Joint Family Readiness Conference 2009

Department of Defense Photo Essay

  • Audience members listen to a presentation by Trevor Romain Sept. 2, 2009, during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago. Romain taught a popular session on communicating with children using storytelling, visuals and humor. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • Army Gen. Carter F. Ham, commander of U.S. Army Europe and 7th Army, delivers a joint keynote address with his wife, Christi, at the Defense Department’s Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 1, 2009. DoD photo by Samantha Quigley
  • Christi Ham, wife of Army Gen. Carter F. Ham, commander of U.S. Army Europe and 7th Army, smiles at a comment her husband made during their joint keynote address at the Defense Department’s Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 1, 2009. DoD photo by Samantha L. Quigley
  • Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps Carlton W. Kent, center, answers a question from the audience during a Town Hall meeting, Sept. 1, during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference 2009 in Chicago. Kent was joined by Master Chief of the Air Force James Roy, left, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Rick West, and Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth O. Preston. Arthur J. Myers, right, moderated the discussion. DoD photo by Samantha L. Quigley
  • Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Roy and his wife, Paula, attend the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago. Roy, along with the senior enlisted advisors for the Army, Navy and Marines, spoke at a town hall for conference participants Sept. 1, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • From left, Karen White, a child development center director; Dawn Coleman, an airman and family services flight chief; and Rocanne Wills, a family and child care coordinator, all from Moody Air Force Base, Ga., check the map to find their next workshop during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 2, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • From left, Flora Hess of Charleston Air Force Base, S.C.; Ivera Harris of Scott Air Force Base, Ill.; and Cheryl Anderson and Air Force Tech Sgt. Karlyn Beadles, both from Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D.; share family program information after a workshop at the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 2, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • Ryan McNabb, of the Evanston Vet Center in Illinois, and his wife, Mandy, briefed attendees on counseling services for veterans during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 2, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • Trevor Romain, a noted children's author, demonstrates the power of using storytelling and visual aids to reach military children during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 2, 2009. As an example, he held up a toy mouse inside a glass bowl. Just as nothing he sprays on the bowl reaches the mouse, he said, children can “shield” themselves from mean remarks. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • Audience members listen as Trevor Romain, a noted children's author, explains how to communicate with children through storytelling and humor during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 2, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • Barbara Thompson, right, director, DoD Office of Family Policy/Children and Youth, and Betsy Graham, a program analyst in that office, visit an information booth at the program showcase Sept. 2, 2009, during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • A special visitor, Sesame Street favorite Rosita, hugs Sherri Hrovatin, from Military OneSource, at the program showcase Sept. 2, 2009, during the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago. Hrovatin plans to send the picture to her niece and nephew, Grayce and Jaxon. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson
  • Reenie Kavalar, an Easter Seals employee, looks through information at a booth while Kristen Geist, left, and Connie Silk, both from Fort Campbell, Ky., talk during the program showcase portion of the Defense Department's Joint Family Readiness Conference in Chicago, Sept. 2, 2009. DoD photo by Elaine Wilson