George Lamb, Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Public Affairs chief of outreach, talks to a group of military members and their families during a Yellow Ribbon Reintegration event. (Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Joel Quebec)

More than 700 members of the Army Reserve and their families from throughout the Northeast Region of the United States recently gathered in Northern Virginia for a Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program event.

The 99th Regional Support Command (RSC) hosted the event to help service members and their families learn about local support agencies and resources, and to offer briefings focused on different stages of the deployment cycle, explained Brig. Gen. Christopher R. Kemp, commander of the 335th Signal Command, one unit supported by the 99th RSC.

“This is a wonderful event and provides a wealth of information on everything from health care, education opportunities, finances and legal benefits,” he said.

Outside the conference rooms, attendees visited information booths to learn about different support programs and services. Onsite childcare helped military members and spouses attend sessions as a couple.

The event demonstrated the strength and pride that is generated when a community comes together to support service members. More than 50 community partners joined forces to provide an abundance of resources for service members and their families.

Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) is an integral part in the collaboration process that brings these communities together across the United States.

“The [Yellow Ribbon Reintegration] program makes the deployment process smoother by building resilience and providing families with information and points of contact so they know where to turn if they need help,” said George Lamb, Chief of Outreach for DCoE Public Affairs.

During an information briefing, Lamb highlighted products from DCoE centers and key efforts to include:

• The Real Warriors Campaign — designed to combat the stigma associated with seeking psychological health care and encourage service members, veterans and military families to use the psychological health resources available to them… to emphasize that reaching out is a sign of strength.
• inTransition — a program to help service members maintain the continuity of psychological health care as they move between health care systems or providers. Personal coaches, along with resources and tools, support service members and families during the transition period, empower them to make healthy life choices, and are available 24/7 via toll-free call.
• DCoE Outreach Center — a 24/7 resource that provides personalized consultation to help service members, veterans, military families, caregivers and health care providers access psychological health and traumatic brain injury resources. On the other end of the phone line, e-mail or live chat session is a licensed, master’s level consultant who is knowledgeable about military culture and will help connect people to the information they need, when they need it.

“There is a lot of information out there and sometimes our service members need help finding the right resources,” said Lamb, “and that’s why we’re here.”

The Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program, created by Congress in 2008, promotes the well-being of members of the National Guard and Reserve components, their families and their communities. These service members often live far from military installations and members of their units, which can make it difficult to access support resources. The program works to connect these service members and their families with resources before, during and after deployment.

The 99th Regional Support Command provides base operations support to all Army Reserve soldiers, units, facilities and equipment for the entire Northeast Region of the Army Reserve.