The Our Military Kids Story

Comfort. Stability. Routine. Fun! All children need these ingredients to thrive but especially those who have a parent deployed in military service to our country. Compassion for these children is what inspired Linda Davidson and Gail Kruzel to found Our Military Kids in 2004. They were concerned that the school-aged children of Reserve and National Guard military service men and women were missing out on sustaining support services. Along with the sacrifice of having a parent away in service for months at a time, they could see that many of these families were often so stretched financially that they could not afford the fees for sports, fine arts and tutoring so crucial to their children’s sense of well-being.

With shared expertise working for an outreach organization that assisted Army families, Gail and Linda sought to recognize and honor other service families who often fall outside the parameters of established support programs—the families of National Guard and Reserve service men and women who have been and are continuing to sacrifice so much for our country.

Gail and Linda approached well-known, esteemed individuals, many with distinguished military and government service careers, and asked them to join the Our Military Kids team. All enthusiastically agreed and a Board of Directors and Advisory Board were formed. Our Military Kids received its 501(c)(3) status in early 2005 and initiated a pilot program with a Winchester, Virginia National Guard unit. This proved so successful that in April 2006, the group launched nationwide to reach over 1,000 children in 47 states by the end of that year.

Our Military Kids is a 501(c)(3) organization. Your donations are fully tax-deductible to the extent allowable by law.