great sacrifice in protecting our Nation.
I would also like to take the opportunity to thank the organization
Kids Serve Too. It is in my congressional district, and is dedicated to
the needs of military families everywhere. It was created by military
families to support other military families. Kids Serve Too sponsors
activities and events for military children. It is represented in the
gallery today specifically by Tricia Johnson and her daughters, Cat and
Claire, and her sister, Kathleen Murphy.
Madam Speaker, military families and their children deserve our
heartfelt appreciation for their sacrifice. Today we honor them and
their sacrifice and thank you for bringing this resolution to the
floor.
Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are not permitted to recognize
guests in the gallery.
Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Edwards), the chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on
Military Construction.
Mr. EDWARDS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlelady for her time and
recognition.
Madam Speaker, I want to salute Mr. Moran and the cosponsors of this
resolution. In my book, military children and spouses are truly the
unsung heroes and heroines of our Nation's defense. They may not put on
our Nation's uniform, but they serve every single day and they serve
with great honor and distinction.
One cannot have a makeup day for a parent not being present for a
birthday, special occasion, for a mom or dad not being there for a high
school graduation or a college graduation. There are no makeup days for
those missed special occasions. And as Mr. Moran pointed out, in 3,400
cases, military children have made the ultimate sacrifice of losing a
mother or father in service to our country. It is so right that we
honor these great Americans, the military children, today with this
resolution.
As Mr. Moran also pointed out, I think it is also more important that
we honor them not just during the month of April with our words and
floor speeches, but every day and every month and every year with our
deeds, with effective funding, adequate funding for the Impact Aid
Program that provides extra Federal funding to school districts with
heavy concentrations of military children, with day-care programs which
this Congress last year took the initiative on and added $130 million
worth of day-care centers for military children throughout the country,
especially needed during a time of war.
We worked hard on military housing so children can live in houses
they are proud to call their homes, and their parents are as well. And
this Congress last year took the initiative in increasing by an
historic unprecedented level funding for VA medical care so that when
those parents leave the military, they will continue to get their
military care. I urge support of this resolution.
Mr. WITTMAN of Virginia. I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
[[Page H2022]]
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from Guam (Ms. Bordallo) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 265, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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