After more than 60 years of working on behalf of soldiers and their families, no one knows the challenges of serving our country better than those working at AUSA.Our mission at AUSA Family Programs is to help all Army families remain strong and resilient, and enable them to better handle the many challenges of military life by providing information and resources for the spouses, children, parents, grandparents and other loved ones that comprise the military family.Studies show that many families and especially children are experiencing exceptional stress after 10 years of lengthy and repeated separations due to deployments, as well as other required military training.Family counseling experts have determined that after a long separation it may take as long as two years for a soldier to re-establish his or her role in the family unit and reconnect with the immediate family members.Although the Army is working to increase the time soldiers are able to spend with their families between deployments, with the ultimate goal of having 24 months at home base before deploying again, unfortunately, at this time that goal has not been reached for most soldiers.At AUSA Family Programs we know that even when the 24-month goal is reached and even after the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq end, there will still be many challenges that will cause stress for Army families. That is something we will never be able to totally eliminate.We do believe however, that by helping Army families be better prepared and more knowledgeable about the resources available to them they will develop skills to manage their expectations, become stronger and more resilient and more confident.AUSA Family Programs is both an advocate and a resource for Army families. Our work includes ensuring that Army families have the latest information about family readiness programs, education and scholarship opportunities, spouse employment initiatives, military health care, wounded warrior and veterans’ issues, legislative actions, children’s education issues and much more.One of our major education efforts is hosting the Military Family Forums every October at the AUSA Annual Meeting in Washington. This year our Annual Meeting dates are Oct. 10 to 12.The Army chief of staff, Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, and Mrs. Dempsey have been invited to speak at Family Forums I and III. Dempsey assumed his position in April of this year so this will be an excellent opportunity for him and others from the Army’s leadership to highlight their priorities, update information on existing programs and talk about new plans.The Family Forums also provide the opportunity for military family members to speak directly with Army leaders about their experiences and concerns.This two-way communication is vital to ensuring that families remain confident that the Army recognizes their contributions and values them as an important part of the Army family. It also ensures that Army leaders are aware of what families are thinking.Army commands from the active component as well as the National Guard and Army Reserve are now funding their family readiness group advisers, leaders, family readiness assistants, volunteers and other family program managers to attend the Military Family Forums.They recognize these events as an opportunity for the individuals who work directly with families, and who often are military family members themselves, to both receive and also gather information for the families they represent.Military Family Forum II will address the recent Army Community Service transformation and the Virtual Resiliency Campus for soldiers and family members. Army leadership wants to hear from family members about what they are doing correctly and what needs improvement.Additional presentations will include information about current changes to spouse employment and education programs as well as how to identify and prevent domestic violence and the resources available for families who are experiencing these issues.This year, once again at the Army’s request, we will host a Family Forum (Military Family Forum III) to address the special interests of families who have lost their soldier to war, and also provide information which will help all Army family members be more situation ready in case of the loss of their soldier or others in their units.There have also been changes made in policies pertaining to survivor outreach offices, which family members and others should be aware.With the coming reductions in defense funding, leaders are going to have to be searching for other ways to assist and support families to offset any loss in funding.Through programs such as the Army’s Community Covenant, communities have been encouraged to embrace the military families in their regions in various ways.Military Family Forum IV will address the shift to emphasizing the establishment of local Community Support Networks (CSN), highlight the local CSN lessons learned and also speak to the efforts being made by the reserve components to inspire their local communities.We will continue to develop the details for Military Family Forums as time goes on.Please visit our Web site at http://www.ausa.org/family to access the most current information and to learn more about what we do. In addition to updated Family Forum news, you will also find information about the family selected to be the recipients of the AUSA Volunteer Family of the Year Award.This award honors an exceptional Army family, who through their volunteer service has contributed to the well-being of their Army and civilian community.The AUSA Volunteer Family of the Year Award is sponsored through the generosity of TriWest Healthcare Alliance and Express Scripts.Visitors to our Web site will also learn how AUSA’s local chapters support soldiers and families in the communities where they live through a variety of outreach programs.Furthermore, you can view and request materials from our extensive list of educational publications and resources, available at no cost as a courtesy to Army family members.The latest edition of our weekly email newsletter (The Family Programs Update) is also posted on our webpage and if you would like to be added to our mailing list for the Update, please send an email to familyprograms@ausa.org and type "subscribe" in the subject line.We value your feedback about the issues that are impacting your lives. Please feel free to contact us at familyprograms@ausa.org. Thank you for your service.