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THE Home Front A Special Report for Friends of the VFW National Home for Children Summer 2015 Grabbing a Lifeline YOU Make It Happen It still makes me cry when I think about it Shawn says This place is a godsend Melinda adds It was like a TV show the quiet the serenity Coming home after three tours in Iraq Shawn Hoskins had a hard time leaving his wartime experiences behind Shawn was assigned a caseworker who patiently helped him to heal Daycare was provided for the youngest girls while both Shawn and Melinda worked and began restoring their finances With the family stress relieved all the kids relaxed and enjoyed each other as well as their idyllic new community I still smell the gunpowder the jet fuel the blood every day he says Things that I saw things I had to do there I don t like to talk about There s nothing that will take it away Words cannot describe my gratitude for the VFW National Home Melinda says They gave us hopefulness they gave us peace at a time when we were still at war in our house Unfortunately Shawn came home to financial difficulties that he was in no state to overcome difficulties that quickly began to spiral and ultimately resulted in the family of six being evicted from their home The family smiles more now The joy is back in Shawn and Melinda s marriage And it s all because of the VFW National Home Shawn says A Word from our Executive Director page 2 Donor Spotlight Brandon Hadley page 3 New Computers Arrive on Campus page 4 And now after two years at the National Home the family has been able to return to their hometown ready to build a life on their own Wife Melinda adds When he has a rough night like in a storm he sometimes doesn t know where he is It takes him back to something In this Issue That s when they heard about the VFW National Home for Children After an interview they came here to live and to put their lives back together Did you know Military families relocate 10 times more often than civilian families on average every 2 or 3 years See the video Hear and see the Hoskins tell their heartwarming story more fully in our Grabbing a Lifeline video at www vfwnationalhome org videos VFW National Home for Children 3573 South Waverly Rd Eaton Rapids MI 48827 Phone 866 483 9642 www vfwnationalhome org

THE HOME FRONT A publication of VFW National Home for Children 3573 South Waverly Road Eaton Rapids MI 48827 Phone 866 483 9642 www vfwnationalhome org Staff Patrice Green Executive Director Molly Studinger Program Director Tim Smith Marketing and Development Director Todd Marriott Facilities Director A Word from Patrice Green Executive Director Many of the children on the National Home campus handle responsibility so well that it s easy to forget just how young they really are Some kids have had to step up and take over extra family duties because of separations from a parent serving overseas others because of family struggles with divorce or financial problems And sometimes their added stress is due to the lingering impact of post combat trauma as with the Hoskins family whose story is featured in this newsletter Here at the National Home we help our kids grow and thrive in every possible way Of course we provide counseling and therapy for those who need it And of course we also support our kids educational needs with tutoring a library on campus learning events science and computer lab and now new Check out our new website at vfwnationalhome org The National Home has launched a brand new website designed to make it easier for families to find the help they need and for you to find information New features of the website include photo galleries an integrated campus blog and more video We re now mobilefriendly too Visit vfwnationalhome org to explore all the new features PAGE 2 and up to date computers in each family s home thanks to the support of friends like you But we also help our kids to be kids to relax and play to engage in a genuinely varied menu of activities designed to capture their imaginations and develop their interests To have fun These activities are a major strain on our budget so we need your support to keep them going I hope you will consider making a special gift for our Activity Fund because for the children these activities are more than just fun Truly these are the childhood memories that our kids will carry with them for the rest of their lives And I m sure you agree they deserve good memories as they have already sacrificed so much

