Photo By Sgt. Scott Akanewich | U.S. Army Reserve soldiers and their families are welcomed to the 63rd Regional...... read more read more
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LOS ANGELES – Under bright blue, sunny Southern California skies, hundreds of soldiers and their families of the U.S. Army Reserve converged for a Yellow Ribbon event Feb. 22-24 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
The attendees filed into the enormous, multi-towered glass structure and made their way under an arc of yellow balloons, where they were welcomed by an army of volunteers who, in conjunction with the event coordinators, created an enveloping ambiance of warmth and esprit de corps.
Just what the doctor ordered for troops preparing to deploy, family members whose loved ones are already overseas and soldiers who have recently returned from deployment. This is just what the Yellow Ribbon program is all about – making all parties involved better-equipped with the resources they need to deal with the trials and tribulations of before, during and after deployments.
The dancing waters of the various fountains in the lobby of the hotel set a serene scene as Janae Tovar, wife of Sgt. Alberto Tovar of the 340th Transportation Detachment - currently deployed – spoke about the Yellow Ribbon program and what it means to her.
“I’m always struck when all of us get together like this at the scope and magnitude of it all and how many of us there really are,” said Tovar, who is experiencing her first deployment as a spouse. “At times, you feel a bit isolated, but events like this remind you that you’re not abandoned.”
One of the best aspects of the event for her individually was to be part of a collective group with one thing in common, she said.
“I hear universal truths and similar themes to what I’m going through,” said Tovar, a mother of three. “This provides me with time to interact with others who are going through the same thing.”
Something Tovar has learned from the various classes that are part of the two-day program is each individual needs to formulate a strategic plan of their own to overcome the obstacles created by long-term family separation.
“There is definitely a skill set involved in handling the entire scenario,” she said. “It’s one that should be adaptable to change in order to be resilient and improve those skills necessary for a successful deployment.”
Tovar pointed specifically to the “Building Mental Toughness” class as an example of how to extinguish everyday fires before they become all-consuming blazes, she said.
“For example, if one of my children is constantly losing a sweatshirt, I realize I have to keep it in the proper perspective before I blow it out of proportion,” she said. “One of the biggest mistakes is to let the overall situation make little annoyances seem much bigger than they really are.”
Once the morning session was over, the crowd migrated to an expansive dining hall where they enjoyed a lovely catered lunch while reflecting on all the information and resources they had been presented with over just the first half-day of the event.
Bill Maxson, an Army veteran himself, was on hand because his daughter, Spc. Brittney Oliver of the 311th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, is currently deployed.
“Back when I was active duty, we didn’t have anything like this,” said Maxson.
This was his second Yellow Ribbon event, following the pre-deployment phase, he attended with his daughter in Anaheim before she shipped overseas. According to Maxson, the previous engagement had provided his daughter, who is on her first deployment, a virtual road map of what was ahead, removing much of the unknown.
“The fact they integrate all three phases of the program together gave her an opportunity to interact with others who had already been through was she was about to do,” he said. “This is what soldiers and their families need before, during and after so they know what to expect. It especially helps the young spouses to deal with the situation because some of them may not have the support group a larger family would provide – this gives them that support.”
Once lunch had adjourned and everyone was filing back upstairs to the maze of corridors and conference rooms, Sgt. Tyler Lindsay and his wife, Thuy-Tien, had already found a quiet place at one of the tables where their next class was to be held. Lindsay, of the 96th Sustainment Brigade, has been to several Yellow Ribbon events. However, he never fails to learn something, he said.
“Every Yellow Ribbon I’ve been to, I’ve always found new information that has been helpful,” said Lindsay. “Today, I learned a lot about the services the Red Cross offers.”
His wife, a former soldier herself, was already familiar with Yellow Ribbon. However, this was her first time through the program as a spouse, which puts everything into a different perspective, she said.
“Switching from soldier to civilian has changed things a great deal for me,” said Thuy-Tien Lindsay. “As a soldier, I was never concerned with certain things, but now that I’m married, I’m looking at things from a spouse’s point of view.”
One piece of advice she would give to soldiers and their families is to embrace the program.
“I would tell them to truly take advantage of this wonderful opportunity and be thankful for it,” she said. “The program just keeps getting better.”
For more information on the Yellow Ribbon program, visit http://www.yellowribbon.mil/.
| Date Taken: | 02.27.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 02.27.2013 19:57 |
| Story ID: | 102660 |
| Location: | LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | LOS ALAMITOS, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, US |
| Hometown: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
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