Photo By Staff Sgt. Christopher Calvert | Shelina Millan (center), a Louisville, Ky., native and nursing student at the...... read more read more
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FORT HOOD, Texas – Many military spouses spend time bettering their local communities and lending a helping hand to their respective family readiness groups.
For one 1st Air Cav wife, leading FRGs and volunteering to help others has been part of her daily routine for more than a decade.
“I just like to help people,” said Shelina Millan. “If there’s something I can do, why not do it? I’ve always believed that five minutes of your time can make a world of difference to someone else.”
Millan, a nursing student at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor and wife of Chief Warrant Officer 2 Santos Millan, arrived to the Company F “Ravens,” 2nd Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division family in 2011 with her husband, and immediately began researching ways to help out.
Since then, she has spent about 25 hours a week volunteering at Metroplex Hospital, with the Cub Scouts of Pack 248, and spearheading the company’s FRG program, all while juggling a full-time school schedule.
Last year alone, she administered numerous free blood draws for local community members strapped for cash, provided immunizations to children attending public schools, and has been in charge of several aspects of the local Cub Scout pack in Killeen.
“It’s tiring,” the Louisville, Kentucky, native said. “I didn’t realize how much I’d done until Melany Loftin [the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade’s family readiness support assistant] told me how many volunteer hours I’d accumulated. As exhausting as it can be, it’s totally worth it.”
Millan is no stranger to leading FRGs and volunteering, as she has led the majority of FRGs she has been a part of, including a battalion program in Fort Rucker, Alabama, while continually volunteering around posts across the world since her husband enlisted in the Army in 1998.
For all that she has done to help better Company F’s FRG and the local community, she was recognized as the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade’s volunteer of the year at Club Hood here April 23.
Her improvements to the company’s FRG program included changing monthly phone calls to monthly texts, which led to several units adopting the idea; and redefining monthly activities, which have been a hit with fellow spouses in the company, she said.
“We have an activity once a month for all spouses to participate in and get a break from the military for a day,” she said. “We’ve had private shopping parties, social games and ice breakers, so that all spouses in the company can get the opportunity to make friends and interact.”
“We also do craft night for children, as we don’t ever want to leave them out,” she added. “Ultimately, we do everything possible to make our organization feel more like a family than just a company.”
Millan said she sees no end to volunteering in sight and attributes her positive experiences as a military spouse to staying involved.
“As long as my husband stays in the military, I’m going to keep doing my part,” she explained. “It all started because I wanted to have a good experience as a military spouse.”
“It’s important to make and keep these relationships,” she added. “I still have friends from when I started, and it’s all thanks to an awesome FRG program I fell in on.”
Santos Millan, Shelina’s husband, a Ponce, Puerto Rico, native and platoon leader for Company F, has witnessed his wife’s hard work firsthand since his enlistment.
Hard work that Santos said is not ending anytime soon.
“Her dedication over the years really shows what she’s made of,” he said. “She’s taking care of the commander, me, the Soldiers, and their families every day.”
“She’s not doing this just because I’m an officer, as she’s volunteered and spearheaded activities since I was a private,” he added. “Everything she does is meant to help someone, and the organization is better as a whole because of her efforts day-in and day-out.”
| Date Taken: | 05.08.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 05.08.2014 12:32 |
| Story ID: | 129178 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TX, US |
| Hometown: | PONCE, PR |
| Hometown: | LOUISVILLE, KY, US |
| Web Views: | 138 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 1st Air Cav spouse serves through volunteering, by SSG Christopher Calvert, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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