FOCUS is a program designed to work with military families to understand how deployments and family separations impact family members and the family as a whole. The program builds on existing family strengths to develop a tool kit of skills that the family can use to build increase their resiliency.
As family resiliency builds, families find that they are prepared to work through current obstacles, become closer as a family, and spend more time communicating. These are skills that each family member can call upon in the future when faced with challenges and stressors.

As the military has changed, so have the demands on military families. Today, service members can face multiple and rapid deployments away from their families. Even when they are not deployed, service members and their families can be faced with other challenges (e.g., long shift hours, TADs away from families, and other separations). When this happens, it is typical to see:

• Changes in family routines and family members' responsibilities
• A breakdown in communication between family members
• Family members feeling disconnected from each other
• Difficulty readjusting when the service member returns home
• Children becoming clingy, defiant, sad, or withdrawn
• The home-front parent or caregiver feeling more stressed, anxious, or irritable
• The service member becoming concerned about missing important events and milestones in their children's lives 

This Training:

• Assists families to develop a tool box of family resiliency skills
• Enhances family communication and support
• Provides developmentally appropriate education to parents to monitor the impact of deployment and separation on children

FOCUS provides services free of cost to all types of families. Some FOCUS families are ready for a deployment while others are in the middle of a deployment or reuniting after a deployment. Some FOCUS families are interested in remaining strong during non-deployment separations and are being proactive in planning for the event by seeking training. Some families come to FOCUS years after their last deployment, simply to learn ways to maintain their connection as a family and ways to support each other through changes and transitions.

• Individualized family resiliency training
• Consultations for providers and families without children
• Skill-building groups for parents and children
• Workshops for parents, community members, and service providers
• Briefs/PMEs for commands, community members, and service providers
• Specialized training for Wounded, Ill, or Injured service members and their families

Month of the Military Child: Family Day at the Museum
Saturday, 10 April, 2010, from 1200-1600
The National Museum of the Marine Corps, FOCUS (Families OverComing Under Stress), Marine Corps Family Team Building (MCFTB), and other family organizations will be hosting a Military Child Day at the Museum on Saturday, April 10, 2010, from 12:00-16:00.  The free event will include hourly puppet shows, activity tables, and special surprise guests. For more information please contact FOCUS: 703-784-0189.

FOCUS Skill Building Groups
24 March, 21 April, 19 May, 26 May, 23 June, 1730-1900
FOCUS (Families OverComing Under Stress) and The New Parent Support Program (NPSP) present a series for military parents. This series features five skill building groups which train parents to recognize deployment, separation, and transition reactions in their children, provide tools to respond to signs of stress, and offer strategies for expressing emotions while staying calm. Space is limited for each group so Please RSVP to
703-784-0189 for one of the sessions below:

Religious and Family Annex, MCB Quantico

• Wednesdays, 1730 – 1900
• 24 March, 21 April, 19 May, 26 May, 23 June
• Childcare is provided by the CDC, with reservation.

Family Readiness Program
Marine Corp
Family Team Building
New Parent Support Group
Wounded Warrior Regiment
Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund