WHITE HOUSE VIDEO: ON THE ROAD: DR. BIDEN VISITS COMMUNITY COLLEGES IN FLORIDA, TEXAS

WHITE HOUSE VIDEO: AT THE INVICTUS GAMES WITH DR. JILL BIDEN & THE U.S. TEAM

FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA, DR. JILL BIDEN ASK FOR SOCIAL MEDIA QUESTIONING ABOUT "JOINING FORCES" INITIATIVE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

First Lady, Dr. Biden Seek Questions on ‘Joining Forces’

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 22, 2014 – First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, are calling on Americans to submit questions via social media about “Joining Forces,” a national initiative they started three years ago that mobilizes all sectors of American society to support service members and their families.

Tomorrow, the first lady and Dr. Biden will mark the initiative’s third anniversary at Fort Campbell, Ky., where they will speak to service members, families and employers at the Veterans Jobs Summit and Career Forum and will answer some questions about the initiative.

White House officials have invited Americans to help in celebrating the anniversary by sharing a message or asking a question on social media, and by finding ways to get involved.

“This month, we’re celebrating our third anniversary of Joining Forces and taking pride in the progress we have made with help from individuals across the country who’ve stepped up to answer our call,” the pair wrote in a blog post originally published in Military Spouse magazine and cross-posted on the White House website.

“In just three years,” they added, “hundreds of thousands of veterans and military spouses have been hired or trained by businesses nationwide; all but a few states have streamlined their professional licensing requirements to better meet the needs of veterans and military spouses; and so many schools, faith communities, community groups, and neighbors have found countless ways to make a difference for our military families.”

People can ask questions, send a congratulatory message or encourage others to participate in Joining Forces by using the hashtag #JoiningForces on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, officials said.

THE VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL "WALL" GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY

Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, Jan Scruggs, founder of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, and retired Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, participate in a groundbreaking ceremony for the education center at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial "Wall" in Washington, D.C., Nov. 28, 2012. DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Panetta Honors Vets at 'Wall' Education Center Groundbreaking
By Terri Moon Cronk
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28, 2012 - The education center at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial "Wall" will be a place to join the past to the future, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said at the center's groundbreaking ceremony today.

By telling the stories of service members whose names are inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country will not be forgotten, he said.

Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, joined Panetta at the ceremony, held near the memorial on the National Mall here. The groundbreaking included a large delegation of congressional and military leaders and members of Gold Star Families -- an organization for families that have lost loved ones in military service.

"It will be a site for future generations of Americans to learn, think and reflect on our nation's wars and those who fought them," Panetta said of the education center. "This is a very poignant moment, for a very special place in my heart for [Vietnam veterans]."

The center, which will honor veterans from several U.S. wars, will bring to life the stories of the more than 58,000 U.S. service members who were lost during the Vietnam War. Stories and photos of the fallen from Iraq and Afghanistan also will be featured until those veterans have their own national place of honor, event officials said.

"As I travel across the country and the world, I am always inspired by the strength and the resilience of our military families," Biden, also a military mom, told the audience.

"But there are many Americans who don't know anyone in the military," she added. "As a life-long educator, that's why the education center is so important. It will help ensure our veterans will always be remembered -- not just in name, by but by their actions. Those actions will become part of the lessons that educate and inspire us for years to come."

This year begins the 50th anniversary commemoration of the United States' participation in the Vietnam War, Panetta told the audience.

"We remember their bravery and heroism and we will never forget their sacrifices during that conflict," he said of U.S. service members who fought in Vietnam.

Panetta spoke of his recent travels to Vietnam, noting that Defense Department officials were working diligently in Hanoi to find and identify remains of U.S. service members who are missing in action there and throughout the region.

"It is our sacred duty to leave no one behind," Panetta said. "We will not rest until every MIA is brought home. I assure you that your government is committed to the fullest possible accounting of our missing service members from the Vietnam War."

Panetta said Americans failed to acknowledge the sacrifices of the nation's service members when they returned home after the war.

"America's recognition came too late," he said. "The Vietnam generation is graying now. Preserving stories requires more than a place of remembrance. It needs a place of education. [These veterans] must never be forgotten."

The center will focus on a divisive time in the nation's history from which it learned meaningful lessons, the secretary said.

"That war is always a last resort, that we must have a clear mission [to fight], that people can oppose a war and still support the troops, and that we should always cherish the legacy of valor and self-sacrifice our veterans represent and make America strong," he said.

Panetta said the center will honor the nation's military heroes "by telling the stories of brave American warriors, past and present, we help ensure we'll never forget the sacrifices of those who paid the ultimate price for their country."

