We live in the land of the free because of the brave. Our veterans and military servicemembers dedicate their lives to protect and defend our great nation and everyone that is lucky enough to live here. After everything they have sacrificed for our country — for each of us — the least we can do is continue to keep our troops safe, while keeping the faith, and encouraging positivity. 
 
Military spouses — the heroes behind the scenes — know firsthand how important it is to keep our servicemembers safe and supported. Auxiliary magazine interviewed military spouses at American Legion Auxiliary National Headquarters for their advice on this subject: 
 

• Knowing OPSEC. Don’t inadvertently violate OPSEC, or operations security, by posting a public note on the spouse’s social media. Social posts that refer to troop movement — like details on a military unit’s location, personnel names, ranks, or other IDs, and especially dates, times of flight arrivals, and departures — have the potential to critically and negatively affect our deploying military. For example, don’t write, “Hey! I heard your soldier’s National Guard unit is having a homecoming ceremony at the armory Tuesday night!” Along those same lines, don’t put the spouse in a bad place by publicly posting things like this: “I know your soldier is overseas for the next seven months. How can I help you and the kids?” OPSEC is vital for the safety of not only our troops, but the family members left behind as well. 

• Encouraging positivity. Our servicemembers’ mental health is extremely important. Be their safe place. Morale goes along with that. If family and friends can consistently relay messages of good, positive moments from back home, our troops will appreciate it greatly and hopefully keep their spirits up. When your hundreds or thousands of miles from home, would you really want to hear whining, complaining, or worries? Little lies are good too — Dad/mom doesn’t need to know that his daughter has been battling an icky stomach bug, or that the washing machine is broken and you’re on the hunt for a repair person. 

• Keeping the faith. During times of uncertainty, staying faithful and having hope may bring you and your servicemember a sense of comfort. Below are two stories of how military spouses at NHQ kept faith alive: 
  • “When Bruce was deployed, I always prayed Psalm 91 over him every day. It’s the prayer of protection. As a Bible study group, we made footprints the size of their military boots with the prayer written on it. Bruce put it under the sole of his boot, so he’d be standing on the word of God everyday he was gone.” 
  • “When my husband was serving, I gave him two medals to attach to his dog tags chain: St. Michael the Archangel (patron saint of grocers, paramedics, mariners, paratroopers, police officers, and military personnel), and St. Christopher (patron saint of travelers). These two saints watched over my soldier, as he was injured with a broken nose and hand in a bad car accident while on orders once, but things could’ve been much worse.”