The United Services Organization (USO) is a non-profit organization that has been around since World War II and depends on volunteers and donations received from individuals, corporations, and foundations to accomplish their mission to bring friendship and to joy to the military.
The USO serves all branches of the active military and their family members, including the National Guard and Reservists. According to Josh Sova, USO Executive Director for Minnesota/North Dakota/South Dakota/Wisconsin, stated, “The USO’s mission is to strengthen the well-being of the people serving in America’s military, supporting them from enlistment to exit. While the USO also assists the wounded and the families of the fallen, our focus is providing comprehensive support to all military and their families, making us one of the few organizations dedicated to this mission.” The USO maintains over 250 Centers all over the globe, and even on aircraft carriers.
Sova explained that wherever there’s military, the USO tries to reach them and support them. The USO’s support mission at Minot AFB is part of the USO’s bigger mission to reach the locations where the military hasn’t had USO support in the past. Last year, Sova spoke to Minot AFB’s leadership, and they said that Minot personnel needed a boost in morale.
To create some cheer and camaraderie in 2024, the Mobile USO Centers, traveling USO centers, came to Minot AFB on two separate occasions. One mobile center sported an NFL theme and contained TV’s, gaming systems, and lawn games, etc., to support Freedom Fest in June. The other mobile center arrived in September with 100 Welcome Packs. The Welcome Packs were filled with essential items, snacks, and treats, to welcome new Airmen into the dorm and to provide some comfort and convenience while they settle into their new “home away from home.” The USO also sends Care Packages and USO2Go kits filled with games, snacks, and other items to Airmen on the Cavalier Space Force Station in the northeastern corner of North Dakota.
On November 6, 2024, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Youth Center on Minot AFB, the USO will host the first USO Holidays party at Minot AFB to celebrate Thanksgiving. Families can enjoy hot chocolate or apple cider along with a holiday treat bag to take home. There’s a hot chocolate bar that includes marshmallows! Kids can also create a holiday magnet to color and take home with them.
Laura Groeneweg, USO Area Operations Specialist in North Dakota, stated, “It’s an opportunity for families to come together and connect with each other, and maybe make some connections with other families like ‘oh, you have a kid about the same age as our kid’ so that way they [the families] might not know each other otherwise. It gives them a chance to connect with each other and build that network. Building that network and community is just really important for everybody when you’re separated from your family or loved ones, to build that community and network where you are.”
So, come in from the cold, enjoy a delicious beverage, make a craft with the kids, and get to know one another to celebrate Thanksgiving with the USO.
In addition to the USO Holidays party, the USO, with the support from volunteers from the Minot Chamber of Commerce, will also hold the first Special Delivery Programs baby shower open to 40 expectant mothers on Minot AFB at the Sirocco Neighborhood Center on December 5, 2024, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
The baby shower aims to celebrate moms-to-be and to provide them with some essential items, such as diapers, baby wash, swaddles, and onesies, etc. to welcome their newest addition to their family. Groeneweg stated, “The idea behind the baby shower is for these new moms to connect and find that support from other people who are in that same situation, a newborn, so that they [the moms] can talk about their baby’s sleep schedule, what’s working well, or if they have questions if something isn’t working well, like ‘do you have an idea of how I can get past this milestone.” The shower is open to expecting moms and new moms (6 months postpartum or less), and guests need to contact Laura Groeneweg to register by November 20. Sova said that the baby showers get very high ratings. The spouses like them, and seventy-one percent of the spouses throughout the world said they wouldn’t have had a baby shower if the USO hadn’t provided it.
Community plays a vital role in supporting military families. By building a network, fostering those connections, providing emotional and practical support, and sharing experiences, communities help ensure that service members and their families feel equipped, confident, and supported during their service to their country. The USO is there to help grow and foster military communities in every way they possibly can.
