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National Guard/Reserves

National Guard/Reserves

We know you aren’t “just like everyone else.”

There may not be an installation nearby, and your unit might not have hosted a family “readiness” meeting since 1992. Lo and behold, your service member’s unit has been activated, and you need to get connected to empower yourself with the knowledge to succeed.

Welcome. We’re glad you’ve found us.

Here you will find a list of organizations, websites, and publications that address your unique situation.
Start here, but also, feel welcome to join the rest of our community by becoming an AWTR listener, visiting our Facebook page, and reading our blog posts.

Organizations:

Websites:

Publications:

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Deployment Experience Military Life National Guard/Reserves 

The Brighter Side of Deployment

Sarah Darnall 0 Comments , , ,

Deployments are tough—there is no way to sugar coat it. Being the spouse of a National Guard member, deployments are something that I never really thought about. I always assumed that they were something that happened to other people—people who were much better equipped to handle them.

But sure enough, I was wrong.

I feel like I blinked and found myself fist deep in a tub of cookie dough, crying, because my husband was being deployed. I read countless books and articles, and I played out thousands of scenarios in my head as to what it would be like. I thought about things, like missing out on celebrating holidays and special events, and the fact that I now would have to take out the trash and take the dog out late at night (my two least favorite chores).

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Experience Military Life National Guard/Reserves 

My Army Journey

Retired Blogger 0 Comments

Hey, I’m Dakota. As y’all might be able to tell, I’m new to Army Wife Network. I’d like to tell you a bit about my journey into the United States Army. 

Joining the military wasn’t something I planned on doing—actually, it was the last thing on Earth I thought I would ever do. No one in my family is associated with the military, and up until I joined I knew next to nothing about the Army. Serving in the military had never even crossed my mind until one day, during the last few months of my senior year of high school, I was talking to a friend who was joining the Army, and they said, “Have you ever thought about joining?” 

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Experience National Guard/Reserves 

We Wish You Knew: Feelings from Home

Retired Blogger 0 Comments ,

National Guard life is so different than “Big Army.” At least as many people often assume.

Well, it is not.

There is a group of elite soldiers within the National Guard who maintain a high operational tempo, and we are not just talking about once a month and two annual trainings a year. We are talking about Joint Combined Exchange Trainings, TDYs, schools, deployments, and Guard weekend obligations. A lot of National Guard soldiers within this specific community also have civilian jobs that tie into the world of serving: government contracting, S.W.A.T, law enforcement, and more. This means that Guard spouses navigate alone most of the time.

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Deployment Experience National Guard/Reserves 

Thoughts from a Guardsman Spouse

Retired Blogger 0 Comments , , ,

We hear it all the time. “It’s only once a month! It’s not that big of a deal!”

Truth is, it really is a big deal. Because those weekends are the worst.

Those are the weekends that all the ballgames, family commitments, and kids getting sick will happen.

Those are the weekends when the kids will throw every ‘tude known to man both at you and at each other.

Those are the weekends that all Hades breaks loose everywhere. Oh! And something always breaks!

Those are the weekends you question yourself the most.

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Experience Military Life National Guard/Reserves 

We Aren’t Just Weekend Warriors

Retired Blogger 0 Comments ,

My husband and I meet in high school. Life goes on. We graduate. He goes into the Marines. Then to the Georgia Guard. Then the Ohio Guard. Wherever life took him, his love for the military followed right along with him.

As for me, I fumbled around. Took way too many years to find myself.

Eighteen years after graduation, life brings us back together once again. About a year after we started dating, we went on a New Year’s trip to New Orleans with my sister and her hubby (who has been in the Army National Guard for many years). The boys talked military and beer all the way to, from, and during the trip. My sister and I joked we could have stolen their credit cards and gone on a shopping spree and they would never have known it.

 By the time we headed back, my sister overheard the infamous “you should sign back up” conversation.

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