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Surprises at work are great!

July 21, 2011 By Leave a Comment

In our series, Getting to Know Us,  Tina Wright, one of our new Coast Guard Program Managers,  shares ‘a day in the life’…..

As has been mentioned in a previous post, I was hired in March of this year as the National Program Manager for the Coast Guard. I am a Navy spouse and a command ombudsman for my husband’s command. Being associated with the Navy for 20 years, I thought being the Program Manager for the Coast Guard would be pretty simple for me. Boy was I wrong! I have to explain. I am very much a “NOW” person. I like to see results NOW. I knew from the beginning that United Through Reading was just starting their strong push into the Coast Guard so I knew that it would require some work, but, it didn’t feel like I was making any headway in the few months I had worked thus far. However, I was able to do a lot of research on this great branch of our military.

Recently, while wearing my ombudsman hat, I was involved with planning the homecoming for my husband’s command. About a week before their return, I was in a meeting with our Command Master Chief at Starbucks and noticed a couple of “Coasties” (as they are referred to in the Coast Guard) patiently waiting for their order. They happened to be stationed on-board the USCGC MORGENTHAU (one of my two Coast Guard commands currently running the program). I mentioned to them that I would like to meet with the United Through Reading point of contact and asked how I would go about doing so, since they happened to be in port. This was a golden opportunity for me!

USCGC MORGENTHAU is home ported at Coast Guard Island Alameda and had just returned from a deployment and was preparing to  quickly leave again. They ran our program on the previous deployment and wanted to run it again. My golden opportunity? They were originally trained long distance rather than face to face so, this was my chance to help them put a face with the program and let them see how important they were to United Through Reading and to the children in their lives as well. Ombudsman have reported how much the children  who already received DVD’s have enjoyed them and appreciated seeing their Coastie.

The USCG Commandant has declared 2011 as Year of the Coast Guard Family. The MORGANTHAU is helping me be a part of fulfilling that pronouncement by participating and sharing their United Through Reading experiences. On the spur of the moment, I visited their boat. (Attention Navy readers, they do say boat!) I went to the quarterdeck and asked for the Active Duty Coordinator and was able to introduce myself to him. Aside from the introduction, I was also presumptuous enough to ask for a tour of the boat (I had never been on a Cutter before). They had one of their Coasties give me a general tour of the boat which included the space where they do their United Through Reading recordings. That space happened to be the XO’s stateroom. Guess what that  meant? I also got to meet the XO and have a conversation with him. This was great!   Research pays off. The XO was pleased with my knowledge of the Coast Guard considering my background and proceeded to give me a command coin, the FIRST one I’ve received personally so it will hold a special place in my heart and as my collection hopefully grows, in my display. This interaction prompted the XO to be more involved with the program. He has since introduced me, through email, to their command ombudsman and found another Coastie to gather pictures and testimonials for our use on our Facebook page and other publications.

I’m very proud to be the Program Manager for the Coast Guard and I look forward to many more experiences like this in the future. What a great surprise in the midst of Starbucks. Who would have thought it?

Things can only go up from here and I currently have two commands running the program and am working a third. Life is good and now I feel like I am making progress.

News Chief: If you are interested in running our program in a Coast Guard command please let us know here in the blog comment section so we can contact you with further information. We look forward to hearing from you. You can always email us as well:Readourblog@unitedthroughreading.org

Filed Under: Get to Know Us, Military Program, United Through Reading News Tagged With: ,

Getting to know Gerilyn, Military Team Lead

July 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment

As Military Team Lead for the Program Managers within United Through Reading Gerilyn brings great experience to our table. She manages the Navy programs of the West Coast and also acts as liaison for all the remotely located program managers.

News Chief: Gerilyn, it is a pleasure to introduce you to our readers. Tell us a bit about your experience with the military.

Gerilyn: After serving on active duty I married a Sailor and his first ship was PCU Decatur (pre commissioning unit). Being a brand new ship, I had the opportunity to don my volunteer hat and assist with establishing the command’s FSG (family support group).  In my volunteer role I served as the Command Ombudsman for the USS Princeton for 2.5 years. During that stint I learned about the United Through Reading Military Program at a command pre deployment brief. I was so excited about this program I volunteered again, to support the ships program as the United Through Reading Home Front Coordinator (HFC). My time as the HFC allowed me to get to know the Program Manager at that time and I really enjoyed working with the organization.

NC: What about that experience reinforced wanting to participate?

Gerilyn: Everything! At that time our twin boys were about 5 and they had already been through 3 deployments. It was really awesome to hear that there was one more means by which they could stay connected and that it was personalized, just for them, not an email coming thru me, but something Daddy was doing FOR THEM. They were about to begin kindergarten, didn’t know anyone, and having that extra support from their dad was huge.

NC: What is the most important part of your role now, as Military Team Lead?

Gerilyn: It depends on the minute! As the program continues to grow, we have hired remote team members, so I assist in bridging the communication gap between these physical distances; a liaison between those who work remotely and staff in our headquarters in San Diego. With members of our team spread out amongst all the service branches and physically located from coast to coast, in 4 time zones, meetings can be a challenge. To further assist with this effort I’m part of our technology committee. We are exploring resources to enhance how we handle internal and external communications with everything from meetings to training of our coordinators, to future models of our program. We have been experimenting with Web Ex and other ways to share information.

