2025 Annual Report
Message from CEO
In 2025, NMFA continued to turn military family experiences into action.
Military spouses applied in record numbers for NMFA’s Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship as they pursued degrees, certifications, and new careers to strengthen their families’ financial futures. Through NMFA’s Operation Advocacy program, spouses also met directly with members of Congress to push for solutions to employment challenges and protections for military families during government shutdowns.
When shutdown concerns escalated in October, NMFA amplified those voices nationwide. Through our advocacy campaign, more than 113,000 letters were sent to Congress asking America’s leaders to pay our troops and stand by military families.
NMFA also created new opportunities for military teens to develop leadership and share their experiences through Bloom and our first Military Teen Leader cohort.
At Operation Purple® Camp and the Operation Purple® Summer Challenge, thousands of military kids connected with others who understand what it’s like to grow up in a family that serves — building confidence and community along the way.
For more than 57 years, the National Military Family Association has worked to ensure military families are seen, heard, and supported. That mission is only possible because of supporters like you.
As you read this report, I hope you’ll feel as proud as I do of the ways we stood up for the military families who stand up for America every day.
Thank you for standing alongside us in this mission.
Together, we’re stronger®
Besa Pinchotti
CEO
Our Mission
and Impact
We work with families to identify and solve the unique challenges of military life.
Military families build their lives around service, navigating constant change with
In 2025, the National Military Family Association deepened its commitment to stand alongside them: elevating their voices, strengthening their well-being, and advancing policies grounded in the real experiences of military life.
Everything we do begins with listening.
By engaging directly with military spouses, parents, teens, and caregivers, NMFA translated lived experience into actionable insight, shaping programs that meet families’ immediate needs and advocacy that drives lasting, systemic change. Our community-informed approach sets us apart, centers military families, and ensures our programmatic and policy solutions are compassionate – and effective.
Programs & Initiatives
at a Glance
Operation Purple® Camp
Operation Purple® Camp is designed to recognize and honor the service of military children while giving them space to simply be kids. Through structured programming and peer connection, campers build emotional awareness, communication skills, and coping strategies that support their well-being long after the camp experience ends.
By integrating family resources and mental health support, Operation Purple® Camp extends its impact well beyond a single camp week. Campers and their families return home better equipped to navigate transitions, stress, and change, with a stronger sense of community and connection.
Operation Purple Camp applicants
Total 2025 campers
Families served
Military kids served since 2004
Operation Purple®
Summer Challenge
Operation Purple® Summer Challenge is a free, eight-week experience that supports military kids ages 5 to 15 and their families through weekly, self-paced activities and live, virtual gatherings. In 2025, the program extended the reach of Operation Purple beyond in-person camps, creating shared experiences that helped families stay connected regardless of location. Through flexible participation and guided challenges, families built connection, routine, and community throughout the summer months.
Designed to meet families where they are, the Summer Challenge provides accessible opportunities for connection during a season that can feel unstructured or isolating for military kids.
By combining independent activities with live virtual experiences, the program fostered meaningful engagement among families and peers. In 2025, the Summer Challenge encouraged creativity, strengthened family bonds, helped military kids connect with peers wherever service takes them, and reminded families that they remain part of a supportive community long after camp ends.
Summer Challenge participants
Families served
Adventure Kits distributed
Live session participants
Scholarships
The scholarship program is intentionally flexible, recognizing that military spouses pursue many pathways to economic stability.
“There are moments in life when an email or letter holds more than just words. It carries hope, validation, and relief. Receiving the news that I had been chosen as a recipient of the Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship was one of those moments. I exhaled a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding, and tears of gratitude filled my eyes.”
– Roxanne H.
2025 Scholarships By The Numbers
Applicants
Recipients
Dollars Awarded
Total Recipients Since 2004
Total Awarded Since 2004
“Thanks to your scholarship, I am able to focus more on my education and less on financial concerns. Your investment in military families like mine not only eases our burdens but also inspires us to persevere. I am sincerely grateful for your belief in my potential and for helping me take another step toward my goals. Thank you also for making me feel seen and heard.”
– Sariah N.
Bloom and Military Teen Programming
NMFA supports military teens across programs, building their specific needs into Operation Purple at locations across the country and offering opportunities for them to learn and grow virtually year-round.
NMFA’s flagship teen program, Bloom, was created by military teens for military teens and celebrated its fifth anniversary in 2025.
