ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

The Defense Department announced seven initiatives to improve quality of life for service members and their families in a Sept. 13 memorandum.

"Early in my tenure as secretary of defense, I made taking care of our people a top priority," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in the memorandum. "Doing right by our all-volunteer joint force and their families is a core readiness issue.”

Soldiers will not have the luxury of clarity when the next global conflict breaks out, said Gen. Andrew Poppas, commanding general of Army Forces Command.

An Army doctor who dedicated his life to serving others and Gold Star moms who tirelessly keep their loved ones’ legacies alive are featured in September as part of the Association of the U.S. Army’s “Army Matters” podcast.

First up, on Sept. 11, is a podcast featuring Dr. Lester Martinez-Lopez, a retired major general who is now assistant defense secretary for health affairs.

Key issues for military families—and their service members’ propensity to continue serving—were inextricably linked to their well-being in 2023, according to a new report from the Military Family Advisory Network.

“Our country, our national security, our democracy counts on those who serve,” the group’s 2023 Military Family Support Programming Survey found. “They count on their families, and this report has shown that their well-being—the whole family—and propensity to recommend military service are not mutually exclusive.”

Satisfaction with military life among military spouses is “incredibly important” to the state of the all-volunteer force, according to a senior DoD official.

Citing the results of a recent military spouse survey that showed a slight decline in satisfaction with military life, Patricia Barron, deputy assistant secretary of defense for military community and family policy, said the downward trend reveals that spouses want to be heard and supported.

The Association of the U.S. Army is launching a Family Fellows program to grow and enhance its support to military families.

Four military spouses make up the program’s inaugural class. As AUSA family fellows, they are subject-matter experts and advisers on issues relating to military families. They will expand the AUSA Family Readiness directorate’s mission to educate, inform and connect through relevant programs and resources, educational and outreach efforts and advocacy for Army and veteran families.

A dress swap that has grown to save military families more than $2 million, and efforts to honor the heroes who fought in the World War II Battle of Bataan will be highlighted in April as part of the Association of the U.S. Army’s “Army Matters” podcast series.

First up is a podcast featuring Yvonne Coombes, CEO and co-founder of Operation Deploy Your Dress.

Military families experienced a number of quality-of-life improvements in 2023, according to a new report from Blue Star Families.

The Association of the U.S. Army and Operation Deploy Your Dress are teaming up again this year for a free pop-up event featuring more than 1,000 cocktail dresses and formal gowns.