DONOR SPOTLIGHT Brandon Hadley For Brandon Hadley it s all about family His beloved grandmother grew up at the National Home and he is certain that her experiences here helped to shape her into the amazing woman she is As his grandmother has recently become ill Brandon has deepened his involvement with the Home to honor her In fact he is hoping to visit the campus this summer Fortunately for us Brandon s definition of family includes the extended family of VFW members and military families in general and he has strong feelings about their treatment First he says it is normal for people to struggle with the aftermath of war Families must be cared for in a manner that doesn t stigmatize them Second healing from war is a family problem Families should be treated as a unit as opposed to simply treating the veteran to have a place that can help to keep families together while they deal with the struggles of war is important to me And Brandon continues I also believe that the brotherhood developed during wartime should extend to our families If veterans do not stand up to support one another s families then I feel we have really let our battle buddies down Such deep concerns about the family of veterans are no surprise considering his own family s commitment to service In addition to Brandon s service in Iraq his great grandfather was a World War I veteran his grandfather was a veteran of World War II and his father also served in the U S Army Currently a member of VFW Post 1089 Brandon is also a member of Canton 60 Free and Accepted Masons and is very involved with his lodge He loves to fish He loves to spend time with family and friends And he loves Michigan Football on Saturdays and Cleveland Browns football on Sundays But above all else he definitely wants to encourage others to donate to the National Home and to get involved As he explains I realize that complaining about things will never change the world Real world changing comes from the folks that are willing to give of themselves and their resources Long time donor Brandon Hadley is an Iraqi Freedom veteran an 18 year member of the Ohio Army National Guard VFW Life Member and in his words just a normal down to earth guy The people who get their hands dirty are the ones who change the world Even if that change is just one family at a time Where should we shine the Spotlight next If you would like to nominate another member of our community or volunteer yourself for a future Donor Spotlight please contact Nancy Archambeau at 866 483 9642 or by e mail to info vfwnationalhome org Popular Activities Include Expanded 4 H Program Thanks to the support of friends like you we were able to expand our 4 H program this year giving more kids the opportunity to learn responsibility feel a sense of accomplishment and just have fun raising farm animals never experience if it weren t for the National Home In preparation for livestock judging and auctions at this fall s county fair we ve got 16 kids raising pigs and 5 kids raising rabbits Plus there is now also a 4 H Cloverbud program for our 5 to 8 year olds Activities include making no sew blankets drawing gardening scrapbooking photography and cooking We have birthday parties visits to the zoo fishing expeditions and of course since these are kids with a family tradition of service we give them lots of opportunities to learn and volunteer Some children volunteer at the local animal shelter Others participate in a service program at the VA hospital in Battle Creek MI spending a day each week with the veterans Our kids have really enjoyed this time and the visits gave them a genuine appreciation for the sacrifices these veterans made to serve our country And 4 H is just one of the activities our recreation department plans and organizes activities that many of the kids would During winter break going on field trips is always a treat For most of the kids it s their first chance to try downhill skiing roller skating or ice skating Throughout the year our Community Center is a great place to play basketball air hockey ping pong or just hang out with friends But it s only the support of friends like you that makes these activities possible Will you come to the aid of our kids and our Activity Fund with a special gift today How to help You can donate specifically for the activity program by writing Activity Fund in the memo line on your check and return your gift in the enclosed pre addressed envelope Thank you PAGE 3

Can a Charitable Gift Annuity Benefit You AND Veterans There are very good reasons why charitable gift annuities have been around and remained popular for more than 100 years An annuity not only helps your favorite charity it can bring you important benefits as well such as providing a guaranteed fixed income for life some of which will be tax free possibly saving tax on Social Security benefits supplementing your retirement income reducing capital gains taxes and saving on estate taxes offering an alternative to CDs and money market funds If you want to ensure that the National Home can meet the future needs of veterans families and children establishing a charitable gift annuity may be the perfect option for you And it s easy Nancy Archambeau Assistant Development Director can help you learn more about charitable gift annuities and how they might meet both your personal and your charitable goals To get started simply use the enclosed reply form to request our brochure contact Nancy toll free at 866 483 9642 or use our interactive tools at vfwnationalhome org annuity to explore the benefits of different scenarios YOU Make It Happen August 8 Ohio Day NH Campus August 9 Michigan Day NH Campus September 26 Illinois Day NH Campus September 27 Indiana Day NH Campus October 23 Trustees Board Meeting NH Campus October 24 Annual meeting of Life Members NH Campus October 24 WI MO Fall Festival NH Campus December 5 Cootie Christmas Party NH Campus New Computers Arrive on Campus The entire National Home campus is filled with gratitude toward all who contributed to our Technology Fund Finally each family house and all staff have brand new up to date computers with high speed internet access Thank you for bringing us into the 21st century Our old computers and printers got a lot of use and were starting to break down They ran very slowly and about half of them relied on an operating system Windows XP that is no longer serviced or supported Worse the computers were simply outdated They just didn t have enough memory or capabilities to handle the new programs not to mention the huge quantity of images and video that are processed today Fortunately the cost of computing power continues to drop So it was cheaper to replace our hardware especially at nonprofit rates than to upgrade and repair it And friends like you helped us to do just that understanding that up todate computers aren t a luxury anymore They re genuinely essential especially for our school age kids To complete homework students are directed to websites where answers and information can be found Assignments are posted on school websites so that both parents and students can stay informed on all homework needs Grade school students exchange email PAGE 4 Calendar of Events addresses so they can work on group assignments Resident parents take entire courses online In addition to school needs National Home staff use their computers to communicate with residents and to keep track of their needs and progress And don t forget that the internet is the main way that families communicate with a spouse or parent who is serving overseas With webcam video our active military families can stay close even when separated by thousands of miles and what a wonderful gift that is So again thank you and please know that every person at the National Home is grateful for this crucial improvement in our technological status