It may have been a big surprise that her daughter expressed
interest in
joining the military at the young age of 15. But for Karol
Burke, her own response wasn’t.
”
I said ‘OK,’
”
Burke said, laughing.
”
She was taken aback a bit. I think she was expecting a different
answer or for me to try and talk her out of it.
”
It may have been a big surprise that her daughter expressed interest in joining the military at the young age of 15. But for Karol Burke, her own response wasn’t. “I said ‘OK,’ ” Burke said, laughing. “She was taken aback a bit. I think she was expecting a different answer or for me to try and talk her out of it.”
Burke didn’t, and it turns out joining the military was once her dream when she was about the same age.
“I was all gung-ho for it,” she said. “But I wanted her to go to college first.”
Her daughter, Andrea Walton, graduated from San Benito High School in 2004 and left for Virginia Military Institute. Walton joined the Marines and has spent the past six months overseas in Afghanistan.
Some days are good and others aren’t for Burke, but with the help of social media such as Facebook and Myspace, she always has a way to check to see if her daughter is OK. When she needs support in another way, she turns to her sisterhood – her fellow Blue Star Moms.
The South Bay Blue Star Moms is a far-reaching nonprofit organization that supports not only the troops overseas and at war, but also the parents and the community those troops left behind.
Founded in 2004, the South Bay Blue Star Moms is directly related to the events of Sept. 11, 2001. Five years after its inception, Burke decided to create a local group for people in Hollister and the surrounding area, including Gilroy, San Martin and Morgan Hill.
“I wanted to have something a little closer,” she said.
Less than 18 months after its creation, Burke has as many as 20 members who have gone to the meetings at least once. They are usually held once a month in Burke’s Hollister home.
“Sometimes we only have a few people, but sometimes there are a lot of people,” Burke said. “We don’t always talk about Blue Star Moms. Sometimes, we just have a conversation.”
Cindy Wagner was drawn to the Blue Star Moms because of its camaraderie, and to be around others who share similar feelings.
“You don’t know until you know,” she said.
Wagner is a single mom to her now 26-year-old son Steven Russell. He decided the military was his future when he was 17, and remains in the service nine years later.
“I think he is career military now,” she said. “I’m OK with that. He seems to really like it. It works for him.”
She still has some restless nights.
Wagner remembers waking up to him calling her name. Except, he was at war overseas.
“I woke up to him calling ‘mom.’ I knew something wasn’t right,” she said.
A little less than two weeks later, Russell called his mom to tell her he had been hurt.
“He asked me if I was sitting down. ‘I am now,'” she recalled saying. “A mom just knows.”
Russell received the Purple Heart and now is an Army recruiter in the Fresno area. That is a relief to Wagner.
“It’s nice to be able to see him,” she said.
During the harder times, it was the Blue Star Moms that acted as a backbone, or support system.
“It’s just so important to have them,” she said, “to be able to talk to them, to be able to have someone know how you feel.”
The group is always active during holidays and festivities that celebrate the country. In parades, they carry giant blue stars with pictures of their sons or daughters.
“It puts a face on it,” mother Terrie Ferguson said.
They always wear blue among other symbols that represent their sons and daughters proudly. Their efforts raise awareness for those overseas, according to members.
They say community awareness is a large part of the Blue Star Moms’ success.
“People just forget sometimes,” Burke said.
Hollister member Sharmain Beaston agreed.
“People just forget when it doesn’t directly affect them,” she said. “Hopefully, we remind some people about the troops.”
Beaston’s 20-year-old son Calvin Allen is currently in Afghanistan, so she strives to make sure she can help the troops anyway she can. Beaston is always in contact with someone overseas to just talk.
“I’m a mom to 66 soldiers,” she said proudly.
Beaston said she just listens and acts like a sounding board for those troops. She always tries to talk to troops or veterans she runs into.
“I always want to talk with them,” she said. “I want to know if everything is OK, maybe let them laugh and relax.”
It’s a common theme in the group. At least four times a year, the South Bay Blue Star Moms send care packages to deployed troops. The packages range from the necessary items to entertainment such as movies and music.
The moms are always asking for donations.
“We are never too proud to turn down donations,” Wagner said.
Despite thousands of dollars in donations, it is the ovation they get walking in parades that is the most touching for the group’s members.
The moms say they receive the loudest ovations.
“The first time I heard it, it was overwhelming,” Ferguson said.
Ferguson’s son, Cory, is a Marine and had only had 10 days left in his tour of Afghanistan.
When she is not in contact with her son, she is searching for those who have returned home to give them a “mom hug.”
“It’s just a hug,” she explained. “A loving hug.”
And the “mom hug” is one of the group’s staples.
“It’s the first thing I learned,” San Martin native Susie Montgomery said. “We don’t shake hands – we hug.”
Montgomery has a son and daughter in the Army, and despite her initial hesitation, she couldn’t be more proud of them.
“They are my only babies. I love them and I’m proud of what they are doing,” she said.
Her 28-year-old daughter Melina Montgomery joined the Army a year ago as a way to “make a better life.” She followed in her younger brother’s footsteps – he had joined a year earlier.
Alan Montgomery Jr., 26, joined to bring more stability to his family, Susie said. Despite all her worries, she stood by his decision.
“He sat down with me like a man, and I couldn’t argue with what he was saying,” she said.
That didn’t stop her from being hesitant.
“There was a lot of crying,” Susie said.
As for the emotional aspect of being a military mom, the Blue Star Moms have helped – a lot.
“They could relate to what I was going through,” Susie said. “They helped me express how I was feeling, and they understood it.
“Their support is there in a heartbeat.”
The basis of the organization’s origins is to be a support system for the troops, but it acts as a support system for parents.
It is a sisterhood.
They will always have the Blue Star Moms sticker on their cars. And the word “mom” will always mean something different.
“We couldn’t be more proud of them all,” Burke said.
***
Blue Star Beginnings
– The Blue Star Moms of America was formed during World War II, and was officially charted by Congress in 1960.
– In 2004, San Jose area moms created the South Bay Blue Star Moms to support the area troops. The nonprofit sends about 700 care packages to deployed servicemen and women four to five times per year. Material sent is donated or purchased through donations to the group.
– The moms also take part in airport welcome home events, with the help of the Patriot Guard Riders.
– “We are moms and other family members joining together to share our worries, our pride and our devotion for our loved ones serving in all branches of the U.S. Armed forces,” according to a statement from South Bay Blue Star Moms.
n For donations, go to southbaybluestarmoms.org and click on “support.”
