{"id":54525,"date":"2023-11-30T23:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=54525"},"modified":"2023-12-03T06:14:59","modified_gmt":"2023-12-03T06:14:59","slug":"first-lady-welcomes-national-guard-families-to-white-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=54525","title":{"rendered":"First Lady Welcomes National Guard Families to White House"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n First lady Jill Biden welcomes National Guard senior leaders and family members for a roundtable discussion on support for National Guard children in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington Nov. 27, 2023. Attendees, including Guard children, and adjutants general, also joined the first lady\u2019s presentation of the 2023 White House \u201cMagic, Wonder & Joy\u201d holiday theme and decorations. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Zach Sheely)
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WASHINGTON – For the second straight year, first lady Jill Biden welcomed National Guardsmen, spouses and children to the White House to discuss their challenges and how best to support them.<\/p>\n

The first lady heard stories of the pride and resilience children show in the face of frequent calls for their Guard parents to serve their nation, state and community.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur National Guardsmen and women have to be ready to go on support missions at a moment\u2019s notice,\u201d she told them. \u201cAnd that means that their kids \u2014 all of you \u2014 know what it\u2019s like to have your mom or your dad missing at the dinner table every time they\u2019re called to duty.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you do it with humility and honor,\u201d she said. \u201cI want you to know that my husband, President Biden, and I are so grateful and so proud of all of you. We know it isn\u2019t easy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since 9\/11, more than 1 million Guardsmen have deployed in support of operations around the globe. Because the National Guard is the combat reserve of the Army and Air Force, its members are trained and equipped to help with first-response efforts at home during a crisis.<\/p>\n

Today, the Guard stands at more than 430,000 members strong. As the second largest military organization in the Department of Defense, its mission, motto and promise to America is to be Always Ready, Always There.<\/p>\n

The National Guard is in about 2,800 communities \u2014 almost every ZIP code. Most Guardsmen serve part-time and balance their service with civilian careers and family responsibilities.<\/p>\n

Kelly Hokanson, the National Guard senior spouse and mother of three service members, told the group that growing up as a military child is a sacrifice and a gift. Kelly\u2019s husband, Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, is the 29th chief of the National Guard Bureau.<\/p>\n

Gen. Hokanson has served in duty stations across the United States and deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a sacrifice of time with your family \u2014 a sacrifice every member of our community shares,\u201d Kelly Hokanson said. \u201cBut it\u2019s also a gift. A gift of compassion, service and unfathomable strength and resilience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Caleb Greico, 14, a New Jersey native, attended the event with his parents and sister, Penelope. He introduced Jill Biden to the group, a responsibility he relished.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you for inviting me and my family to the White House,\u201d Caleb told her. \u201cWe are very honored to be here with you.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just my family, but everyone here has a family member that has been contributing to this country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Caleb\u2019s mom, Army Spc. Laura Greico, a signal support systems specialist assigned to Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 113th Infantry Regiment, 44th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, New Jersey National Guard, is preparing to deploy with her unit.<\/p>\n

Caleb asked other children for advice on how to cope with a parent being gone for an extended time. Staying active and connected in community circles were common themes from those whose parents have deployed or been away for long durations.<\/p>\n

\u201cFocus on the stuff you enjoy and work on yourself,\u201d said Aiden Buckner, 14, from New Mexico.<\/p>\n

Aiden\u2019s dad, Air Force Capt. Thomas Buckner, is the deputy commander of the New Mexico Guard\u2019s 150th Civil Engineering Squadron.<\/p>\n

\u201cTry your best to work and focus on your goals,\u201d Aiden said.<\/p>\n

Eight-year-old Marina Munyabuhoro immigrated to America from a refugee camp in East Africa with her parents when she was 11 months old. Her father, Airman 1st Class Theogene Munyabuhoro, joined the New Hampshire National Guard and became an American citizen.<\/p>\n

Marina told the first lady she wants to serve in the military \u201cto honor my father\u2019s legacy and to be a symbol of hope \u2026 and a good example to other immigrant kids.<\/p>\n

And to protect and defend this blessed country.\u201d<\/p>\n

The president and first lady are familiar with National Guard service: their son, the late Army Maj. Beau Biden, served in the Delaware Guard, leaving behind his children to deploy on a tour in Iraq. It\u2019s part of why Jill Biden helped establish Joining Forces to support service members, veterans and those they hold most dear.<\/p>\n

She encouraged the children in attendance to share with their teachers, coaches and influential people in their lives that their parents serve.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a teacher, I ask my class, \u2018Is anybody here militarily connected and what are your connections?\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cThat helps me to understand that they might be going through a rough patch or might be absent for a day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Guard leaders and families \u2014 more than 200 representing 36 states and territories \u2014 attended the event, which included a holiday presentation and the first lady\u2019s unveiling of the 2023 White House \u201cMagic, Wonder & Joy\u201d holiday theme and decorations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are grateful for everyone\u2019s support of our National Guard families and especially of the children who are central to so many of our members\u2019 lives and service,\u201d Gen. Hokanson said. \u201cWe could not do what we do without the support of our families.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more National Guard news<\/a><\/p>\n

National Guard Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n

National Guard X (Twitter<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

First lady Jill Biden welcomes National Guard senior leaders and family members for a roundtable discussion on support for National Guard children in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington Nov. 27, 2023. Attendees, including Guard children, and adjutants general, also joined the first lady\u2019s presentation of the 2023 White House \u201cMagic, Wonder & Joy\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":54527,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54525","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54525"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54525\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54528,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54525\/revisions\/54528"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/54527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}