MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- The Camp Lejeune School Liaison Program, Exceptional Family Member Program and Marine Corps Family Team Building will come together to bring military families a free opportunity to learn how to create stress-free families through Celebrate Calm 9 Oct.
Celebrate Calm is a workshop led by motivational speakers Kirk Martin and his teenage son Casey who teach strategies on overcoming explosive situations in a household using humor and practical tips.
Two sessions, “Meltdowns and Conflict- Creating a Stress-free Family” and “‘You’re not the boss of me!’- Motivating Strong-willed Kids and Teens” lasting two hours are planned. Meltdowns and Conflict is scheduled for 9 a.m. at the Ball Center while “You’re not the boss of me!” is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Russell Auditorium.
“Many programs for modifying a child’s behavior focus on getting the child to change,” said Julie Fulton, a SLP officer. “This program focuses on parents changing their attitude, and learning to take emotion out of the discussion. The children respond in a way that brings the anxiety level down and lets the conversation happen automatically.”
After overcoming their own struggles, Kirk and Casey dedicated their time to sharing their unique perspectives on how to make a family work.
“I’m a parent, and I was a teacher for 14 years,” said Fulton. “I saw a lot of the stress families have when they deal with their kids. I hope this program helps relieve some of it. There’s already a lot of stress related to military service. This program can help families have more productive conversations with their kids to get to the root of the problem.”
The program can be helpful to educators as well as parents. It has much to offer to parents dealing with the everyday struggle of raising kids and to the parents of special needs children.
“Come in with an open mind, and take bits and pieces from the presentation,” said Donna Grady, a SLP officer. “Every person and family is different, but if they can gain one good piece of information they can be more successful.”
Free childcare is available. For more information about the workshop and to register call 451-4103.