NC: Is there a highlight you could share with us from your job so far?

Gerilyn: There are so many…but one of the big ones is the first time I got to go on the USS Carl Vinson. I had been on a carrier before but not to the extent of receiving such great hospitality from their crew- as it related to United Through Reading. My job was to train the designated volunteers but my day started by having an introduction to one of the chiefs who runs the flight deck. He gave me a tour and I saw all the knobs and gadgets; even miniature magnetic airplanes color coded to organize how the hangar bay works. It was great learning about how the air squadrons maneuver. After my coordinator training was completed, a full tour of the ship followed including being invited to lunch in the Chief’s Mess. It was awesome. I was fortunate to sit with the Command Master Chief as well as with RPC Enya George (who is still running our program!) They were so gracious to show me how it all worked, what they would be dealing with while deployed and really letting me understand how United Through Reading would be a part of their life while away.

Gerilyn, seen here on a subsequent trip to the CVN 70. Shown with author Ross Mackenzie and two of our Trustees, Dwayne Junker and Fran Holian.

NC: What is one thing would you like to communicate to our readers?

Gerilyn: It is increasingly important to support our military and their families and I feel that United Through Reading plays a huge role in that. Our program has been supporting the military for over 20 years now, but we are still new to some branches of our service. If I could communicate one thing to our readers I would ask them to start spreading the word; and one great way to do that is by word of mouth. If I tell a friend who then tells a different friend, and that friend tells yet another friend, the message can spread very quickly. There is nothing as good or fast as word of mouth.
As personal beneficiary of this program I have seen the impact it can have on children. My children smiled from ear to ear the first time they watched the video from their father. It is my wish that their smiles spread to as many military children as possible because of their families participation in United Through Reading. One little smile is why I enjoy my job so much!

NC: Thanks Gerilyn and to all our readers, in advance, for spreading the word. If you would like information on setting up a program for your command please comment here and we will introduce you to the manager for your branch of service.

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Meet our Marine Corps National Program Manager

June 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment

It is a pleasure to introduce you to Suzan who will share her enthusiasm for our program with you.

I am the National Program Manager working with Marine Corps Commands for United Through Reading. I first became involved with United Through Reading six years ago, when I interviewed for the position of Program Manager for Marine Corps Commands. My personal life experience was as a military child and spouse and my background as a teacher made the job a very good fit for me!

Here’s a photo of a little cutie who is enjoying watching her dad read to her. He had the same book that she is holding, with stickers inside each book. Her dad put a sticker on his forehead, and she did exactly the same thing!

The reason that I love my job so much has a great deal to do with my background. My father was in the Navy for 30 years, my husband in the Marine Corps for 30 years, and our oldest daughter is a Marine as well. I’ve actually been through 12 deployments in my lifetime, and have experienced the challenges that they bring as a little girl growing up, and then again as a young wife and mother. I was also a Special Education Teacher for 10 years, and can tell you that the read aloud experience has many, many educational and psychological benefits. You put this all together, and this is what United Through Reading is all about. Uniting families facing physical separation by facilitating the bond that occurs when reading aloud together.

One of the spouses from a Marine Corps command deployed in Afghanistan shared the following with me… “My kids were beyond thrilled to see their dad on the TV (my five year old kept saying ‘Excuse me’… to try and get his attention!” Can’t you just see it! 

Each day I am lucky enough to work with many Chaplains, RPs, and Marines who’s wonderful efforts afford our service members to connect with their children by reading storybooks aloud on DVD. One of my favorite comments from one of them was, “It only takes 20 minutes to make a memory of a lifetime.”

Filed Under: Get to Know Us, Military Program Tagged With: ,

Get to Know Us

May 19, 2011 By Leave a Comment

As part of getting to know us I wanted to introduce you to our Program Managers. United Through Reading’s Military Program has expanded to meet the needs of our newest military addition, the U.S. Coast Guard. Tina is the Program Manager for this growing part of our family.

News Chief: Tina it is a pleasure to introduce you to our readers. Tell us a bit about your experience with the military.

Tina: I have been a Navy spouse for about 18 years and have lived all over, including Japan. I have been an ombudsman as well so I have hands-on knowledge of deployments.

NC: In fact Tina, isn’t Japan where you learned about United Through Reading?

Tina: Yes, actually we were stationed in Sasebo, Japan at the time. I was the USO Program Coordinator and Point of Contact for United Through Reading. When we moved to San Diego I became the Home Front Coordinator for United Through Reading on the USS Harpers Ferry.

NC: What is the most important part of your role now, as Program Manager?

Tina: Spreading the word, opportunity and tools to families so they have what they need to stay connected.

NC: Is there a highlight you could share with us from your job so far?

Tina: I was able to meet with the Transition and Relocation Manager for the USS Coast Guard’s Work Life Office. (This is like what the Navy knows as Fleet and Family) She has so many resources for reaching out to more Coast Guard families, more than I could ever do on my own. I’m really looking forward to speaking at their upcoming Ombudsman assembly.

NC: What one thing would you like to communicate to them?

Tina: That our program is about keeping family connections, keeping relationships alive. It reminds the child that even though a parent is gone they are still in their heart and will be coming home.

* If you are a Coast Guard family and would like more information on United Through Reading please send an email to us: Military@unitedthroughreading.org and Tina will contact you with all the necessary details.

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