Congratulations to Gold Star wife Jenna Henderson Our Most Recent Coaching Scholarship Recipient!

Jenna Henderson

“I just wanted to thank everyone for allowing me the opportunity to work with Sara through this scholarship. My husband, SFC Christopher D. Henderson, was killed in Afghanistan in 2007. At the time, our daughter was 8 years old. I threw all my energy into raising her and making sure she was okay. Fast forward to today, Kayley is 22 now about to graduate college and living her own life. I also went back to school and recently graduated. With all that being said, I have found myself struggling with direction and a desire to grow as a person, mother, and all the aspects within my life. I’ve felt a little lost lately on who I am and where I want to be in life. This is the first time I have the chance to “grow” me, and I am so very grateful for the opportunity to do so.

Thank you again for this wonderful opportunity. I look forward to sharing with you all the results in the future.

Jennifer (Jenna) R. Henderson”

Chris Afghanistan 2007

Chris and Kayley 2005

Chris and Jenna 1999

Chris 2000

Jenna and Kayley 2019

Jenna 2019

Help Sponsor a Gold Star Family for the Holidays

Today our Chairman and Gold Star wife had the opportunity to share a little about our mission and work with Gold Star spouses and children. Your support enables us to provide our programs and services to these amazing families. 

Congratulations Captain Pierce (Ret)

Congratulations to our friend Captain Pierce (Ret), who we first met when he completed the Powerman Zofingen Championships in honor of Sugar Bear. Captain Pierce recently published his second book and would like to share some copies. If you are a Gold Star Spouse or military member and would like a copy, please see his attached contact information. We greatly appreciate his support and continued service!

Congratulations to Rah Freestone - Our Latest Coaching Scholarship Recipient

Congratulations to Rah Freestone! Rah is our latest Coaching Scholarship Recipient and we are honored to share her story and to work with this amazing Gold Star wife.

“I am honored to have been selected for this coaching scholarship with Sarah Davis! 

A lot has changed since I became a Gold Star Spouse on 30 January 2007 when my late husband Milton A. Gist, Jr. was killed in Iraq. First, our children were just one and four years old. Today, they are 14 and 17! 

SGT Milton A. Gist, Jr. and our family

That first year, I hired my very first coach. It helped me set goals that as a fresh widow in the thickest fog of emotions, I couldn’t do for myself and was too independent to let those around me watching me hurt muddle through with me. I made some really great decisions after that. And it looked like I had it all together. Then, less than two years after coaching ended, life fell apart again. I didn’t know what I was doing and ended up divorced and starting all over. 

Over the years since, I hired coaches off and on getting better and better at knowing when to ask for help and also not knowing where the money would come from or whether it was okay to use military benefits for myself. 

As a coach-in-training and early in my practice, I made connections and kept moving forward the best I could. It wasn’t until I realized that the constant source of my strength came from God (He has a very special relationship with the widowed and fatherless), that I could best understand where coaching fit into my life. 

Today, as a wife, mom/stepmom and Proactive Stress Management coach, I have a whole new set of challenges and goals. I specifically need help and accountability stretching my mindset in preparation for reaching my career and business goals. I am confident that Ms. Davis is a good fit for me exactly where I am, and that the timing and opportunity for this honor has been orchestrated beyond my understanding. 

Thank you so very much!

Sincerely,

Rah Freestone”

Rah, her husband, and new family

*Photos provided by Rah Freestone

College Workshop & Career Transitions Podcast Replays

 If you are a Gold Spouse (active duty death) or teen and you missed either of these events please send the following Required Documents to Admin@TheSugarBearFoundation.org to receive the link to the presentation and workshop packet:

Required Documents:

• Sugar Bear Foundation Registry Application

• Attach a copy of the DD1300 or other proof that you are receiving benefits due to your spouse’s death from military service (PDF Files or legible photos are acceptable)

• Sign the Waiver & Release (Must be signed by Parent or Guardian if child is a minor)

• Request access to the “College Workshop & Career Transitions Podcast Replays”

Sponsor a Gold Star Family During the Holidays

Thank you to Our Scholarship Sponsor - RF-LAMBDA

We are incredibly grateful to our scholarship sponsor, RF-LAMBDA, for their continued belief in our mission and support of our work. In the last few years they have enabled us to provide scholarships, internships, STEM events, and now a tutoring program for Gold Star children. We appreciate all they are doing and so do the families enrolled in this amazing new program. 

“I can’t thank you all enough for your gratitude for Tony’s sacrifice. I remember when he was first killed, ten years ago, the amount of love and support coming our way was overwhelming. A fear struck inside me that eventually, Tony would be forgotten. Here we are, an entire decade later and being given this gift, in the name of his sacrifice truly proves that my fears were unfounded. All 3 of the kids’ grades have improved since we began the tutoring. It’s an invaluable resource that we would not have otherwise had access to. This pandemic and distance learning turned school in to this dreaded task for the kids. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for offering them a path toward enjoying learning again. Judah, in particular, looks forward to his sessions. I can’t tell you how HUGE that is. He is thirteen years old and I’m pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve heard of him looking forward to anything instructional. Thank you again Sugar Bear Foundation! 

