Today is Military Spouse Appreciation Day, as proclaimed by the President Obama in his press release this morning. In 1984 then President Ronald Reagan proclaimed the first ever Military Spouse Appreciation Day. The then secretary of Defense, Caspar Weinberger, standardized that each year on the Friday, before Mother’s Day, the United States would honor the spouses of our Armed Forces.
I was fortunate to celebrate this special holiday at Fort Bragg for the first time May 2007. Fort Bragg held an event called Soldier for a Day, I was very excited about it. A group of ladies from our Family Readiness Group (FRG) decided we would do it together. It was a day full of activities. We got to fire M-16’s at the virtual firing range, experience some morning physical training, (PT), got to experience wearing gear an Airborne Infantry soldier and we also got to “jump” off the 34ft tower onto a zip line while wearing the gear. I think it took me 10 minutes to step off of the ledge. It was an incredible feeling to just stand there and talk myself into “stepping off.” I’m not sure what made me do it, maybe the fact that all of my friends had done it already and I didn’t want to punk out.. Either way, I did it and I’m so glad I did. It was definitely the cherry on top of an amazing day. We were each awarded Airborne wings and given an amazing gift basket. Fort Bragg did it right! No other duty station that we have been stationed at has had an event such as that one. But then again we’ve been at Air Force Bases too.. which isn’t bad either- I just miss the “BIG” Army dynamic.
A lot of people don’t care for Fort Bragg or the Fayetteville area, I actually enjoyed it there. Was treated very well by everyone and felt like there was genuine care and concern for our families and our troops. It’ll always have a special place in my heart.
my keepsake from the event
If you are a Military Spouse- I tip my hat to you and I appreciate what you do today and everyday! If you have a friend that’s a spouse, please make sure and acknowledge him or her. It’s not the hardest job in the military, but it can get pretty tricky at times.
I have never heard of any of this but I think it is really cool! Thanks for sharing!
You most definitely deserve to be appreciated!! Happy MSAD to you!
It was a lot of fun 🙂