What began as a youth-led initiative has grown into a thriving program that amplifies teen voices and builds leadership skills through art, storytelling, and peer connection. In 2025, Bloom participants delivered national presentations, served on a teen panel for education leaders, and launched NMFA’s first Military Teen Leader cohort.
Bloom provides military teens with a platform to share their experiences and shape conversations that affect their education and well-being. Through creative expression and leadership opportunities, teens gain confidence while contributing meaningfully to their communities.
This year, NMFA also launched the Military Teen Leader cohort, creating a structured pathway for teens to deepen their communication and storytelling skills, develop advocacy competencies, and engage in peer mentorship. Together, these efforts ensure that military teens are heard and prepared to lead.
Highlights
Teen panel participation at the Military Interstate Compact Children’s Commission Annual Business Meeting
Presentation at Purple Star USA’s National Convening
Launch of the first Military Teen Leader cohort
“Not only is being a military teen an identity, it’s also a sense of community to me.”
– Cooper C.
Program Numbers
Active Bloomers
Alumni
Blog posts published
Art submissions shared
Military Teen Leader Cohort 1 participants
“Bloom has really changed my life for the better and I think it’s opened up a lot more opportunities and it’s doing a really good job of platforming military voices.”
– Kenley N.
More Than A Spouse
Every military spouse is more than a spouse. They’re professionals pursuing higher degrees and new certifications in our scholarship program, they’re parents juggling volunteer work and kids through repeated moves, they’re community organizers making sure that everyone in the unit is cared for when military life gets hard. At NMFA, we celebrate everything a military spouse is and wants to become. In 2025, NMFA’s More Than A Spouse initiative, supported by Lockheed Martin, continued to elevate authentic stories from military spouses nationwide, bringing greater visibility to both their challenges and contributions. Military spouses often navigate repeated moves, interrupted careers, deployments, and financial uncertainty, with unemployment rates remaining above 20 percent for decades due to systemic barriers – not individual shortcomings.
More Than A Spouse centers lived experience as a catalyst for connection and change. By creating space for honest storytelling, the initiative reduces isolation and validates the complex identities military spouses carry.
In 2025, we expanded storytelling formats, including video, to deepen engagement and strengthen our military spouse community. The initiative reinforced that military spouses are more than their circumstances and that their voices play a critical role in shaping solutions.
“Sometimes it’s just about being open to opportunities as they come your way. There will be challenges, but you never know where they might lead you.”
– Laurissa Armstead, Air Force Spouse
Events
State of the Military Family® Summit
The State of the Military Family® Summit, NMFA’s premier annual event, brings together military families, partners, and policymakers in Washington, D.C. for a full day of dialogue and collaboration. This year, military spouses, advocates, leaders, and changemakers focused their conversation and expertise on the most urgent issues affecting military families and worked toward shared solutions that overcome the partisan politics. Powerhouse speakers provided insight into the current environment and its impact on families, and the Summit concluded with an interactive bootcamp focused on personal storytelling and tactical advocacy skills to kick off NMFA’s new Operation Advocacy.
NMFA CEO Besa Pinchotti led an off-the-record conversation focused on finding common ground for military families in a divisive political time. Leaders from across the military community and diverse political orientations shared their concerns, ideas, and priorities, united by a common commitment to supporting families and prioritizing military family quality of life. Even in the hardest times, we can find common ground.
Lauren Weiner shared insights from her book Unruly, reminding attendees that advocacy can evolve into leadership
Everyone agreed that solving the challenges military spouses face in employment is a top priority. While employment solutions for spouses have long-focused on job readiness, volunteering to build a resume, and matching career prospects with jobs available at military installations, we refocused the challenge on supporting military spouse employment today to align with their long-term professional goals, even after military life has come to an end. A healthcare-focused panel moderated by NMFA’s MJ Boice highlighted how military spouses can help address the national healthcare workforce shortage. Panelists Leslie Fautsch from Leidos, Alex Ware from Humana, and military spouse nurse Claire Buda explored career pathways in nursing and mental health. The panel concluded with the presentation of a $5,000 Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship to Buda, awarded with support from Fisher House Foundation.
The Summit also spotlighted the voices of military teens during a panel moderated by Bloom co-founder Genevieve Oakley. Teens shared how service has shaped their identities and aspirations, underscoring that service is a family legacy deserving of sustained support.
