For the Tomahawk Leader
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A Tomahawk High School alumnus was recently recognized for her work with mental health awareness and connecting military families to the resources they need to achieve their best selves.
A release from Armed Forces Insurance (AFI) said that, following hundreds of nominations nationwide and a national vote yielding more than 30,000 votes, Kristin Ramassini had been named its 2023 Coast Guard Base National Capital Region Spouse of the Year.
“Now in its 13th year honoring the unwavering dedication of our nation’s more than 1.1 million military spouses, AFI is proud to recognize and reward the sacrifice of military spouses from all six branches of the Armed Forces who are advocating for others and having a tangible, measurable effect on their communities,” the release stated.
Nominations from community members nationwide were accepted from Dec. 5, 2022, through Jan. 27, 2023. The program is organized by base-level winners, then branch level winners, and, finally, the overall 2023 AFI Military Spouse of the Year® (AFI MSOY), who are selected by popular vote and judging panels, the release said.
As a base winner, Ramassini was judged on five core criteria: overall involvement in the military community, leadership skills, community building capability, communication skills and overall personal story.
Ramassini is now in consideration of being named the overall winner. After a final vote conducted on Thursday, March 9 and Friday, March 10, the overall winner will be unveiled at an awards luncheon on Thursday, May 11 at the Hilton Arlington National Landing in Arlington, Va., in conjunction with National Military Spouse Appreciation Day, which occurs on Friday, May 12.
“Over the past decade, we have seen the program grow and amplify the voices of military spouses on a national stage,” said Lori Simmons, Chief Growth and Marketing Officer at Armed Forces Insurance. “These spouses have pioneered initiatives, founded organizations, started businesses and advocated for issues impacting the quality-of-life for military families in the best ways imaginable. We are thrilled to welcome the 2023 base winners to the AFI MSOY family and work alongside them to make an even bigger impact.”
Ramassini, who graduated from Tomahawk High School in 1995, is currently stationed with her husband, Steven Ramassini, Captain, USCG, at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Ramassini said her military spouse journey was a “storyline line told many times in movies and books, and my relationship happened to kindle in a single-screen theater of a quaint storybook town.”
“Fast forward through four years of pre-FaceTime long-distance relationship management using public pay phones and old-school letter writing, and there I was, standing at the altar, a military man and me, a cosmetologist, naïve to the journey ahead,” Ramassini stated. “One year into our marriage, with a newborn, we got our first exposure to the demands of a command cadre position and the start of my advocacy for the military family. Like many military spouses, the outreach was focused on our small unit families and ensuring that while the ship was away, those left behind knew they had a network of people to lean on.”
Over the years, Ramassini said she took on roles like leading various spouse associations, co-organizing a military ball and providing direct support to individual military spouses experiencing the spectrum of life’s events.
“I worked hard to be present, involved, and supportive, connecting people to resources and ensuring that, to the best of my ability, military spouses never felt alone,” she noted.
Ramassini said she is “honored and humbled to be named the Coast Guard Base NCR Military Spouse of the Year.”
“My goal has always been to connect military families to the resources they need to reach their fullest potential,” she stated. “Doing so without fanfare, and then being recognized by others for simply taking care of people, gives me hope that others will take these simple, yet impactful actions to support those who are coming into the service life today.”
To learn more about Ramassini and the other base winners, visit www.msoy.afi.org.
About Armed Forces Insurance
The release said Armed Forces Insurance was founded in 1887 by military leaders “with a single mission: to protect the property of those who protect our nation.”
“The company provides premium quality, competitively priced property, and casualty insurance to military professionals throughout the United States and overseas,” the release stated. “AFI understands that its members have unique circumstances and insurance needs, enabling the company to offer a level of personalized service that’s unequaled in the industry.”
For more information, visit www.afi.org, call 1-800-495-8234 or follow AFI on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.