Love, Tony’s Gold Star Family, Erica, Judah, Lulu and Mila”

This was us a few months after he died and then again in 2017 at his grave at Arlington.

Tony with baby Judah, Halloween 2007

The kids on the first day of “school” this year. No shoes because, distance learning haha

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“Tutoring is going great! Robert, Alex's tutor, is very engaging and Alex enjoys working with him. Alex has always struggled with math and it has become a subject that he hates. Having the math tutoring is really helping Alex build his confidence in his own abilities. The one on one time with someone that is knowledgeable in the subject and dedicated to helping Alex grow has been an invaluable blessing during such a difficult time of transition in regards to my son’s education. I really can’t say thank you enough for helping relieve this stressor from our lives.

Thank you”

Resume Scholarship Now Available

Are you a Gold Star spouse looking to return to work, enter the workforce, or start a business? Apply now to receive two independent consultations with a resume professional to address your needs and objectives, then update, revise, or create your resume. This opportunity is limited to funding and the availability of resume professional.

To Register, please send the following Required Documents to Admin@thesugarbearfoundation.org (if not already on file):

• Sugar Bear Foundation Gold Star Registry Application

• Attach a copy of the DD1300 or other proof that you are receiving benefits due to your spouse’s death from military service (PDF Files or legible photos are acceptable). You cannot move forward in this process without submitting your DD 1300 as well as signing the waiver.

• Resume Scholarship Application

• Resume Scholarship Release and Waiver

Scholarship Recipient Heads to College

We are so grateful to our scholarship sponsor, RF-LAMBDA. However, to truly understand the impact of their support and what it means to a Gold Star student, please read this note from Faith Ann Brookshire. Faith was selected as this year's scholarship and internship recipient. We know she has an amazing future ahead of her and we all look forward to supporting Faith in all of her future endeavors. 

“Hello everyone! My name is Faith Ann Brookshire and I am the recipient of the 2020 RF-Lambda Memorial Scholarship, provided by the Sugar Bear Foundation. I’m heading off to college in about a week, but before I go I wanted to take a little time to thank everyone at the Sugar Bear Foundation and RF-Lambda for everything they’ve done for me.

I moved to San Diego a little over a year and a half ago from a small town in Oregon called Klamath Falls. It was the first time my family had relocated in eleven years- that time being right after we lost my dad. Needless to say, it wasn’t an easy transition. I had to go from a school of less than one hundred to a school of around two thousand right in the middle of my junior year. I struggled to learn the area, to make new friends, and to adapt to my new life. Above all, I felt like I didn’t belong. Then, my mom discovered the Sugar Bear Foundation while searching for something for me to do over the summer, and I applied to their internship at RF-Lambda.

Fast forwarding to today, things are quite different. I settled in to my new school and had an amazing time with most of my senior year. I got my first job and got accepted into my top college. I felt like I belonged in this city, and so much of it was thanks to the people at the Sugar Bear Foundation and RF-Lambda. The first internship I applied for introduced me to everyone and built up my confidence before heading into senior year. I did well enough there that RF-Lambda later hired me as a part-time employee, which was an absolutely amazing first experience in the workplace. Finally, the Sugar Bear Foundation provided me with helpful advice for my college applications and awarded me the memorial scholarship.

It’s hard to understate how much this has all meant to me- especially during a time like this. Losing the last part of my senior year and not being able to see my friends during the summer was incredibly hard for me. Throughout a lot of it, I wanted to just give up. The one thing that kept me going was my job at RF-Lambda and all the support I received from the people there and the Sugar Bear Foundation. Thanks to them, I had a pretty great summer, and am ready to start the next adventure in my life.

I hope that if there are any gold star kids, spouses, or parents reading this that it would encourage you to come join the family that the Sugar Bear Foundation has made. Trust me when I say that you won’t regret it. 

And finally to everyone at RF-Lambda, the Foundation, and all of their supporters: Thank you! I love you guys and good luck on whatever your next adventures may be.

Sincerely,

Faith Ann Brookshire

Daughter of Major Sid William Brookshire, US Army
September 11th, 1970 - June 20th, 2007, KIA Operation Iraqi Freedom

"Life After Loss - Career Transitions" - October 4th, 11th and 18th

Co-hosts, Sugar Bear Foundation and the MCRD Museum Foundation: Family Forever Program, are pleased to offer their next series with Sarah Davis of ReCreate. Once again we will be focusing on transitional topics for Gold Star spouses who are thinking of reentering the workforce. The series will start Sunday, October 4th.

To Register, please send the following documents to Admin@thesugarbearfoundation.org:

• DD 1300

• Signed Waiver and Release