Yes, it’s that time of year again. Spring has sprung, ushering in the one day that many women wait all year for so that they may receive the highest of accolades; a simple “thanks” for being mom! Mothers all over the nation will sit back and relax and enjoy the adulation, the admiration, and the gratitude for who they are, and what they do each day. But not all of these mothers will be relaxing with their kids, having a nice mimosa on Mother’s day morning this year.
Many of our nation’s moms are serving in the military and are in Iraq right now, mothering more than just a few of our children. Some are doctors. Some are soldiers. But all of them are there to defend our great country because they want to be; because they enlisted to do it; and because they care. Many women in history have fought to defend our great country. They have fought unofficially as spies, support personnel, and as soldiers.
Women gained an official role in the U.S. military with the formation of the Army Nurse Corps in 1901, and Navy Nurse Corps in 1908. The first women to serve in the armed forces joined the Navy and the Marines in World War I. Currently, there are almost 350,000 women serving in the U.S. armed forces, 15% of these are currently deployed in active duty and many of them are currently serving in Iraq. Of them, over 16,000 are moms. It’s amazing enough that so many women are currently serving in the military, and even more amazing is the fact that many of these women are mothers, with families back home waiting for them.
For the first time in American history, a substantial number of the combat wounded are women, and again, some are mothers with children. Melinda Gentilis is a wife and mother of two, who is currently on her 2nd 15-month tour in Iraq. She is on the front lines and is faced with her mortality each and every day, with IED’s being a very real threat and a potential consequence for her active duty as a driver of a military truck. Her dedication to the U.S. military is admirable, not to mention brave. She will be deployed until June of 2009, but her attitude is nothing short of amazing. She does not sulk. Instead, she stands proud, grateful for the honor of being able to serve in the military for the country she loves so much. She says that more than anything now, she is looking forward to being home with her family more permanently when her tour is through. Sadly, many moms often go into the military married, and end up single.
Seargeant Leana Nishamura is proof of that. Leana has 3 children and had a husband, when she first began active duty. Due to the distance and time apart, the marriage simply could not sustain and Leana became a single parent and soon after was deployed to Iraq. She says the separation has been hard on all the children, who have been living with their grandmother, but especially hard on her 7-year-old son TJ. ”He went from having one parent to having no parents, basically,” Nishimura said. “People have said, ‘Thank you so much for your sacrifice.’ But it’s the children who have had more of a sacrifice.” “It has to be one of the hardest things that a mom and her children have to go through,” said Steven Mintz, a University of Houston professor with an expertise in family life. “You can’t cuddle a young child over the phone, and you can’t cuddle a child through e-mail.” Unfortunately the military is not concerned with whether or not you are a woman, or a mother. There are no barriers to being deployed.
Whether a man or a woman, all of our soldiers currently on active duty and serving in the military are our heroes. And the women are dually heroic for being able and willing to fight and defend our great nation, while also being moms (which in and of itself is pretty tough). Happy Mother’s Day to all of these courageous moms…and The Gorilla thanks you!