Operation Military Kids & Military 4-H Clubs

Operation Military Kids (OMK)

Utah Operation: Military Kids provides support to youth before, during, and after the deployment of a loved one. When National Guard, Army, Air Force Reserve, and other military parents living in civilian communities are mobilized, their children become military kids. They still look the same to teachers, friends, and the rest of the community, but they are coping with sudden changes in their lives, and their families may not be sure how to access support services of the military.

The Utah Operation Military Kids (OMK) Team is supported by Utah State University Extension 4-H, Utah National Guard, U. S. Army Reserve, Hill Air Force Base Youth Programs, Boys & Girls Clubs, Utah State Fair, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Child Care Resource & Referral, Thanksgiving Point, and youth from military and non-military families.

We have an excellent SCHOOL RESOURCES for Educators. 

 Are you looking for OMK fun?  Check out, please visit our Camps and Classes link or Visit our 4-H Calendar where activities are added all the time!

The mission of OMK is to support deployed National Guard, Army Reserve and Active Duty Soldiers’ children living in communities across the country.

Goals:

• Creating networks of people, organizations and other resources to support children and youth where they live.
• Delivering a wide range of recreational, social and educational programs for military youth living in civilian communities. These events provide an opportunity for youth to be with others experiencing similar situations of having a parent deployed. Kids are able to discuss the impact of deployment, how to cope and how to talk about their issues when they arise, and most of all, enjoy being a kid!
• Acknowledging the strengths and sacrifices of military kids as everyday home front heroes.
• Supporting military kids coping with the stress of knowing their deployed parents may be in harm’s way.
• Educating the public on the impact of the deployment cycle on Soldiers, families, kids and the community as a whole.

For more on OMK in Utah, check out the

• 2011 OMK Annual Report
• 2010 OMK Annual Report
• 2009 OMK Annual Report
  

Looking for Summer Fun for your Military Child?  We've got lots of great opportunities for you to check out!  Our Summer Camps help youth explore the world through fun hands on activities, and to help pay for your Military Child to attend, we have a limited number of scholarships to help!! 

RSG! Training offers an insight into military culture and the deployment cycle and suggest ways to understand the needs of and provide support to military kids and their families through community resources.

Hero Packs serve as a tangible expression of support for military families from their communities and OMK Partners. Hero Packs are backpacks filled by community members with mementos and items designed to help keep kids connected with their deployed parent. They are a way to hand-deliver a salute to military children & youth for their strength and sacrifices while parents are deployed. A Hero Pack project involves youth groups and adults in a valuable community service effort that builds awareness and fosters community support for geographically dispersed military families.  A key feature of Hero Packs is the handwritten letter or card to the youth – if you would like to do a group or community service project of writing letters, which go into Hero Packs, we have some wonderful guidelines available for you.

Do you know a child who needs a Hero Pack?  We would love to support them!  Please fill out our form so that we can salute them and our great Military Families! 

*Utah 4-H is seeking designers and seamstresses to construct Hero Packs!  Do you have a desire to partner with 4-H and military families and your community by sewing a Hero Pack or two?  Download this flier and pattern for more information!!

Speak Out for Military Kids

SOMK is a youth-led, adult supported project that generates community awareness of issues faced by youth of military families. Through simulations, interviews, and research, participants begin to understand what military families go through during deployment. Youth develop presentations, public service announcements, videos, and other materials and actively seek opportunities to share their experiences with others in the community (e.g. school assemblies, service club meetings and events, city council meetings, fairs, community activities, and teacher in-service programs).

See what OMK kids have to say. Check out their video!  Or, for more information on SOMK, we have some resources available, and for other questions, please contact Connie Packer by email or by phone at (801)369-3676.

• Dear Concerned Community Citizens
• Operation Military Kids Details
• SOMK Become one of the Team
• SOMK Team Application Form

 Mobile Technology Labs

The labs are used to facilitate connections between deployed soldiers and the children & youth left behind. Any OMK partner such as The American Legion, Boys & Girls Clubs, Schools, 4-H can request and use the laptop computers, digital camera, video recorder, printer, scanner and the necessary software and materials for children and youth to send personal messages to their deployed loved one.

Military 4-H Clubs

In addition to OMK, 4-H partners with military installations around the world. When youth of active duty military parents move around the country and the world, 4-H and military staff work together with local communities in providing a consistent 4-H club focus on and off the military installations.