Family Matters
MOAA serves the entire military family — officer, enlisted, active duty, Guard and Reserve, retired, and former service-members and their surviving spouses and family members.
By Vice Adm. Norbert R. Ryan Jr., USN-Ret.

Every member of the military family is an important part of the MOAA family as well. And just as a loyal family member is there for you — day in and day out, in good times and bad — MOAA is here for you, at every stage of your life and your career.

The association has undertaken a concerted effort to reach out to the families and surviving spouses of MOAA members. When Cmdr. René Campos, USN-Ret., joined our staff as the deputy director of Government Relations for Military Family Issues, she brought extensive active duty experience with the concerns of spouses, family members, and the military community. Her focus is ensuring that legislation and DoD policies are tailored to look out for military families — and she’s making an impact.

In MOAA’s Benefits Information Department, Sue Hoppin is our new assistant director for Spouse Outreach. Married to an active duty Air Force officer, Hoppin spends much of her time informing military spouses about benefits, programs, and resources that are available to help them and their families.

The six members of MOAA’s Auxiliary Member Advisory Committee — each a surviving military spouse — are charged to advise the association’s board and staff on what programs would be most beneficial to those facing life without their partners. We want all our surviving-spouse members to know that MOAA is always here to help them. One survivor told us, “You are all I have.”
 
MOAA staff members don’t take this responsibility lightly. The association routinely reminds our government leaders that family members are an important component of the recruiting-and-retention equation and that their best interests must always be considered. MOAA has long focused on families and spouses by fighting — and winning — legislative battles: TRICARE For Life, TRICARE Senior Pharmacy, concurrent receipt of VA and retired pay, ending the Survivor Benefit Plan offset for widows, health care for Guard and Reserve members, and many more.

Today our nation is in the midst of a protracted war, and the DoD budget is under great strain. Nonetheless, we must ensure that programs supporting people — men and women in uniform and their family members — are recognized as being important and are funded accordingly.

All MOAA members are family, and we’ll continue to be there for you, like any good family member. You can count on your association — always.