Hundreds of military spouses from across the world logged on to the MilSpouseFest virtual event on November 18 that focused on military family appreciation.
Presented by USAA, the event had a full agenda of speakers and giveaways. Keynote speaker Michelle Norman, Executive Director of Partners in Promise shared her story and encouraged attendees to create boundaries for themselves to sustain through the military spouse life.
“Michelle was HANDS DOWN the best part of today’s event” said one attendee. “Hearing her story made me feel not so alone, it gave me hope, and I felt connected, something I had been lacking since becoming a special needs mama.”
Other speaking segments included Mj Boice and Jenah Wieczorek from PCSgrades, Maureen Haney from Tutor.com, JJ Montanaro from USAA, Maggie Meza from Blue Star Families, Lisa Howard from the Barry Robinson Center, and Whitney Armstrong and Verneice Castillo from Military Spouse Advocacy Network.
The Building Connections panel hosted by Julie Shepard and Chuck Bunch with USAA touched on topics surrounding networking for employment and the challenges of being a military family.
Attendee Teri McMahon told the MSF team, “It was nice to know after so many years in the military, we still all have a lot to learn and grow from. I gained some knowledge about areas that may not directly pertain to me but I could use to spread that knowledge in other places in my life where people may need it.”
New speakers Steve Weintraub of Vet Tix and Besa Pinchotti of National Military Family Association joined the list of speakers and shared their services for military families. Erica Oswalt and Lily Carlton from United Through Reading were also present to talk about how they help bridge the gap between a deployed service member and their family through reading.
Rosa Ambrose told the team that she “learned about resources I was not aware of, as well as enjoyed listening to speakers talk about their experiences being a military spouse. Glad I’m not the only one experiencing challenges and low self assurance when it comes to feeling not good enough.”
MilSpouseFest would like to thank USAA and its many sponsors for their generous help to make these virtual events a success. MilSpouseFest extends a special thank you to FTD for their generous donation of flowers.
For more information on upcoming events, visit www.milspousefest.com/events.