The Empty Chairs: Honoring the
Families of Lost Troops
By Wayne Hippo
May 22, 2019
Who among us has not been deeply touched by those who fight for our country?
We asked the employees and partners at PS Solutions and found that there is hardly a single person who hasn’t had a relative who served in the Army, Navy, Air Force or Marines. There are both veterans and active-duty personnel, and family who served who have gone on before us.
With Memorial Day upon us – and indeed all of May as it is Military Appreciation Month — we at PS Solutions are taking the time to honor military men and women who’ve lost their lives. We are also looking into how the families of those who have been taken from us are being honored.
Our Armed Forces have systems in place to help the families of those we’ve lost. There is financial support available, counseling, and a series of manners in which they are honored, from gun salutes to gatherings. On behalf of American citizens, the Department of Defense has established access to a series of resources they call Families of the Fallen. Each division of the armed forces has their own set of support systems. For example, the Army has posted resources on the site created by their Chief of Army Public Affairs, including a Facebook page for the Survivor Outreach Services.
If you’re inclined to help as a part of your celebration of this upcoming holiday weekend, here are a series of resources that you can donate to, and help support the families of our lost patriots:
Snowball Express: a program of Gary Sinise Foundation, this organization finds a myriad of ways to serve the children of fallen military heroes.
Fallen Patriots: College for the children of those who lost their lives while in service can seem unattainable. The folks at the non-profit Fallen Patriots work to help families send their kids to college.
Johnny Mac: This scholarship program is in honor of a fallen soldier who graduated from West Point in 1986. By identifying Johnny Mac Scholars, children of those who have lost their heroes as they served our country have an opportunity to march on and fulfill their career goals.
TAPS: The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) offers compassionate care to all those grieving the loss of a loved one who died while serving in our Armed Forces or as a result of his or her service. Since 1994, TAPS has provided comfort and hope 24/7 through a national peer support network and connection to grief resources, all at no cost to surviving families and loved ones.
There are numerous other organizations that help families, from the Red Cross to the USO and many others. We at PS Solutions believe everyone should do what they can. In addition to our individual donations, will be joining so many other Americans by leaving an empty chair open at a table for one, honoring those we wish could be with us, and thereby honoring the families they’ve left behind through their service. We hope you will join us in some small way to honor military families this weekend.
