The White House Blog: Dr. Jill Biden

Joining Forces Hits the Road

Watch Joining Forces at Camp Lejeune, here. 

I hope this initiative is worthy of your sacrifice...

After launching Joining Forces on Tuesday at the White House in front of senior military leaders, Cabinet Members, CEOs, heads of non-profits, and military families, the First Lady and Dr. Biden hit the road to talk about the campaign.

The first stop was Camp Lejeune, NC to thank our military and their families for their extraordinary service. Mrs. Obama and Dr. Biden spoke to a crowd of Marines, sailors and even some soldiers who drove in from Ft. Bragg before delivering gifts to expectant mothers.

It is always great to get out of DC and even better when you get to spend time with Marines and their families.  As the First Lady said to the crowd, their ordinary is extraordinary. From the families who help our wounded warriors heal, to the spouses who comfort others in their time of grief, their faith, courage and perseverance embody the best of America.

It was an extraordinary start to the trip, and, as a veteran, I am grateful to see this initiative in action.  I hope all Americans will Join Forces and help serve our military families.  For their service and sacrifice, kind words are not enough.  Please help make this initiative worthy of our military families.

The First Lady and Dr. Biden Visit Operation Shower at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

During their visit to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden stopped by a special Operation Shower event for soon-to-be moms whose husbands are serving. The non-profit organization provides unit-wide baby showers for military families to help ease the burden of deployment.

First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden arrive at an Operation Shower baby shower for expecting military families at Ball Center in Camp Lejeune, N.C., April 13, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

The First Lady and Dr. Biden brought White House onesies and an assortment of gifts collected through an Operation Shower gift drive held at the White House. Mrs. Obama explained that Operation Shower is one example of how communities can come together to support military families, and truly what Joining Forces is all about:

It’s asking every sector of this society to step up and support you all, because you all are serving in your own way.  And the children that will be born will be serving, too.  They’re serving right now this country, because if they’re born healthy and happy, their dads who are deployed are going to be able to focus on their mission and do a better job, because they know their families are safe.

So we want to ask the rest of the nation to look at this.  This is a fun way to give back.  And we did this at the White House.  We brought you guys White House onesies and blankets.  We took up a drive.  We had boxes all over the West Wing and the East Wing.  People wrote checks.  We brought -- I mean, this was fun.  And any business, any community, any school can do this for a military family, for an expectant mom.  All you have to do is find them.  And all you all have to do is ask and reach out.

And we’re going to be making it easier for people around the country to connect.  We’ve got a new website, joiningforces.gov, where people can get online, find out what's going on in their own communities, learn more about Operation Shower and how to get involved, and how to do something like this in their own communities.

Find opportunties to get involved at JoiningForces.gov and visit OperationShower.org to learn more about supporting military families through baby showers.

Will You Join Forces with Us?

This afternoon, the First Lady sent this message to announce the launch of Joining Forces, a new campaign to support America’s service members and their families.

Check out the email below, and be sure to sign up for the Joining Forces email list to stay up to date on the campaign.  

Good afternoon,

I'm writing to make sure that you know about an unprecedented national campaign to support our nation's military families called Joining Forces.
 

As First Lady, I've had the privilege of meeting with Americans in uniform around the world.  These brave men and women would be the first to tell you that they don't serve alone.  Every day, they are joined in service to our country by military wives, husbands, children, siblings and parents.
 

Joining Forces is about all of us joining together, as Americans, to give back to the extraordinary military families who sacrifice so much every day. Our motto is simple — everyone can do something.  So take a moment to find out how you can play a part:

Like their loved ones, military families are proud to serve.  But that doesn't mean it’s easy. Indeed many Americans may not realize how difficult it can be to have a parent or spouse deployed overseas. 
 

 That's why Joining Forces is so important. We're going to match the unique needs and strengths of America’s military families with specific ways that Americans can offer support.
 

So on behalf of the President, as well as the Vice President and Dr. Jill Biden, proud military parents themselves, let me offer a heartfelt thanks to not only our troops and their families – but also to the rest of you for joining forces to support them.
 

Sincerely,
 

Michelle Obama

First Lady of the United States
 

P.S. We've created a special email list for more frequent updates about the Joining Forces campaign. You can sign up here: 

WhiteHouse.gov/JoiningForcesEmail

Building Partnerships Between Community Colleges and Businesses

This past Wednesday, I attended the Department of Education’s third of four regional community college summits at Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis. These summits are being held across the country to follow up on the first-ever White House Summit on Community Colleges hosted by the President and Dr. Biden at the White House last October. As Dr. Biden said then, the White House Summit was only the beginning of our national outreach and efforts to demonstrate how community colleges are critical to educating the best, most competitive workforce in the world. 

This week’s summit focused on the ways community colleges are partnering with businesses across the country to develop training and education programs that meet business and regional economic needs. Participants heard from several industry representatives about how they value a community college education, and how they are working to make sure their employees succeed both in the workplace and in the classroom. 

Undersecretary of Education Martha Kanter speaks at this week’s regional community college summit. (by Ivy Tech Community College)