Supporting your family's unique journey

Supporting our military members and families, in all of their diversity

Every family’s military journey is unique, with its own challenges, circumstances, and related need for different programs and services. Here, at Military Family Services – National Capital Region (MFS-NCR), we want to make sure that the services we offer support you along this journey and meet your changing needs.  

We are aware that the military journey, while incredibly rewarding, can also present diverse challenges and that our families experience these challenges in different ways.

Our team has been developing different tools and approaches to better understand the range of experiences and realities of military families, such as the challenges related to deployment and relocation, or raising young children and teens, or caregiving for elderly parents, and more.

Our aim is to ensure that all families have access to our services and support in a way that best matches their needs. Our team is exploring how our military families have intersectional identities, and how these identities shape their experience and need for programs and services.  
 
Deployment and relocation
Raising young children and teens
Caregiving for elderly parents
Other Services

What are intersectional identities?

This concept refers to how an individual’s identity consists of multiple, intersecting factors. These factors can include our gender identity, race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, political beliefs, socio-economic class, sexual orientation, language, and even where we live.   

These intersecting factors are what make us multi-layered and unique, and we strive to understand the military journey from different perspectives. For example, from the perspective of a same-sex couple recently deployed, a mixed-race couple in a rural area, a couple with children facing hardships readjusting after relocation, a single member and her daughter, or a single member, who is far away from family and friends. 

These are just a few examples of the different types of families and their unique experiences. With these different families in mind, we ask ourselves questions when developing or adapting our programs, such as: How do we reach families with intersecting identities? Would these families have access to our programs and services? If yes, are there ways we can improve them further? If not, what can we do to make sure they know about them and can gain access? 

Inclusivity is one of our top priorities, and we are always thinking of ways to better capture the experiences of military families and reflect their needs in our programming. Seeing how the structures of families have changed in recent decades, we are deeply aware that the needs of families will continue to change and evolve over time. 

To ensure that we are serving you and your family as best we can, we encourage you to connect with us by email at [email protected] to share your experiences. You can also get in touch on Facebook and Instagram. We would love to hear from you! 

[email protected]
Facebook
Instagram

Does the MFS-NCR Team only serve military families living in Ottawa?

Military families live all over the NCR, all the way from Arnprior in the west, Maniwaki in the north, Brockville in the east, and Cornwall in the south. That’s about 100 kms in each direction, and our catchment area keeps expanding as a direct result of the housing market. Your MFR-NCR Team strives to serve all military families wherever they are through the delivery of remote and in-person programs and services.