Blue Star Families will host a webinar, Getting Ready for College: Surviving High School Military Transitions, on Thursday, August 25, 5-6pm EDT.

It’s never too early to start planning for college!

For U.S. high school students, the college preparation, application, and decision-making process have long been a source of stress and anxiety, and the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have only made things worse. Military families have the added pressure of possible unexpected permanent changes of station that can move their families to unexpected locations. By starting early and planning wisely, students can have an exciting senior year rather than one that is full of frustration and headaches.

This webinar will walk through the steps that parents can take to guide their students from their freshman to senior year of high school. This session will include information on the following: understanding the different types of postsecondary institutions such as two-year, four-year, public, and private; calculating the true cost of college; timing of scholastic tests; planning college visits; producing an application package; creating a college timeline; and preparing transferrable information in case of an unexpected deployment.

Register here.

Blue Star Families will host a virtual town hall, Finding a Welcoming Workplace: Blue Star Families & AARP on MilSpouse & Veteran Employment, on Thursday, September 29, 3pm EDT.

BSF knows that securing employment is a key concern for you, particularly after a move or transitioning out of active-duty service. During this webinar, they're excited to explore a solution to this concern with AARP’s new Job Center where you can find courses, tools, and resources, to give you an edge in your job search. You’ll also have the chance to enter for a style consultation with E’Beth Goad, Personal Brand & Change Strategist and other fun opportunities.

Register here.

Blue Star Families will host Outdoor Connect: Beach Cleanup at the Coast Guard Family Housing Gazebo at Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island on Friday, August 19, 9-11am.

Join Blue Star Families, Starbucks and the Kleckner Chief Petty Officers Association of Coast Guard Sector New York as they clean the beach in celebration of our planet!

Register here.

Blue Star Families and Community Building Artworks will host an online Creative Writing Workshop for Military, Veterans, Caregivers & Spouses on Thursday, September 22, 3:30-4:30pm EDT.

Back by popular demand! It's time to tell your story. Join Community Building Artworks and author Laura Van Prooyen for a virtual creative writing workshop. She's led workshops in the past with veterans, service members, military spouses, caregivers, health care workers, and university students, so you won't want to miss this!

Writing is a powerful tool for communication, self-discovery, and reflection. Together over Zoom, you’ll read a short piece of writing, see what makes it work, and use it to enter into your own stories.

No writing experience required—if you can talk, you can write.

Join one session or join them all.

Register here.

About Community Building Artworks:

Community Building Art Works is a charitable organization that builds healthy and connected communities where veterans and civilians share creative expression, mutual understanding, and support. Our combination of arts programs for veterans and community-building events and services has reached thousands of service members, veterans, and military family members around the world.

Blue Star Families and Community Building Artworks will host an online Creative Writing Workshop for Military, Veterans, Caregivers & Spouses on Thursday, September 8, 3:30-4:30pm EDT.

Back by popular demand! It's time to tell your story. Join Community Building Artworks and author Laura Van Prooyen for a virtual creative writing workshop. She's led workshops in the past with veterans, service members, military spouses, caregivers, health care workers, and university students, so you won't want to miss this!

Writing is a powerful tool for communication, self-discovery, and reflection. Together over Zoom, you’ll read a short piece of writing, see what makes it work, and use it to enter into your own stories.

No writing experience required—if you can talk, you can write.

Upcoming workshop dates:

Thursday, September 22

Join one session or join them all.

Register here.

About Community Building Artworks:

Community Building Art Works is a charitable organization that builds healthy and connected communities where veterans and civilians share creative expression, mutual understanding, and support. Our combination of arts programs for veterans and community-building events and services has reached thousands of service members, veterans, and military family members around the world.

Blue Star Families and Community Building Artworks will host an online Creative Writing Workshop for Military, Veterans, Caregivers & Spouses on Thursday, August 25, 3:30-4:30pm EDT.

Back by popular demand! It's time to tell your story. Join Community Building Artworks and author Laura Van Prooyen for a virtual creative writing workshop. She's led workshops in the past with veterans, service members, military spouses, caregivers, health care workers, and university students, so you won't want to miss this!

Writing is a powerful tool for communication, self-discovery, and reflection. Together over Zoom, you’ll read a short piece of writing, see what makes it work, and use it to enter into your own stories.

No writing experience required—if you can talk, you can write.

Upcoming workshop dates:

Thursdays, September 8 & 22

Join one session or join them all.

Register here.

About Community Building Artworks:

Community Building Art Works is a charitable organization that builds healthy and connected communities where veterans and civilians share creative expression, mutual understanding, and support. Our combination of arts programs for veterans and community-building events and services has reached thousands of service members, veterans, and military family members around the world.

Calling all military and civilian neighbors! Blue Star Families has partnered with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation to create a fun nature bingo game that encourages your family to get outside and get to know your community all while enjoying the fresh air and benefits of the outdoors this season — no matter if you're PCSing, going on vacation, or staying put.

Want to be entered for the chance to win one of three family prize packs? There are 10 versions of the card, so play once, or play over and over during the months of June, July, and August, and share photos of your family participating in the activities.

The 2022 Military Family Lifestyle Survey is now open, and it’s time to encourage your friends and family to take it – today through July 10th.

Please note that the annual Military Family Lifestyle Survey:

is intended for all active-duty, National Guard, and Reserve service members, Veterans, and their families, 18 years of age and older.

is completely confidential. Only aggregate (group) responses will be reported. Any *optional* text responses are de-identified.

is for research purposes and, therefore, is entirely voluntary.

includes questions about community connections, health concerns and wellness, education, employment, military children, financial challenges, civic engagement, and public policy issues, among other topics.

Each year, BSF looks to reach more survey respondents to continue improving how they support military-connected families. They couldn’t do this without you!

Take the survey here.

Blue Star Families is on a mission to build community by showcasing what real, resilient military families look like — families of all shapes and sizes, from different backgrounds and diverse cultures. 

Will you help them? Send them photos of your military family!

Blue Star Families New York Tri-State Chapter is seeking fellows for its DEPLOY (Diversify and Expand the Pipeline Of Leaders Of Your Military Community) Fellowship Program.  This is a full-time, remote, one-year position with a competitive salary.  DEPLOY fellows will be employed for one year, beginning July 2022.

About the Blue Star Families DEPLOY Fellowship:

The DEPLOY (Diversify and Expand the Pipeline Of Leaders Of Your Military Community) Fellowship Program is a key component of Blue Star Families' Racial Equity and Inclusion Initiative. These racially-diverse leaders serve for one year in paid Blue Star Chapter-based or national roles at Blue Star Families while they receive training in military and Veteran service organization leadership curated by several  key partners. Their fellowship work focuses on improving experiences and increasing representation of military families of color in community settings across the country. Upon graduating, they become a pipeline of talent for eventual positions of leadership within the military and Veteran service organization space.