Wisconsin military family program honored at Pentagon

Sun Prairie's Janell Kellett, the Family Readiness Group leader for the 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Wisconsin National Guard, was presented with a plaque during the 2009 Department of Defense Reserve Family Readiness Awards at the Pentagon on Friday. Awards went to the top program from each of the seven Guard and Reserve branches. Kellett - who recently told us about her visit with First Lady Michelle Obama -- and more than 100 other volunteers supported family readiness and morale during the 32nd IBCT's 12-month deployment. (American Forces Press Service photo)

Update: After I posted this, Janell was quick to email me the group photo -- you can't spell Family Readiness Group without the "group" -- showing other honorees: Top row: Karin Texidor, Becky Hynes, Catrina Bennett, Andrea Simonis and Pam Kletzien

Bottom Row: Janell Kellett and Tim Benz

Wisconsin military families fight the war at home

In case you missed it, the State Journal told the stories of several Wisconsin National Guard families in Sunday's paper.

At bedtime, 6-year-old Tyler Freeman snuggles up to a little armor against the fear and sadness he feels about his father's yearlong military mission in Iraq.

"He has been crying less at night since his father sent him a shirt to sleep with," said his mother, Laura Freeman, of Fort Atkinson.

Over the past 11 months, Wisconsin families have found many ways to cope with the deployment of more than 3,200 citizen-soldiers, the largest overseas operational mobilization of the state Guard since World War II.

Read the story here.