Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Military Spouse of the Year

okay yall, we need your help!! go to this link http://msoy.milspouse.com/ and register. click on "army" and vote for nicki b. she deserves this more than anyone i know! ill just post her profile, since whoever wrote it is much more eloquent than i am :) please please please, vote for nicki. you can vote once every 8 hours :)

Why should the nominee be the 2010 Military Spouse of the Year?

Nicki B. is a Gold Star Wife whose husband, CPT Brian B., was KIA in Afghanistan on 2/24/2009. She deserves this honor because of her work to support other Gold Star families and military families in general. She is an inspiration to many of us who are blessed to call her our friend.

How does the nominee support the military spouse community?
Nicki supports the military spouse community in many ways. Her main focus has been the annual charity/memorial run that she created in memory of her husband, CPT Brian "Bubba" B. The first annual Bubba's Belly Run was held yesterday and was a great success. The run benefits Flat Daddies, American Widow Project, and Fisher House. As military spouses, we all understand the importance of these three organizations as at any time we could need to call on their services. Nicki is also a great supporter of many of her friends who are military spouses. In fact, after Bubba's death she was concerned for my mental well-being as my husband was still deployed close to where Bubba was killed. She took the time to support me when she was the one who I believed needed support. She is an amazing woman who has dedicated herself tirelessly (while pregnant!) to helping others whose loved ones have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Describe a challenge the nominee has had to overcome.
The biggest challenge that I believe any military spouse could face is the loss of our spouse. Nicki not only lost her husband and the father of her son Connor in February of this year, but she also found out that she was expecting their second child a week after Brian's death. She did not let the grief and anxiety knock her down, but instead grew stronger, reaching out to the community to organize a benefit for other Gold Star families and at the same time creating a tribute to all of our fallen heroes from the War on Terror. The event was a huge success.

What makes the nominee stand out from her/his peers?
Nicki is just a light in this world. She has taken her personal tragedy and turned it into a wonderful testament of love and support for the military community. She is there for absolutely anyone who needs her, and has stayed connected to many military spouses and supported them throughout her experience as a new Gold Star wife. In just 7 months she organized a wonderful benefit run while being pregnant and chasing around a toddler! She has brought so much awareness to the military community, especially the Gold Star family community, by sharing her story with the world. She could have withered away and withdrawn from society in her grief, but instead she stood strong and turned her loss into something amazing. She is the epitome of what every military spouse should be. Strong, giving, and determined. She is truly an inspiration to our entire military family across the world.

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