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Unsung sacrifices

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Rep. Tom Cole

By U.S. Rep. Tom Cole
R-Oklahoma

Established by former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger in 1986, the Month of the Military Child has since been celebrated every April to recognize the 1.6 million children of our men and women in uniform. From watching their parents leave home to serve overseas or attend various training exercises, to moving every few years when it is time to change duty stations, I am forever grateful for the sacrifices that military children make to support the brave men and women of our nation’s great military.

As the son of a career airman, I am certainly aware of the exponential sacrifices and the unique challenges that children and families of those in our armed forces face on a day-to-day basis. My father, John Cole, spent his career defending our country in the Air Force. He lived a dutiful life for his family and his country, and my mother, my brother and I were certainly proud to support him.

The Fourth District of Oklahoma is home to two large military installations, and the need for supporting military children and spouses in these areas is undeniable. In fact, it is more than likely you know a military child. For this reason, I was proud to co-lead the bipartisan Advancing Toward Impact Aid Full Funding Act this year, which would provide a five-year plan to fund Impact Aid schools across the country.

Impact Aid is a federal program that provides financial resources to school districts that lose out on property tax revenue because large swaths of their districts are federally-owned land or Indian land. Currently, 240 schools located on or near military installations and Indian lands in Oklahoma rely on Impact Aid for funding, the most in the nation. Because my father was in the military, I personally benefited from this program when I was a child, and I still believe in its importance. We have many children and families in Oklahoma who rely on these funds for education, and we must ensure that teachers and administrators serving Impact Aid schools have the resources they need. If enacted, this legislation would boost funding for the Lawton School District where Fort Sill is located by more than $5 million and the Mid-Del School District where Tinker Air Force Base is by more than $2 million.

I am also proud to cosponsor the Military Spouse Hiring Act, which would allow military spouses to continue to work and support their families and children as they travel around the country to different bases. In the last decade, military spouses faced an extremely high unemployment rate of more than 20 percent, directly caused by frequent moves. To combat this high unemployment rate, this legislation would create an incentive program for companies to hire military spouses.

Our service members and their families truly know the meaning of sacrifice. This month and every day, we not only commend the unsung sacrifices of the children of our military service members for their unwavering resiliency, strength and dedication to our country, but we also applaud their efforts to positively impact their communities and mirror the values shared by their parents.

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