FORT LEWIS, Wash. - Nine-year-old Isaiah Elliott sometimes doesn't remember that both of his Army Soldier-parents are currently deployed overseas.
"If you get a really good grade on the test, you'll forget and (want to) run home to tell your mom and dad. You forget they're not there," Elliott told an audience of more than 250 health care professionals earlier this month during a Military Child and Teen panel, part of a three-day Madigan Army Medical Center-sponsored Military Child and Adolescent Summit at the Hotel Murano in Tacoma.
The summit, themed "Frontline Responders: Coming Together for Our Military Youth" assembled under one facility military and civilian child subject-matter experts from more than 25 states and three countries to promote discussion, share perspectives, identify resources and encourage public engagement. The three days were filled with presentations of various research topics, including the impact of multiple deployments on military children, how to help families re-associate with a wounded service member and addressing behavioral health issues in children.
Speaking to the group about the importance of the military child summit and the significance of the medical progress that comes from it was Maj. Gen. Patricia D. Horoho, commander of the Western Regional Medical Command and Madigan Army Medical Center.
"I cannot think of a better way that we can express our gratitude to the men and women who choose to wear the cloth of our nation and to serve our country than by taking care of those they love so deeply, and that is their children and families," Horoho said. "When I look out across the audience, I see a group of individuals who are here because you have a genuine interest and a vested interest in the more than 1.8 million children of our active duty, Reserve and National Guard service members."
The highlight of the summit was the Military Child and Teen Panel, where 10 children ages 5 to 16 spoke about similar experiences that Elliott had, such as enduring the impact of deployed parents, around-the-clock phone calls or having their mailing addresses outnumber their respective ages.
Justin Bergquist's father deployed to Iraq in 2004. Bergquist said he was the only Army child in his Spokane school who had a father serving 18 months overseas. He spoke candidly to the audience about the lack of educational support military children received at that time. "Teachers made it a big issue that my dad was gone and at that time, I didn't have much support," he said.
Bria White, 15, said teachers who were connected to the military had a better understanding of what she was going through. "Some teachers were in the military and understand what kids are going through, but others don't," White said.
The panel was facilitated by Dr. Stephen Cozza, a professor of Psychiatry at the Uniformed Services University; Dr. Jean Silvernail, director for Military Child Education Division, U.S. Pacific Command; and members from Madigan's Military Child and Adolescent Center of Excellence. Cozza said that of the 10 children, eight had parents deploy at least once, five had parents serving in Iraq and Afghanistan right now, and two children on the panel had both parents deployed.
The Fort Lewis Warrior Transition Battalion's own Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Turnbull's son, Shayne, 9, spoke about how he felt when he found out his father had been wounded in combat. "I felt sad when I found out my dad had been hurt," Shayne said. "We went to the hospital a lot of times."
Cozza praised the efforts that the Military and Child Adolescent Center of Excellence was making in advancing the needs of military youth.
"I commend the Center of Excellence and all the work done by the leadership in bringing together a community of professionals," Cozza said. "It really does take a community of understanding to best meet the needs of these kids in the military based upon the kinds of challenges they face."
The Military Child and Adolescent Center of Excellence was co-founded by Col. (Dr.) Kris Peterson, chairman of the board of directors for the Center of Excellence, and Maj. Keith Lemmon, Department of Pediatrics and the center's director.
The center's vision is to ensure the optimal physical, emotional and behavioral well-being of military youth worldwide through comprehensive, youth-centered, strengths-based program development and through the provision of technical assistance to military youth-serving professionals.
"This year's summit was a remarkable achievement on behalf of the unique emotional and behavioral health needs of our military children and adolescents," said Lemmon.
Lorin T. Smith works in Madigan Army Medical Center Public Affairs Office. This story appeared in Fort Lewis' Northwest Guardian.
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