KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A nonprofit brought the Knoxville community together on Friday to support the families of members of the Tennessee National Guard 134th Air Refueling Wing.
Comfort Crew for Military Kids held a benefit concert at the Mill and Mine, with proceeds going to support military kids preparing for upcoming deployments.
"Anytime there's a deployment, anytime there's a mobilization, it's just as rough on the families as it is on the military members themselves. So, anything we can do to help take care of the family is just a win," said Bill Conner, from the airman and family readiness program with the National Guard. "They're ready for it, it is part of the job. But you always want to make sure your family is taken care of. It is tough on them."
The deployment kits prepared by the nonprofit are meant to make time spent away from loved ones a little easier. They're designed for school-aged children, and there are four specialized kits meant to address specific challenges and transitions associated with being in a military family.
Those four challenges are being separated from loved ones, reconnecting after a time of separation, having a parent return with injuries or experiencing grief from the loss of a family member who was in the military.
"Being able to do things like this, to where both the service member and the family member have that connection away, that's that's kind of, it's really good to help with that void," said Tech Sgt. Cody Watson.
"These kits can be a great bridge to making that bond a little stronger when they get home, making sure that everybody understands just what was going on during the deployment," Conner said.
The kits can include journals, dog tags, postcards, stuffed animals and more. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, there are over 1.5 million children of military service members in the country.
"We're very blessed at the 134th, you know, to be able to have opportunities like this. We welcome them and we love our East Tennessee community," said Watson.