| Since 1941, USO of Illinois volunteers have been the heart and soul of lifting the spirits of America's troops and their families. Every year the USO of Illinois relies on over 660 active volunteers who annually donate enough hours to equal more than $1,060,000 of service. USO volunteers are trained thoroughly and work closely with staff to ensure high standards of service. During the month of April, the USO honors these amazing everyday heroes as part of volunteer appreciation month. Volunteers serve on regular and recurring shifts to keep all 5 USO of Illinois Centers open for business during their center-specific hours of operation. Besides being a staple at centers, USO volunteers also provide assistance during events. Clark After Dark, the USO's annual summer block party, brings 3,000 people to the heart of Chicago. USO volunteers can be spotted manning ticket booths, selling beverages, and helping guests in the VIP tent. USO of Illinois volunteers live every day for the mission of serving those who serve. They are often found at homecoming and deployment ceremonies to greet the troops and make all families feel welcome. Each one of the 660 volunteers is essential to the USO and each has their own unique story. Below you will find the brief story of three USO volunteers.  Marcia Julian and her husband Joe are volunteers at USO Great Lakes. Joe and Marcia have been married since they were 20 years old, have two children and are settling into retirement. They enjoy traveling in their RV and have been to all 50 states. When not touring the United States, Marcia can be found in the kitchen at Great Lakes on Sundays, most afternoons, and at special events such as No-Dough Dinners or Thanksgiving. The couple started volunteering at the USO in the fall of 2011, following their son's enlistment into the army. Julian says her initial motivation for volunteering was her son and she wanted to boost the morale of service members like him, hoping that someone in a USO where her son was deployed was doing the same thing. "I especially love talking to the service members who are visiting our Center for the first time; they are always impressed with the available activities, freebies, and food," said Marcia. "One sailor entering, exclaimed, 'What IS this place?!'". Maria recounts a family vacation in Corpus Christi, far from USO Great Lakes. She was chatting with a couple who asked where she lived and recognized the proximity to the Naval Station; she mentioned that she is on the base each week volunteering with the USO. The husband told her, "I was a Marine for 20 years and I want to thank you for what you do; the USO meant so much to me during my service." Marcia says the rewards are intrinsic and she loves her time as a USO volunteer. Jaimie Luxemore volunteers at USO Rock Island every Friday and is a Gold Star  Wife. Jaimie decided to become a USO volunteer because of the services the USO had provided her during the time she was a member of the Illinois Army National Guard and after her husband was killed in action in Afghanistan. "The USO was so helpful to us during our times flying to and from Dover, Fort Stewart and back to Illinois, and one of the Chicago USO volunteers even took the time to drive down to my husband's visitation. The USO made a huge impact on us during that difficult time," said Jaimie. Luxemore started volunteering at the Rock Island Arsenal USO in November of 2014 to help out with the Frank n' Fridays, a free meal offered on Fridays. Amy Tepavchevich has been volunteering for the USO for over five years. She says, "I've always had a great respect for our military and after seeing numerous friends and family serve, I decided that since I had summers off from teaching, I wanted to give back to them in some way."  Amy originally started her volunteer work at USO Navy Pier, and loved working with the families that came through the center on vacation. She later transferred to the USO at O'Hare Terminal 2. After receiving an e-mail about the USO Star-Spangled Salute Gala, Amy jumped on board to the special events volunteers team and has been a staple at the Gala and Clark After Dark. This past year, Amy volunteered at the Blackhawk's Convention encouraging people to send postcards to our military men and women, passed out flags at Top Gun Movie in the Park with the Naval Band, and participated a in Welcome Home for the USA Warrior Hockey Team. Amy retells her favorite USO memory, "One of my favorite USO memories happened this past year during my time working at the O'Hare Mass Exodus Tables. While encouraging people passing by to stop and write cards to our military and passing out goodies to anyone we could see in uniform, a woman and her young daughter stopped at our table. We asked if the little girl would like to write a postcard. She was about 4 and very excited to do this. She told us all about how she had been practicing drawing Christmas trees and stars at home. As she talked, drew, and occasionally sang, we talked with her mom and learned that her husband was currently serving, active duty, and that they hadn't seen him in a while. She and her daughter were coming home to Chicago to visit her family for the holidays. When the little girl finished drawing her tree, her mom bent over and explained to her that the card was going to be sent to someone 'like daddy' and to write 'Dear Soldier' on it. That was all it took, the little girl decided that she wanted the card sent not to someone 'like' her daddy, but rather to her daddy. Her mom tried to explain that we couldn't do that, but she was un-swayed. Instead she decided all we needed was a little instruction about how to find him. She proceeded to give us very specific instructions for looking for him, she told us that he is tall, with dark hair, and brown eyes! We promised her we'd do our best as she continued to yell her description to us as they walked away. I think sometimes we forget just how much our military being away impacts those back home." The USO of Illinois would like to thank the over 660 active volunteers for the hard work they do each and every day. |
Military children learn to cope with very adult-level issues, including the stresses of separation and anxiety over numerous relocations, the potential loss of a deployed parent or caregiver and challenges of family reintegration with loved ones who've recently returned home from combat. USO Discovery Kids offers free, recreational and cultural programs and events that are fun, educational and designed to help alleviate stress, enhance exposure to learning and cultural activities and create bonds within military family communities. In 2014, the USO of Illinois served over 650 military families and children through the USO Discovery Kids Program.
A recent Discovery Kids program occurred at Lincoln Park Zoo where families were offered a free day to the "Zoo Lights" as well as meal passes to have family bonding time. This past winter, military children and families were also invited out to skate at Lincoln Park Zoo and at the United Center, home of the Chicago Blackhawks.
USO Discovery Kids brought Sesame Street's Elmo to visit military children at USO Rock Island. Participating military families enjoyed a meet and great with Elmo, education themed crafts, refreshments and games.
Recognizing a need to provide programs to the next generation, USO of Illinois expanded its youth programming to include events targeted to teens and tweens. Besides the normal challenges of adolescence that every American teen and tween navigates, military teens face the unique challenges of a military lifestyle. Programs provide recreational and educational opportunities tailored to blossoming minds and imaginations, lifting the spirits of this vulnerable adolescent population. Thanks to the support from the Chicago Bears this program has grown significantly in the past 2 years.
On March 3rd, USO of Illinois "Me and a Friend" Day was hosted by the Chicago Bears at Halas Hall and featured fun activities with an emphasis on fitness and team work. A total of 48 military teens/tweens attended, and they brought 25 friends with them. The group experienced the Bears memorabilia display, enjoyed a pizza diner in the cafeteria, and participated in a football style training camp with Staley Bear, the Chicago Bears' mascot.
Other teen and tween programs have included teen and tween bowling with the Bears where Chicago Bears players joined military youth for a fun night of refreshments, games and bowling. In addition, military dependents were invited to a mock sports press conference where they learned to speak at a podium and run proceedings. Another event focused on careers in sports and teens learned about various jobs at the Bears organization to educate them on future career options.
Throughout the year, the USO of Illinois also offers specialty programs for military children including Littlest Heroes parties. These parties provides celebrations of special holidays such as Easter, Christmas and the Fourth of July with entertaining and educational programs. Events offer creative crafts, unique moments of bonding, and fun for the whole family.