A $5,000 Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship awarded to military spouse and nurse Claire Buda
In the afternoon, NMFA launched its first event in its new Operation Advocacy campaign. Featuring dynamic storytelling and advocacy training. Military advocates Lauren Weiner, Dawn Gile, Reda Hicks, Heather Campbell, Isabel Garcia, and Ellen Gustafson shared their pathways into advocacy and demonstrated how personal experience can drive policy change. A storytelling workshop hosted by the Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP) helped attendees learn how to leverage their personal experience with conviction, and a panel of Hill staffers empowered attendees to know what messages move lawmakers and affect change. The day closed with a celebration of military spouses, reinforcing that advocacy often begins at the kitchen table but can lead to lasting impact.
Operation Advocacy
In 2025, NMFA introduced Operation Advocacy, a grassroots engagement initiative designed to equip military spouses with the tools and confidence to influence policy. Participants received training in storytelling and advocacy before engaging directly with congressional offices.
In May, more than 20 military spouses met with staff from 20 Members of Congress to discuss military spouse employment and urge passage of the Military Spouse Hiring Act. The day concluded with a substantive conversation with Representative Don Beyer, one of the bill’s House co-leads, reinforcing the power of lived experience in shaping policy outcomes.
In October, more military spouses joined NMFA on the Hill to educate legislators and highlight the hidden impact of government shutdown on their lives. From unpredictable paychecks to closed services and families stranded mid-move in expensive hotels, military families are left holding the bill when the Department of War stops paying – and military spouses were eager to share their experience and ensure Washington understands.
Military Family Action Center Impact
Through targeted letter campaigns, families engaged on issues including PCS reform, spouse employment, healthcare access, fertility care, and military pay protection, generating more than 113,000 letters during the October shutdown alone.
2025 Letter Campaigns
LETTERS
Demand Fair Moving Solutions (PCS)
LETTERS
LETTERS
LETTERS
LETTERS
LETTERS
Extend TRICARE to age 26 MFAC
“My children should not be punished in TRICARE Young Adult health care premium costs because of my military service.”
– Greg P., Retired Navy Veteran
“Our son just graduated and is a full-time graduate student. We had to find other coverage because he’ll be 23 soon, and we can’t afford TRICARE (Young Adult) prices.”
– Army spouse
Government Shutdown MFAC
“It is disturbing that missing two weeks of pay can break so many people. This should be inconvenient, not life changing.”
– Amy C., Army Spouse
Demand Fair Moving Solutions (PCS) MFAC
“HomeSafe had forgotten to schedule a moving company so on my moving day no one came. As a result, I had to extend my lease for an extra 5 days, (over $200 a day) …hands down the most stressful move I have completed in 20 years in the military.”
– Patrick H., Army Soldier
Equal Access to IVF Care for Military Families
“A fertility specialist told us there was a one in a million chance we could conceive on our own and that we needed to do IVF to get pregnant. Thankfully, it was all covered through the VA. We could not have afforded to have children if I stayed in the Army.”
– Army veteran
Congressional Reception
Representative Sara Jacobs of California was also honored for her leadership on reproductive healthcare and housing accountability, including her sponsorship of the IVF for Military Families Act. Her advocacy underscores the importance of access, stability, and dignity for military families.
The evening also recognized outgoing members of NMFA’s Board of Governors for their years of service and concluded with a shared commitment to continued collaboration on behalf of military families.
Military Influencer Conference
At the conference, CEO Besa Pinchotti and Chief Impact Officer Raleigh Smith Duttweiler were recognized as part of the Mighty 25, honoring their leadership and commitment to empowering military families. The moment reinforced the strength of the community and the collective impact of sustained advocacy and support.
Advocacy remains at the core of NMFA’s mission. In 2025, NMFA worked to ensure military family voices informed their daily lives.
By pairing research, lived experience, and strategic engagement, NMFA advanced solutions that address immediate challenges while building long-term stability for military families.
Advocacy Highlights
In 2025, NMFA engaged Congress, federal agencies, and the media to advance policies that improve military family quality of life. Efforts included congressional briefings, Hill meetings, and national advocacy campaigns.
Key outcomes included childcare pilot extensions, increased childcare payments, education investments, relocation support, and sustained efforts to protect military pay during government shutdowns.
