Paying it Back by Paying it Forward:

There has been an extraordinary response to the publicity our Family and Friends Supporting Our Military group has received. I have received many suggestions and many phone calls, letters, and emails of support. One of the ideas that has surfaced is to repay all of our military men and women by insuring that their children can get the education they want beyond high school.

I realize that not every kid is going to go on for a 4 year college degree. But I know that every kid will need additional training beyond high school. I also realize that some kids never think about going on to college, trade school, or technical school because they don’t think they can afford the huge costs.

Our military has the GI Bill to help them. There are also student loans. But what if there was a scholarship fund set up so that every son or daughter of a person who served and was honorably discharged from the military had at least part of their post high school education paid for. This was the idea that was presented to me and I think it is a fantastic idea.

I need look no farther than my son-in-law to see how this type of scholarship program could help. Andy is a great kid and his dad served in the Navy during the late 1960 and early 1970s. Had such a scholarship program existed for Andy, he would have far less in student loans to repay.

Every kid deserves the chance to make the most of the future. A scholarship would help at least those kids whose parents have committed to serve our Country through military service. Based on the few people I’ve talked to, I believe it would be fairly easy to create a scholarship fund that would give these kids at least $500 a year for up to 4 years of college, community college, trade or technical school. Who knows, maybe there are enough generous people out there that we could give them $1,000, $2,000, or more.

Our family had great grandfathers, grandfathers, fathers, uncles, cousins, and sons who have all served in the military. I am sure many other families can say the same thing. I believe that all of these people will be interested in helping to make sure that “Children of our Michigan Heroes” have a chance for a brighter future through education beyond high school.

Let me know what you think. Is this a good idea? Why not send me an email and let me know what you think. If it looks like there is enough support for this idea, we’ll talk about it at our next FAFSOM meeting (on April 19). From there, we’ll put the wheels into motion and see what we can do. Email me at jnewman@civilitycenter.org. This week my hat is off to all those kids whose moms and dads are helping to preserve our “American Way of Life.”

For more information on FAFSOM visit www.FAFSOM.org