By Jennifer Holliday

Alabama Military Family Liaison

Welcome, Space Command! Alabama and the Redstone Region look forward to meeting you!

While this is an exciting time for the Redstone Region and Alabama as a whole, we understand that it might be challenging for Space Command families who must prepare for another move. The Alabama Heroes Welcome Initiative is here for you and ready to help make that transition as smooth as possible.

The Heroes Welcome website holds many local, state, and national resources that military-connected families need, like mentorship, news, and networking opportunities, across several quality of life topics. For even more timely news and information, Space Command families moving to Alabama - and anyone in or moving to Alabama - can join the Alabama Connections newsletter through our website. This monthly e-publication provides resource spotlights, news that is important to military spouses and families, and upcoming event information. Visit us today at https://www.heroeswelcome.alabama.gov/.

Military spouses, service members, and families moving to Alabama can also contact me directly, as the Alabama Military Family Liaison. I offer a personal welcome and introduction to Alabama and the Redstone Region. Serving as boots-on-the-ground for the State of Alabama with incoming military-connected families allows me the privilege of highlighting the great resources and activities available here, and helping to build your local networks before even arriving in the state.

Just a few of our leading statewide resources for military-connected families include but certainly are not limited to:

• The Military Spouse Licensure Boards page of the Heroes Welcome website provides tools and information related to license reciprocity. Military Spouse License Portability is a top priority for the State, as witnessed by our 2018 Military Family Jobs Opportunity Act, our many interstate compacts, and the Alabama Supreme Court’s 2020 rule that allows incoming military spouse attorneys, licensed in other jurisdictions, to practice law in Alabama immediately.
• The Alabama Military Spouse Mentorship-HUB (AL-HUB) provided by the Military Stability Foundation and powered by the Military Spouse Advocacy Network offers an off-social media space for Alabama’s military-connected spouses to network, seek mentorship and education, and more. It is also home to the Alabama Military Spouse Advisory Council.
• The Alabama Purple Star Schools program provided by the Alabama State Department of Education helps schools welcome and support their military-connected students and families, ensuring staff and educator understanding of the military lifestyle and best practices for the successful transition of new students into their schools. Many Redstone Region schools are already designated as Purple Star, including a few full districts such as Huntsville City Schools.
• One of Alabama’s newest legislative actions exempts active duty military families from having to transfer their K-12 students’ official military immunization records to the state form. This does not change the immunization requirements but does take one task off the PCS checklist. It allows military families to submit their children’s military shot record for school registration instead of completing a redundant records transfer.

One local resource for incoming families is the Huntsville-Madison County Chamber of Commerce program called Guiding Stars. I serve as a Guiding Star with 16 other local community members who represent a wide cross-section of our community. This is another avenue where incoming families can learn more about the Huntsville-Madison County area. Those interested can visit https://stars.asmartplace.com/, and submit a request to connect with a Guiding Star.

For all questions or comments, please email Jennifer Holliday, Alabama Military Family Liaison: jen@heroeswelcome.alabama.gov.