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For 250 years, the United States has measured military service with remarkable precision. We count deployments. We count readiness metrics. We count casualties. We count benefits distributed and retirement years accrued. What we do not count is the developmental cost, or acceleration, experienced by the children who live inside that service structure.

A medal is a symbol of completion. It marks the end of service. But for the Military Child, service never ends at a ceremony. It continues: at the next duty station in the next classroom during the next deployment in households where children learn to read the room before they learn to drive A medal would have suggested finality. What military children needed was continuity.

But for 250 years, there has been another American who served, without a uniform, without a rank, without a medal, and without a home. The Military Child

Traditional STEM events often ask students to stand behind tables and explain what they built. STEAM SUITED™ turns that model inside out.

STEAM SUITED™ was created around a simple but powerful idea: learning becomes transformational when it is personal. When a child wears their innovation, curiosity turns into confidence and imagination turns into action.

They don’t enlist. They don’t sign contracts. They don’t raise their right hands. But they serve. And they sacrifice. And they carry the emotional weight of military life in ways that define their childhood, and shape their future. This is what it really means to grow up in the military.

THE HOME OF THE MILITARY CHILD: STORIES, TRUTH & THE MOVEMENT OUR COMMUNITIES NEED There are a group of young Americans who rise every morning carrying responsibilities that belong to adults, not children. They pack lunches. They help siblings get ready for school. They assist parents with mobility, medi cations, or daily routines. They translate at medical appointments. They handle adult paperwork. They provide emotional care in homes, navigating stress, injury, deployment,

There are places in America where every community knows exactly who they belong to. The USO belongs to active-duty service members. AUSA belongs to the Army. The DAV belongs to disabled veterans. The VFW belongs to combat vets. The American Legion belongs to all who served. But where do military-connected children belong? Where do teen caregivers belong? Where do the sons and daughters of service, who serve without a uniform, find a home?

In 2026, as the nation marks America’s 250th Anniversary, the Military Child World Expo invites schools and military installations across the world to participate in something meaningful and historic.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Arlington, VA — 2026 The Military Child World Expo Designated as the Cultural Home of the Military Child During America’s 250th Anniversary The Military Children’s Six Foundation announces the Military Child World Expo 2026 as the national cultural gathering dedicated to honoring the experiences, identities, and legacies of military-connected children and families across generations. Held in Arlington, Virginia, a place of national memory, service, and r

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter reminded us that caregiving connects every one of us. “There are only four kinds of people in the world, those who have been caregivers, those who are caregivers now, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.” Join The Promise We Carry  by sharing where you are on your caregiving journey. Survey Fields: I have been a caregiver. I am currently a caregiver. I will be a caregiver one day. I will need a caregiver someday.

Even as they carry this promise, military-connected children often face a challenge few outsiders understand.

Everyday across America, thousands of young people help care for parents or siblings who have served, and now live with visible or invisible wounds. Until now, their compassion has existed in silence, rarely recorded, rarely credited, rarely seen.

Every generation of Americans has lived with the reality of service, but few have seen it through the eyes of the child who grows up beside it.

3 opportunities to volunteer to make a difference in the lives of military children and families.

When it comes to supporting young caregivers, the United States is far behind. While millions of caregiving youth here remain invisible, other nations, and even one local U.S. program have already proven that recognition changes everything.

Many youth caregivers describe a strong sense of pride in being able to support their families. They are often the glue that holds the household together, a quiet source of strength during deployment, injury, or illness.

When we talk about military service, we often picture the soldier in uniform. But behind that uniform are families who also serve, and among them are teenagers quietly carrying a second kind of duty. These are the military teen caregivers: young people who balance the everyday challenges of growing up with the extraordinary responsibility of caring for loved ones.

The Torch of Care Community Service Hours (TCCSH) is the first national pilot program designed to formally recognize youth caregiving as community service. By awarding official service-hour credits, TCCSH ensures that caregiving teens both military and civilian receive recognition for their contributions at home and in their communities.