{"id":10983,"date":"2023-04-21T15:41:50","date_gmt":"2023-04-21T19:41:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=10983"},"modified":"2023-04-24T10:08:20","modified_gmt":"2023-04-24T14:08:20","slug":"the-art-of-being-a-military-child-a-reminder-of-the-resilience-and-creativity-of-military-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/the-art-of-being-a-military-child-a-reminder-of-the-resilience-and-creativity-of-military-children\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Art of Being a Military Child\u2019 \u2013 a reminder of the resilience and creativity of military children"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Megan Wollam)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

-Svetla Tomanova<\/em><\/p>\n

Since 1986, April has been recognized by the Department of Defense as the Month of the Military Child. \u201cThe Art of Being a Military Child” event is just one example of the many ways that Virginia Beach City Public Schools and community partners come together to recognize and support military children during the Month of the Military Child.<\/p>\n

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(photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Megan Wollam)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 2012, the inaugural year of the VBCPS celebration, there were only 200 entries. This year, \u201cThe Art of Being a Military Child\u201d contest inspired more than 700 artworks from K-12 students. Many of the creations were put on display at Lynnhaven Mall\u2019s center court.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Month of the Military Child holds special meaning for us,\u201d Superintendent Dr. Aaron Spence said. \u201cWe have approximately 12,000 military-connected students in our school division whose families support some of the most important military functions in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

This contest was an opportunity for children to express their artistic interpretations of what it means to be a military dependent and the life lessons they have learned. Their dreams and wishes, patriotism, family and school were depicted in the masterpieces. They have used their talents to inspire others and raise awareness about the unique challenges facing military children such as the artwork by Addyson P., Great Neck Middle School, as shown in the picture. As for Arabella D., Salem High School, her artwork expresses her friend\u2019s happiness when seeing her mom after two years of deployment.<\/p>\n

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Arabella D., Salem High School artwork<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The exhibit opened with a reception in Lynnhaven Mall’s center court, where the Princess Anne High School Band provided entertainment. The event was attended by several dignitaries, including First Lady of Virginia Suzanne Youngkin and Virginia Secretary of Veteran and Defense Affairs Craig Crenshaw, as well as senior leaders from each branch of the military. Others on hand for the unveiling were families and friends of the contestants as well as visitors to the mall.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne famous artist, Henri Matisse, said creativity takes courage,\u201d Youngkin said in her opening remarks. \u201cAnd what I saw was a remarkable display of courage. Congratulations to all of our young artists who poured their hearts and souls into bringing to life emotions that will impact every person in this community and the Commonwealth.\u201d<\/p>\n

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First Lady Youngkin presented a proclamation to the Virginia Secretary of Veteran and Defense Affairs, Craig Crenshaw, officially recognizing the Month of Military Child. (photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Megan Wollam)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the highlights of the event came from the Cox High School freshman Kaylee Schulz, who recited a poignant poem she penned: \u201cI am a military child.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the ceremony, the emcee, Kurt Williams, anchor with WTKR, recognized the 16 award winners. As the students hurried to the podium, their artworks were spotlighted on the large screen.<\/p>\n

The division hosted the contest and annual art show in partnership with Lynnhaven Mall and military school liaison officers at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story and Naval Air Station Oceana-Dam Neck.<\/p>\n

The exhibit will remain open throughout April. Let\u2019s continue to celebrate military children and their families and most importantly celebrate life together.<\/p>\n

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Addyson P., Great Neck Middle School artwork<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Princess Anne High School band (photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Megan Wollam)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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(photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Megan Wollam)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Lilian T., Great Neck MS, traveled coast to coast and depicted the places she had lived and the cultures she experienced and the military children she met.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Cox High School freshman Kaylee Schulz recites a poem she penned: \u201cI am a military child.\u201d (photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Megan Wollam)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

-Svetla Tomanova Since 1986, April has been recognized by the Department of Defense as the Month of the Military Child. \u201cThe Art of Being a Military Child” event is just […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":10985,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10983","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10983","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10983"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10983\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11022,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10983\/revisions\/11022"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10983"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10983"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10983"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}