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BSMs of New Hampshire is an organization consisting of any military branch family member and friends supporting all branches of the military |
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In Remembrance
We wish to remember and extend our deepest sympathies to all Gold Star Families. May we always remember those who gave all for our country.
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Recommended Reading
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This information does not serve as an endorsement of any individual organizations, agency, or the quaility of services. |
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Blue Star Mothers of America's Guide to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ~ With the return of troops from war zones, the incidences of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms are on the rise. Debriefings for troops returning from a war zone usually include information about PTSD. However, the troops' families and friends do not automatically receive relevant information on how to identify and deal with their loved one's PTSD symptoms, which can include excessive anger, debilitating depression, and suicidal thoughts.
With the hopes of promoting understanding and providing resources for the families of returning troops, Blue Star Mothers of America have prepared a Guide to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. This 16-page document includes basic information to help family members understand and identify PTSD, a list of resources, and personal touches in poems and letters written by moms dealing with their sons and daughter's PTSD.
To receive a free PDF copy of the Guide to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, contact Emily Afuola (Blue Star Mothers of America)or you can download the pamphlet by clicking here.
*Disclaimer - We are not medical/mental health professionals nor attorneys. This information provided is simply to be used for information purposes only. You must contact the appropriate qualified professionals for advice when dealing with the complex and complicated issues surrounding military-related injuries, veterans' benefits and entitlements, military Medical Board process and military Physical Evaluation Board process.
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Wounded Warrior Information and Documents ~ What every Parent should know: The goal of the Wounded Warrior Committee is to provide families of Blue Star Mothers with a practical proactive approach to pre-deployment family planning that prepares families for an unexpected emergency. Some guidance on how the notification system works and helpful hints on how to be of assistance to both your Wounded Warrior and the family.
Pre-Deployment Information
Pre-Deployment Family Planning
Pre-Deployment Passports
FMLA-Certification of Health Care Provider
Documentation will build as the committee collects information for our members. Please check the Blue Star Mothers of America website frequently for updates.
*Disclaimer - We are not medical/mental health professionals nor attorneys. This information provided is simply to be used for information purposes only. You must contact the appropriate qualified professionals for advice when dealing with the complex and complicated issues surrounding military-related injuries, veterans' benefits and entitlements, military Medical Board process and military Physical Evaluation Board process. |
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Behind the Blue Star
Blue Star Families with loved ones at war live in a world of uncertainty, stress and, often, the purest form of patriotism. |
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 The Road Home - Smoothing the transition back from deployment is the 3rd installment in the "I’m Already Home" book series. The Road Home also qualifies as a resource for the reintegration piece of the Yellow Ribbon Program.
Continuing in the tradition of supplying great information and resources for service members facing deployment, reunion and reintegration,
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I'm Already Home... Again ~ Keeping your family close while on assignment or  deployment is filled with connection ideas gathered from those who have experience deployment personally.
This book has helped over 30,000 military families find the connection ideas that worked for them! With over 200 tips and connection strategies to choose from, you are sure to find ways to improve your relationship and stay connected during military separations. |
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Mom's Field Guide: What you Need toKnow to Make it Through your Loved One's Military Deployment.
 When Sandy's son was deployed to Iraq in 2004, she felt overwhelmed with fear and anxiety. She couldn't help but worry. To keep herself busy, she turned her energies toward finding ways to support her son from the home front. After thousands of hours of research and her own first-hand experience along with many lessons she learned from other military families, she wrote Mom's Field Guide: What You Need to Know to Make It Through Your Loved One's Military Deployment. She shares what she learned with other families in the same situation.
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Your Soldier Your Army ~ Your Soldier, Your Army: A Parents’ Guide was written by Vicki Cody, wife of GEN Richard Cody, Vice Chief of Staff, U.S. Army, and the mother of two Apache helicopter pilots with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). Mrs. Cody turns her own 30-year experience as the wife and mother of Soldiers into advice and consolation for other parents with deploying children. The book’s tone is warm and confidential with an honest mix of pride and tribulation, a tone that appeals to concerned parents. Mrs. Cody covers the whole gamut of deployments, from the preparation through the endurance to the homecoming, and includes a personal view into Army life and an explanation of Army terminology. Supplemental articles and exclamation points feature tips and facts about the Army. |
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When Wounded Vets Come Home ~ By Barry Yeoman, AARP July & August 2008
 As more troops than ever are surviving the fearsome injuries of war, parents are increasingly being thrust into the role of long-term caregivers. |
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Down Range: To Iraq and Back (Paperback)
by Bridget C., Ph.D. Cantrell (Author), Chuck Dean (Author) "AS BATTLES CEASE, WEAPONS GET STACKED, and peace treaties are drawn up, it is then that the wounds of the soul become obvious to each..." |
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"A Handbook for Injured Service Members and Their Families” ~ A new handbook designed to help wounded warriors and their families navigate the bureaucracy to get the benefits they have earned is now available.
