July 15, 2026, Oakton, Va. -- Some of our nation’s youngest make the biggest sacrifices. At just 13 months old, Collins already knows what deployment feels like: her father is currently overseas serving with the Army National Guard.
Fortunately, Collins also knows what community feels like. At the beginning of the deployment, her mother, Ciara, paid for Collins’ swim lessons through funding from Our Military Kids. Serving military families for more than two decades, Our Military Kids funds activities for the children (ages 1-18) of deployed Reserve or National Guard service members and the children of Veterans and service members currently receiving care for their post-9/11 combat-related injuries and illnesses.
Funding—called activity awards—can be applied to a wide variety of activities, including sports, art and music classes, camps, tutoring, and driver’s education. And—yes!—funding is available for toddler and pre-K kids, too. For the military community’s youngest, age-appropriate activities like mommy and me, classes and toddler music lessons give their families time to bond and make memories.
Collins’ swim lessons have been a point of connection for her entire family. Her dad video-calls into classes, enabling him to watch Collins and Ciara play in the water together. The opportunity to join virtually “makes him happy to see her in her element and feel like he’s not missing out on everything while he’s gone,” said Ciara. Collins is thriving with support from Our Military Kids—she’s learning new skills, having new experiences, and spending quality time with her mom. And Ciara is feeling supported, too: “I’m a new stay-at-home mom, and it has been lonely and isolating… Swim class has been a blessing because it gets us out of the house and around other people…”
That’s not just a coincidence, it’s by design. Over the past 22 years, Our Military Kids beneficiaries have repeatedly noted the positive impact that activities have on the household. Their 2026 Impact Report found that 96% of participating families saw improvement in family wellbeing and 92% reported a positive impact on the service member or Veteran’s morale.
In 2026, Our Military Kids has seen a 16% increase in demand over the same time last year, which is likely to increase this summer as families continue to experience deployments and treatment for combat-related injuries and illnesses. Our Military Kids stands with families and supports children as they experience some of the hardest times in their lives. Military families can check their eligibility and apply for activity awards at any time.
This summer, Collins is the face of Our Military Kids’ fundraising appeal — the Give Military Kids the Freedom to Be Kids Campaign, her happy smile illuminating the importance of activities for all children. Donations from new donors will be doubled, up to $20,000, now until August 31, 2026, thanks to the Pritzker Military Foundation. Interested in supporting other military children like Collins? Learn more about Our Military Kids and help them meet their fundraising goal.
That’s not the only thing Our Military Kids is doing this summer. Children of any age and military branch affiliation are invited to add their artwork to Gallery 250—an online display of art in celebration of America’s birthday and 250 years of U.S. military kids. Here’s how to participate:
- Download free coloring pages at ourmilitarykids.org/gallery250
- Take a picture of your kids’ completed masterpieces.
- Post the picture on social media by tagging @ourmilitarykids and #ourmilitarykids or emailing the photo to social@ourmilitarykids.org so that Our Military Kids can add your child’s artwork to the online gallery.
About Our Military Kids
Our Military Kids® is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit offering extracurricular activity awards to children ages 1-18 of deployed National Guard, deployed Reserve, or Veterans/Service Members receiving care for combat-related injuries or illnesses. Learn more and apply at ourmilitarykids.org.
