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New support group to offer encouragement to local military families web posted January 28, 2009  COUNTY – Bevalie
Cannon remembers what it
was like living in New Jersey.They were the dark days preceding the second Gulf War following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, and her husband, Michael, an Army chaplain, was called into active duty as a Reservist. It was January, 2003, and she was scared. After 15 years of her husband being on active duty and having grown accustomed to life on a military post where military families may lean on each other for support, things were suddenly different. She and her four children had three days to say goodbye to daddy. After that they were pretty much alone and on their own - emotionally. "He was reserve for the first time in 15 years and then that happens," she said. "We thought at the time that only active duty (soldiers) would go. Michael was pastoring a church at the time and we got the call on Monday and he left on Thursday. It was a real emotional roller-coaster." And there would be more hills and valleys to climb. The area they were living in - while not uncaring - was not a military community. "We weren't on post anymore where everyone is dealing with the same thing and we didn't have the support there that I felt we needed," Cannon said. "So we did things ourselves. We started a Yellow Ribbon campaign and did some other things, but there was no real way to prepare for it. It helped us get through." Through her current work at the Edgefield County Public Library, Mrs. Cannon, says she kept meeting soldiers and their family members here in the local area. Many had moved their loved ones back home while they were overseas in the still ongoing military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. With her own experiences still fresh in her mind, Cannon decided to see what could be done to support these local families. What emerged from plenty of planning (and prayer) was the Military Friends & Family Network. The group will hold an informational meeting and social at the Edgefield County Public Library tomorrow night starting at 6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. There will be food and drinks provided, a demonstration on packaging gifts and food items for loved ones currently serving overseas and other planned entertainment. Most of all, Bevalie Cannon wants local families to know one thing - they are not alone. "We just want to give people the opportunity to meet each other and to know that there are others here in our own community who are going through the same things they are," she said. "And there is a comfort in knowing that your county is behind you. We are asking people to bring in pictures of their family members who are serving overseas for our display board and we're just going to have a good time." Pictured above: This family picture was taken on the eve of Michael Cannon's overseas deployment to Iraq in 2003. The Cannon family includes (bottom row from left) Lydia, Michael, Amanda and (top row from left) Tiffany, Bevalie and Michael. The Citizen News contributed to this report © Copyright 2009
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