Congressional Engagement
- March 2025 congressional staff briefing with the American Legion
- Operation Advocacy Hill Day meetings with 20 congressional offices
- Numerous member-level meetings with House and Senate leaders
- Government Shutdown Hill Day and Digital Campaign
- Over 113,000 letters generated through the Military Family Action Center
- Multiple press conferences, briefings, and national visibility
NDAA Successes
- Extension of in-home childcare pilot
- Increased childcare payments in high-cost areas
- $50 million in DoD Impact Aid
- Authorization of dual enrollment for DoDEA students
User-Centered Research
At NMFA, research is not a report;
Using our unique, user-centered, mixed-methods model, we translate the lived experiences of military families into actionable insight. Through deep engagement with over 16,000 military families and broader community data, we identify the real barriers families face, and design solutions grounded in evidence and lived experience.
Our focus in 2025 was the well-being of military kids and teens and the financial stability of their families. At a Human-Centered Design Workshop in Atlanta, NMFA partnered with military spouses, veterans, and community leaders to understand the experience of military spouses working in healthcare, the challenges they face, and ways in which NMFA could build policies and programs to better support their employment and career growth.
This approach allows us to connect the dots between:
employment
healthcare access
mental health and suicide prevention
quality of life in military communities
By pairing rigorous analysis with human-centered listening, NMFA is not only illuminating the challenges families face; we are centering military family members to lead the development of solutions that improve well-being across the military ecosystem.
Media, Digital Reach, and Visibility
Military families live around the world, and in 2025, NMFA met them wherever military life took them. Through digital platforms and media engagement, we amplified their stories and elevated their voices nationally and globally.
NMFA’s reach continued to grow through social media, email, and web engagement, ensuring timely information and resources reached families when they needed them most.
Extensive media coverage across national, regional, and international outlets further expanded awareness of military family challenges and solutions, reinforcing NMFA’s role as a trusted voice and advocate.
2025 Reach:
YouTube subscribers
EARNED MEDIA IMPRESSIONS:
2,208 total placements across more than 1,400 publications, reaching an estimated 7.58 million audience
Broadcast coverage:
TV placements across 35+ stations, including NBC4 Washington
radio placements across 5+ stations, including WTOP DC
mentions in press releases from Representatives & Senators in Congress
mentions by Senators
mentions by House Representatives
mentions by general Congress release
Board of Governors
VADM Raquel “Rocky” C. Bono, USN (Ret)
Chair
Hollister “Holly” K. Petraeus
Vice Chair
Jack White
Treasurer
Dr. Al Edwards
Secretary
Gen. Herbert “Hawk” Carlisle, USAF (Ret)
Board Member
April Edrington
Board Member
Leslie Fautsch
Board Member
Our Supporters
Donor Recognition
NMFA is grateful for the generosity of partners who make this work possible.
$200,00+
$100,000 - $199,999
$50,000 - $99,999
$49,999 - $25,000
$10,000 - $24,999
Alfred and Helen Selgas
American Legion Auxiliary 176
Anderson-Rogers Foundation Inc.
April Edrington & Deacon Turner
Church & Dwight Employee Giving Fund
Cigna Corporate Services, LLC
Congressional Sports for Charity
Corvias Foundation
Costco Wholesale Corporation
DAV Charitable Service Trust
David and Alma Pinchotti
Deloitte LLP
Dennis and Linda Leuthauser
Hollister and David Petraeus
International SOS Government Services
Joyce Wessel
Liberty Military Housing
Linda Seaton
Norman and Mary Ann Merollis
Patricia Moore
Raquel Bono and Art Dwight
Shlomo Y. Rechnitz/Tamar Rechnitz Charity Foundation
Sonnentag American Foundation
Stand Out For Good Inc. (Altar’d State)
The Pakis Family Foundation
The Richard D. Donchian Foundation
Tides Foundation
United Through Reading (UTR)
$5,000 - $9,999
Ann Campbell
Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES)
Association of Military Banks of America (AMBA)
Burke & Herbert Bank
Dennis Deloria and Suzanne Thouvenelle
DLH
Dr. Gordon R Ray
Frederick Von Pechmann
Greater Houston Golf Charity (For Insperity)
Gregory Cote
Kathleen and Nick Blackman
KKR & Co. Inc.
Linden and Judith Welch
Magellan Federal
Mark and Tracy Talley
Michael and Maria Hogan
Michael and Vicki Jeansonne
Nancy Walker
Nandini Mani
Patrick Brennan
Rolls-Royce Corporation
SpaceX
The Leroy Thom Jean Thom and T L Foundation Inc.
Tina and David Jonas
Veterans United Foundation
Cover and Mission section photos courtesy of Katherine Beth Photography.