Supporting families of the National Guard

Much attention has been given to the sacrifice and casualties suffered by American soldiers serving in Iraq. And regardless of one's political views about the war itself, just about all voices are joined in the cause of “supporting our troops.” But what has gotten far less attention is the sacrifice and casualties suffered by their families serving back home. And there are few voices championing the cause of “supporting the families.”

The emotional struggle of worry and loneliness is of course ever present for these families. But financial struggles often exacerbate their challenges. The families of the National Guard called for service are especially vulnerable. These families are far less prepared and also supported than the families of the regular armed forces. In many cases, these families have suddenly lost the primary breadwinner, manager of family accounts, repairer of broken items, and other key elements of the family’s finances. There are heartbreaking stories of bankruptcy, of running out of money to even pay the phone bill to talk to one’s spouse, of a serviceman scrambling for money to fly back home on leave to see his newborn.

The Army's top general, General George Casey has acknowledged, “We are asking more and more of our families than I would ever have thought possible.”

The Daltons, who live in the suburbs of Boston, first heard of these stories at a party attended by some of these families. Nate Dalton, an executive at a financial management firm, was struck by the injustice of it all. “The burden of service,” Nate said, “is falling so disproportionately upon a small segment of our population – and there's so little support for them.”

Nate's first response was to deploy his own family's resources towards helping these families. However, he soon realized the enormity of the problem required other families to get involved. He has very recently formed Guard Support, a foundation dedicated to this cause. To rapidly build up its organizational capacity to deal with the pressing needs, Nate asked SixSeeds for technical assistance.

SixSeeds has set up a matching grant of $150,000 for Guard Support. 

SixSeeds is partnering with Consulting Within Reach to rapidly build the organizational capacity of Guard Support. If you would like to financially support that effort, you can send contributions directly to Guard support via their web site.

SixSeeds has set up a matching grant of up to $150,000 to get Guard Support rolling.  If you'd like to make a financial donation to the initiative, you can send contributions directly to Guard Support, and then email us letting us know of the amount.  We will then match that amount in your name.  The offer is good until the end of the first quarter 2008.

For more on the matching grant, read a letter from John and Jean Kingston, the founders of SixSeeds.

If you know a “service family” of the National Guard or the regular armed forces, consider adopting that family. Such a family may not broadcast its need, but you should view them the same way you would view a family that has suddenly lost a parent. Start with cooking meals, offering to shop, babysitting, or other very practical needs. After awhile, you can gently ask about their financial needs and discern whether you feel called to help meet them in some way.