"The torch of freedom these heroes carried into battle must be passed from generation to generation, so we never stop fighting for a better future for our children," the secretary said.

WOUNDED WARRIOR DINNER

FROM: U.S. AIR FROCE
Individual mobilization augmentees Tech. Sgt. Lacey Smith (right) and Master Sgt. Mel Reich (left) smile for a photo with Vice President of the United States Joseph Biden during the Wounded Warrior Dinner Nov. 19 in Washington, D.C. Smith received the dinner invitation from Reich due to Lacey's dogged assistance over the last year tackling the member's medical issues. The vice president and his wife, Jill, host this annual event which honors wounded warriors being treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and their families who are unable to leave the DC area for Thanksgiving. (Courtesy photo)

DR. JILL BIDEN ON MILITARY FAMILY SUPPORT

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, speaks about the value of military family support during a roundtable discussion at the Pentagon, April 10, 2012. The roundtable included Deanie Dempsey, wife of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, and honored the winners of the Joining Forces Community Challenge, which is an effort to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary military family support efforts of citizens and organizations across the country. DOD photo by Elaine Sanchez

Dr. Biden, Mrs. Dempsey Salute 'Challenge' Winners
By Elaine Sanchez
WASHINGTON, April 11, 2012 - Leading up to a White House celebration today, two of the nation's top wives personally thanked a group of individuals and organization leaders for their efforts to improve military families' lives at the Pentagon yesterday.
 Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, and Deanie Dempsey, wife of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, honored the winners of the Joining Forces Community Challenge during a roundtable discussion.

The Community Challenge, part of the Joining Forces campaign, is intended to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary military family support efforts of citizens and organizations across the country. First Lady Michelle Obama and Biden launched Joining Forces one year ago today to rally Americans around troops, veterans and their families, and announced the Challenge in July to capture the innovative ways people have chosen to support and honor them.

"What you're doing is so amazing," Biden told the group, which had just wrapped up a Pentagon tour. "This is a dream come true that you're out there helping military families."
USO President Sloan D. Gibson, who served as roundtable moderator, invited representatives from each of the six groups to explain their organizations' accomplishments and what spurred them to action. The winners range from a community that ensures families of deployed Guard members have a vast array of support, to a group that offers outdoor retreats to military spouses, to an organization of mental health professionals that volunteers their time, free of charge, to military families.

Whatever the service or support they provide, all embody the spirit of the Joining Forces campaign, Biden said, as they step up to serve and honor troops and their families. "Joining Forces is all about calling on people all across the country to lend a hand," she said.

Biden and Dempsey both passed on their personal gratitude for the groups' efforts. The Bidens' son, Beau Biden, is a captain in the Army National Guard who served a one-year deployment in Iraq, and Dempsey is a military wife and a military mom. Her husband commissioned all three of their children, she said, and their daughter is married to a captain in the Special Forces.

"What you do for all military families, you also do for the Dempsey family," the chairman's wife said. "From a personal standpoint, thank you from the bottom of my heart."
The Joining Forces Community Challenge winners are:

-- Armed Forces Service Center, St. Paul, Minn. The service center is a 24/7 "all free" lounge staffed by volunteers at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport for active-duty military personnel, their families, activated reservists and National Guardsmen and other members of the uniformed services.

-- Defending the Blue Line, Hastings, Minn. This organization works to ensure that children of military members have access to participate in hockey through free equipment, hockey camps, special events and financial assistance toward association and other hockey-related costs.

-- Give an Hour, Bethesda, Md. Founded by Washington, D.C.-based psychologist Barbara Van Dahlen, this organization is dedicated to meeting the mental health needs of military personnel, their families, and the communities affected by the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to counseling, providers also consult to schools, first responders, employers, and community organizations. Give an Hour has provided nearly 50,000 hours of free service, valued at roughly $5 million.

-- Project Sanctuary, Parker, Colo. This organization brings military families together in the Rocky Mountains after deployments to help them reconnect through recreational activities and therapy. Follow-up support beyond the retreat is also provided, and includes support to families with housing, job placement and veterans' assistance.

-- City of Richfield, Utah. The city has supported its local Army National Guard unit through four deployments since Sept. 11, 2001. Additionally, Richfield provides several programs and services for military families, including a city utility abatement program and distribution of the city's newspaper to deployed soldiers so they can stay in touch with the community.

-- Our Family for Families First Foundation, East Greenwich, R.I. This foundation, chosen by the public as the Challenge's "People's Choice Winner," supports military families pursuing higher education by supporting military children through scholarships and military spouses through grants and assistance identifying educational opportunities.