The 149-page “A Handbook for Injured Service Members and Their Families” was prepared free by a New York-based law firm for two nonprofit charities — the Wounded Warrior Project and the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund. It can be downloaded for free at Fallen Heroes Fund or the Wounded Warrior Project.
“This answers the questions you have,” said Army Spc. James O’Leary, who received multiple injuries in a mortar attack in Iraq in 2004. “I didn’t know what I was eligible for. I didn’t know about the vocational rehabilitation program, which is much better than the GI Bill and pays for all your tuition and books. I didn’t know about the evaluation system. I figured if [the Veterans Affairs Department] gave me a certain rating, that’s what I would be eligible for.”
Davis Polk & Wardell donated about $500,000 worth of time, with hundreds of attorneys combing through government laws, regulations and other information, said Bill White, president of the Intrepid Foundation, which operates the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.
“They tried to simplify and put the information in layman’s terms, so that if you’re 19 years old and haven’t gone to law school, ... you can understand it,” White said, adding that the senior lead partner on the project is a retired Marine.
The handbook is divided into sections dealing with issues that come up during the process wounded service members go through, said Jeremy Chwat, vice president for policy and public affairs for the Wounded Warrior Project.
“We wanted to make sure service members understand their benefits and rights and that it’s not lost in legislative speak,” Chwat said.
Chapters include “Immediate Concerns,” with details on important documents, financial aid sources and information on service members’ continuing salaries.
For families traveling to be at their service member’s bedside, information is included about the military’s invitational travel orders, per diem rates for family members, and a listing of contacts for all Fisher House homes.
Extensive information about the disability evaluation systems, education and employment benefits, health benefits, legal rights and legal assistance, and other federal benefits is provided.
The handbook has a glossary and a state-by-state list of resources for the wounded. Other resources are sprinkled throughout, such as Disabled American Veterans and the Army’s Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline. |
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Women At Risk: We Also Served ~ By Noonie Fortin (paperback)
Is about women who served our country since before World War II to present day. All branches of the military are included, officers and enlisted personnel, as well as women who volunteered as civilians going to a war zone, those that stayed stateside, and other loved ones. Included are clerks, drivers, heavy equipment operators, nurses, USO and ARC volunteers, and more. These women explain some of the things they did or do in the military or as civilians. They tell us why they volunteered, how their lives were changed, and answer the question, "Would I do it again? More than sixty women are profiled in this book. Their stories are finally being shared-many for the first time.This book is for readers of all ages including students. It will encourage patriotism as you read each chapter. They encourage both the reader and listener to talk more and ask questions about their own family military background. |
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Potpourri of War: Labors of Love Remembered By Noonie Fortin (paperback) ~ Thirty-three years ago on a makeshift stage atop a sand dune at Chu Lai, South Vietnam, Martha Raye brought a couple of hours of America and sanity to a bunch of scared and lonely Marines, Seabees and sailors. After the show Martha and her very small troupe ate the same field rations that we were eating, she walked among us, talked to us, took pictures with us...she brought us a bit of home. I only had one group picture taken with her...but how can one forget those unselfish, loving moments of her? |
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Memories of Maggie - Martha Raye: A Legend Spanning 3 Wars
By Noonie Fortin (paperback) ~ From 1964 to 1973, Martha traveled from camp to camp in isolated areas throughout Vietnam. She would stay “in-country” from four to six months at a time--usually at her own expense--to be with the troops she so dearly loved. She used the nurse’s aide skills she learned back in the 1930s, and surgical techniques she picked up during World War II to help treat the wounded. Whatever her official nursing qualifications, her assistance was often needed and very much appreciated. Her presence, whether as entertainer or as a nurse, helped to make life bearable for so many enlisted troops and officers. |
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