RESTON, Va. (WUSA9) — A Reston, Virginia mother relies on a military non-profit to help her children cope with the challenges that come with their father being deployed.
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Nikki Rooney, a mother of two, thinks Our Military Kids Inc. is a lifesaver.
The organization located in McLean, Virginia helps children deal with the anxiety and stress of having a parent deployed with the National Guard or Reserve.
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“It's tough to have a deployed family member, it's nice to have people there to support you while you're going through it,” Nikki said.
Her husband, Jeff Rooney is a Lieutenant Commander in the Naval reserves. He has been in Qatar since May of 2017. That’s when Our Military Kids stepped in to help their two sons, 7-year-old Connor and 3-year-old Declan.
The non-profit gave the boys a scholarship so they could get swim lessons at the Reston YMCA.
Nikki said it’s helped her sons adjust with having their father away. Lt. Commander Rooney told Connor that if he passed his swimming test, he would take him to the water park.
“It’s really been great. It’s turned a hard situation into, you know, something more positive for everyone.”
That’s exactly the goal for Our Military Kids. The group formed in early 2005 with a pilot program to help National Guard families in Virginia. Since then, it’s expanded to help deployed Reserve, National Guard and the families of wounded or fallen warriors.
Our Military kids has given more than 60,000 grants worth $23.5 million to families.
Angela Burton, the Executive Director of Our Military Kids Inc., is married to an Army National Guard Officer. She knows how isolating it can for families who don’t have the option to stay on base.
“You might be the only person in your neighborhood community school district with a spouse gone for a year so it really does give them that support,” Burton said. “It’s a way to give them a big old hug and say we know you are here and you matter.”
Nikki said knowing the boys have something to keep them busy also helps her husband to worry less about his family.
“I think it makes him feel good to know they’re doing things back home. They are enjoying themselves,” she said.
Our Military Kids Inc. recently had to scale back their grant program from serving children ages three to school age seniors, to starting at age five. That’s because their demand for scholarships is outpacing their budget.
Fundraising is one of their best ways to keep serving military families.
“It doesn’t have to be a large amount of money,” Burton said. “Every bit counts.”
She believes this is a way to give back and say thank you that goes beyond just saying, ‘Thank you for your service.’
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If you’d like to make a difference for families in our area and contribute to Impact: Give Back, join WUSA9 and the United Way of the National Capital Area's Do More 24 event by donating here. Do More 24 brings the National Capital community together to focus on giving and building the strength of nonprofits.
To give, type the organization’s name in the “Find Your Cause” search bar. When your organization appears in the results, click on their profile and donate on their page.
Your donation is scheduled to be processed on May 17, during our 24 hours of giving. You will receive an emailed gift receipt when your credit card is actually charged.
What is Impact?
We report on problems all the time, but we’ve heard from you, that’s not enough. That’s why our WUSA9 Impact team is committed to bringing you solutions.
From May 1 until May 18, we’ll be bringing you the stories of the local non-profits in the District, Maryland and Virginia who work nonstop to make our community a better place to live.
“Impact: Give Back” is a partnership with the United Way of the National Capital Area to help raise money, so these groups can keep doing their good work.