Other than the People's Choice award, the Challenge winners were selected with input from a panel of judges that included news correspondent and author Tom Brokaw; J.R. Martinez, an Iraq war veteran, motivational speaker and "Dancing With the Stars" winner; San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro; Deanie Dempsey; and Gibson.

At the roundtable, Gibson ticked off the reasons he believes these groups deserve this national honor. They're having a positive impact on military families' lives, are building stronger bonds between military families and their communities, and are inspiring others to bring the same "passion and obvious care and concern" to military family support, he said.

All 20 Challenge finalists will be honored at today's White House event, which also marks the one-year anniversary of Joining Forces.

THE FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA AND DR. JILL BIDEN WORK TO RALLY NATION BEHIND VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, discuss the accomplishments of the Joining Forces campaign as its one-year anniversary approaches during an interview with American Forces Press Service in Washington, D.C., April 6, 2012. The first lady and Dr. Biden launched the campaign to rally national support from all sectors of society to honor and support service members, veterans and their families. DOD photo by Linda Hosek
Mrs. Obama: Nation Must 'Step up Forever' for Military Families
By Lisa Daniel
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, April 9, 2012 - As First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden mark the first anniversary of their "Joining Forces" campaign this week, the two say they will continue to solidify its successes so a structured effort to help military families is a permanent part of American culture.

The pair reflected on the campaign's success during an April 6 interview here with American Forces Press Service.

"This has been a phenomenal first year," Obama said. "But the truth is, Jill and I have been working this issue since our husbands took the oath of office" in January 2009.
Obama and Biden, wife of vice president Joe Biden, said they've been amazed by the outpouring of support by American civilians. More than 100 companies have committed to participate in the administration's goal of the private sector hiring of 100,000 spouses and veterans. They also noted a Joining Forces commitment from the nation's medical colleges to better train civilian health-care providers in caring for war veterans and their families.

"We've seen Americans -- 13 million of them -- step up to pledge hours of service," Obama said. "It's been phenomenal to see a grateful nation step up to help military men and women who sacrifice so much for us."

Biden, a community college professor, said she's been gratified by progress in the education arena. Teachers colleges have incorporated military family matters into curricula to help teachers-to-be understand the unique challenges their students from military families face, she said. And more and more school systems recognize course credits of military family members who must relocate frequently, she added.

Teachers are doing small things that make a big difference, Biden said. Some conduct parent-teacher conferences with deployed parents on the Internet. Others -- as the teacher of Biden's granddaughter did when the Bidens' son, Beau, was deployed to Iraq -- display photos of deployed parents to help children cope.
Obama and Biden said they have felt privileged to meet with military families across the nation.

"Every American should have the privilege of getting to know a military community, a family, a unit, because these men and women are the best this country has," the first lady said. "I'm always in awe of what they are able to manage, what they sacrifice, and doing it with such grace and poise. It's been a gift to shine light on these military men and women."
Biden also spoke of the resilience of military family members.

"They face a lot of difficulties and challenges in their lives," she said, noting that most military members relocate at least 10 times in their career. "That's tough on a family -- to pack up, lose friends, make new friends, get new sports teams -- but they never complain. They just feel it's part of their job."

Obama said she expects the campaign's second year will continue progress in those areas and more. A major goal, she said, will be to build on successes in professional license portability for military spouses. Thirteen states already have passed legislation to make it easier for military spouses who work in fields such as teaching, nursing, real estate, and social work to transfer their professional licenses easily from one state to another, and 13 more have pending legislation, she said.

The outpouring of support for the Joining Forces campaign has proven that Americans want to help military families and need the structure the campaign provides, Biden said.
"Americans want to help. All they need is a little direction," she said. "They're saying, 'OK, give us ideas.'"

Obama said she expects the campaign to endure indefinitely.
"Our husbands, and Jill and I, we're committed to making sure this becomes part of our culture," she said. "I know the president and the vice president are working with the [Defense and Veterans Affairs departments] to set up a structure to ensure this continues, regardless of who's in office.

"These are lifelong commitments," she added. "As a Blue Star mom, Jill is always in, and I consider myself an honorary Blue Star mom. ... This is a forever issue for us."
The important thing for civilians to understand, Obama said, is that these issues don't end when wars end. "That's when the hard work begins for many of these families," she said. "When someone is on active duty, they're still transferring. Their kids are still going from school to school to school."

The first lady noted that 1 percent of Americans serve in the all-volunteer force to protect everyone else. "So, we have to step up forever," she said. "I think our country is ready to do that. It just helps to have a structure like Joining Forces."