Resilience + Inclusion
This article has been modified for a LinkedIn Article from a speech given by Jusika Martinez at the Department of the Air Force Resilience 2 Day Summit in April 2021.
I know that I have just a few moments to talk with you all today, but I want to bring attention to the statement of "accelerate change or lose". As an MRT, a working professional, and a mom of a special needs child, this statement holds a lot of weight. My spouse and our family have had eight assignments in 16 years. Two of those assignments have been within the last 11 or so months. So as you can imagine, we've seen and experienced many things — some good and really some bad.
I've experienced challenging things as an adult; as a military spouse, and as a mother that has caused me to continually reevaluate how to remain resilient in the face of significant adversity. Even though the MRT program, when I went through it wasn't focused on the big A (big adversity), this is what I've used that training for in my life since I got that training. If it weren't for the push and the opportunity to become an MRT, I can tell you firsthand that I likely wouldn't have made it through the last 18 months as well as I have in the face of some of these life events that my family and I have faced.
But here is the thing, not everyone is afforded these opportunities because the programs and support aren't consistent throughout our Air Force, and not everyone feels included. Inclusion for me means every single spouse - the not connected spouse, the spouses who are minorities, male spouses, DINKS, the working spouses, and the spouses that don't have generations of family members with military experience to help them adapt to this military life as a spouse. But most of all these opportunities need to be offered and filled equally to enlisted spouses — we need to have an equal seat at the table wherever we go, not just when someone feels that we’re an important perspective to have.
Why is consistent programming and inclusion of all spouses important? Because every single one of these spouses mentioned earlier matter. If we aren't equipping them with the tools they need to not only survive this life but to thrive in our military community. Then we as an organization and a community are failing.
Additionally, there also needs to be accountability for everyone involved not only in our resilience program, but for every program — from the program manager to their director, and so forth. Because without that accountability, we can never have a clear view of how to improve the pain points of our military members, their spouse, or their families. And we can not expect our military community to trust the resources we work so hard to provide.
As a spouse, I will never forget the day I was told, "I will no longer talk to you because you're not the active duty member." This statement was said to me as I advocated for assistance after going five months without care for our EFMP child after a significant life event. This example is just one of many I've experienced, but it stands out because it's not like someone said, "Hey, we work with all - members and spouses" what happened is that we conformed — not for the sake of wanting to, but because we knew that the only way to get the care that our daughter significantly needed was to play the long game even if that meant that it took my spouse away from his daily job for significant amounts of time.
As I conclude, I want to say that for me, this "accelerate change or lose" is exactly what needs to happen, but everyone needs an equal seat at the table. We need to make policy changes, program changes, culture changes and look outside the box on how to do things for our Air Force and Space Force families. So that we can have an emotionally intelligent force from the top to the bottom, and so that we can have a safe place for all spouses to go to for support and resources outside of our chain of command for whatever season of life our spouses find themselves in.
To be a better and more resilient force, we need to keep the Airman or Guardian that wants to serve their country not because "it's a good job", but because they also care about the Airman or Guardian next to them and the community that they are in. And the way to keep some of these individuals is by making sure that every spouse of every rank is included in what we do, given equal seats, the tools to thrive well, and is cared for, no matter how hard or easy their season of life is.
Jusika Martinez is a mother of 3 daughters and is a working professional in the non-profit military sector. Jusika can continually be found advocating for the military community, airmen, their families, and the safety of military children. Additionally, Jusika is an Air Force Master Resilience Trainer and actively looks for ways to continue growing personally and professionally. While stationed at Davis-Monthan Air Force base in 2018, she developed the foundation of the Military Spouse Resilience Program’s strategic plan and ran a 45 member enlisted spouses non-profit that placed third for organizational ethics for the Better Business Bureau. Through her advocacy and support of the military community, she has led multiple spouse teams in assisting and organizing memorial receptions for squadrons. Jusika’s commitment and advocacy to the military community come from her personal experiences as a military spouse of 16 years and her personal mission of striving for continuous improvement and growth wherever she finds herself or in any life situation. You can currently find her advocating for the safety of military children while in military childcare facilities.
