An evening with a Blue Star Mom

Cindy Gaccione was our guest on Monday night. She is a pre-school teacher  by day at nearby St Pius School. The rest of the time she is a "Blue Star Mom." Cindy's son, a veteran of two tours of duty in Afghanistan, is currently station in Okinawa with his wife and daughter. She got involved with the Blue Star Mom program back in 2008. A group of moms got together to see what they could find about their sons deployment. No one would tell them anything. Soon after that the ladies contacted the national Blue Star Moms organization and began the process of chartering a chapter in Rhode Island.  

 

Founded in 1942, the Blue Star Moms got together to volunteer in hospitals, training facilities and train stations. They put together "care packages" and did many things to help on the home front. Although the need seemed to diminish some after the end of World War II, the organization continued and rose to the occasion every time or young men and women went to war. 

 

Since September 11, 2001 the group has expanded and grown again in an effort to support the families of those in military service.  On July 31, 2014 a bill was signed into law in Rhode Island to make the Sunday after Mother's Day an official Blue Star Parent's ay. 

 

You can check them out on the web at http://www.ribluestarmom.com/ and on Facebook.