April is designated as Month of the Military Child – a time to honor the sacrifices made by military families worldwide, with an emphasis on the experience of the dependent children of military members serving at home and overseas.

Like many similar military recognition efforts, the Month of The Military Child is often celebrated “internally” with military communities and military association planning contests, parades, fairs, seminars, and special events centered around the message of the month. It is also celebrated “externally” by many communities, schools, and organizations.

Approximately 2 million military children have experienced a parental deployment since 9/11. There are currently 1.2 million military children of active-duty members worldwide.  The average military family moves three times more often than their civilian counterpart.  There are nearly two million “total-force dependent children” including more than 900 thousand Army dependents, 400,000 Air Force dependents, nearly 300,000 Navy and approximately 118,000 Marine dependents.

Since many of the April events are sponsored by military communities, to learn more it is best to start your search for events with the base Public Affairs office, Military Family Readiness Centers, Department of Defense Dependent School admin offices, and even on-base Child Development Centers.