I felt compelled to write this post, maybe brave, maybe stupid but none the less I think I will feel better afterwards and that's what a blog is for right? for sharing and gaining opinion.
Our journey with My Daddy is a Soldier Adventures has been up and down, some joyous moments and some tough moments but the common thread through all is our reason for doing this.
We never set out to start a charity it was never an ambition or want of ours, we decided to do it in reaction to something not being available when we needed it. It was an answer to a problem and there was/is nothing else out there specifically for British Army children especially when they have a parent away, if there was we wouldn't have done it we would have used that resource. We don't want to duplicate anything.
The third sector is a new experience for both of us, the military third sector is something we've never entered before and it is almost a current trend to enter it and 'jump on the bandwagon' and wow we have learnt some lessons.
Where we thought it would be a cosy, huggy, welcoming arena we were shocked when this hasn't been our experience. Where we thought people would rush to help us and advise we were wrong.
The people and organisations we thought would be supportive are not, they seem defensive and threatened. We've met with many of them to share our ideas and more often then not I have come out crying, crushed that people see our cause as a dilution of the military third sector.
So we steam on and our grit and determination and experience keeps us going regardless.
British Army children DO face unique challenges and they DO live a different life to other children and we are so passionate that we want this recognised and those children supported. All of them.
Its not a competition there is room for all of us, everything we have achieved has been through cheekiness, hard work, asking and a having a cause that people want to support. We aren't diluting, we are offering something that didn't exist before and we want to bring together everything that does exist to British Army families so there is no duplication and people know everything that is currently available.
So we continue, every time we don't get an email response from an organisation we would hope we would, every time we get a 'we can't support your cause' response from people who you think we absolutely should and every time we receive a 'but do Army children REALLY face anything different to civilian children' reply it makes us stronger and more determined.
Its not a competition and there is no winner.
I would just like to say a huge thank you for all you have done and the Christmas party was a huge success. I myself fully support everything my husband does and new exactly what I was marrying into! My children however did not have a choice which mum and dad they have so I am exceptionally proud of the way they deal with their military lifestyle on all aspects! My husband is part of a small regiment and over the past 14 years we have just got on with life, as you do. We didn't have the support or funding that much bigger regiments have and on many occasions the wives of those husbands have been seperated solely not as a huge battalion or regt. I have had fantastic support from my friends and there husbands when I have been left with the children for four, six and once even 9 months and can not thank them enough! However what My Daddy is a Soldier does is enable those wives and children is ensure that they can get together with other wives and children who on many occasions can find themselves isolated and down making day to day life stressful not only for the family left behind but also for the husband facing very difficult and dangerous situations. When I was a single serving soldier many years ago my commanding officer sent me a letter to say thank you for driving the wives home from their annual Christmas get together. He said that making sure the wives were happy meant happier soldiers! Please don't stop what you are doing organising fantastic activities for army wives and the children left at home and sometimes the whole family because it means more than you will ever know to those children left at home!! God Bless to all at My Daddy is a Soldier. Xx
ReplyDeleteHorrible to think that people that should be working with you to help you achieve your goal are actually being spectacularly unhelpful :-(
ReplyDeleteBrilliant post, only one comment I disagree with. It may not be a competition but there most definitely IS a winner........... the children for whom you work so hard.
You do a fantastic job, keep going :-) xx
I think you should understand (by the sounds of your post you may already) that there is a feeling amongst many in the Military that there are too many charities set up to look after niche elements of service life.
ReplyDeleteIf you need a hand with your web stuff or would like to see if Armynet can help get your message out out feel free to drop me an email.
Having suffered first hand the stress, heartache and loneliness that deployment brings to a military family I applaud and support you whole-heartedly. What you are doing is giving these children, self esteem, hope and above all enjoyment! It is inconceivable that those in the military third sector can not see what your aim is. Although we left military life 12 months ago it has taken that amount of time to adjust to civilian life, my eldest daughter cried in class on hearing of the death of a colleague of her father's. A child who's parent or indeed parents face that as a reality every day, that they might lose mum or dad or they might be severely injured. The life of a military child is unique & to those in the third sector who say that My Daddy is a Soldier is not wanted or needed I would say 'walk a mile in the shoes of a child whos parent is deployed' then re-evaluate that thought! Keep going you have my support if ever you need it!
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