New Online App Launched to Aid America's Military Families

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Nov. 22, 2011  /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Too often, military families struggle to connect with the resources intended to make life easier. After receiving countless calls from families not knowing where to turn, the National Military Family Association unveiled a new tool to help. This new tool capitalizes on technological innovations to increase access to information and social support for our nation's military family community.

Working in partnership with ConvergeUS and Appcelerator, the Association is working on a mobile platform to provide customized information to families as they navigate the different life events brought on by their loved one's military career. The partnership and commitment was recognized by the White House's Joining Forces program as an example of Americans stepping up to support military families.

Despite the existence of more than 3,400 official military websites, 58 percent of military family members say they don't know where to find information. "Unfortunately, after all the efforts to strengthen military family support, many families still feel they are alone. It shouldn't be that way," said Joyce Wessel Raezer, Executive Director of the National Military Family Association. "We're tapping the innovative spirit of the technology industry to connect military families with programs and resources in their community."

Appcelerator has volunteered to design the prototype using the Appcelerator Titanium Development platform. "Gaining mobile access to critical military life information wherever and whenever it's needed is essential to supporting on-the-go military families," explained Jeff Haynie, Appcelerator's CEO. "We are very happy to help the National Military Family Association extend their reach by using the mobile devices already adopted by thousands of military family members."

The first module focuses on supporting military spouse employment. The beta version of the app is anticipated in the first half of 2012. Additional releases will include web based and text capabilities and cover other subjects like deployment, raising kids, and caregiver support.

This project is made possible thanks to generous support from founding sponsors, TriWest Heathcare Alliance and the Grossbeck Foundation, and guidance from members of the Association's Technology Advisory Council.

About the National Military Family Association

Military families serve our country with pride, honor, and quiet dedication. The National Military Family Association is the leading nonprofit organization committed to strengthening and protecting the families of the men and women currently serving, retired, wounded or fallen. We provide families of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Commissioned Corps of the USPHS and NOAA with information, work to get them the benefits they deserve, and offer programs that improve their lives. Our 40 years of service and accomplishments have made us a trusted resource for military families and the Nation's leaders. To learn more, visit www.militaryfamily.org.

About Appcelerator

Appcelerator is the leading enterprise-grade, cross-platform development solution on the market today, with over 1.6 million developers using its software to power over 30,000 cloud-connected mobile, desktop, and web applications used on 30 million devices every day. The company's flagship offering, Appcelerator Titanium, is the only mobile cloud platform to enable fully native, cross-platform mobile app and HTML5 web development, from a single codebase. Appcelerator's customers can leverage their existing skills and open, industry standard technologies to decrease time-to-market and development costs, increase customer adoption and revenues, and enjoy greater flexibility and control. For more information, please visit www.appcelerator.com.

About ConvergeUS

ConvergeUS is a 501 (c) (3), non-profit arm of TechNet, the bipartisan network of CEOs that promotes the growth of the innovation economy. Its mission is to leverage the collective power of the technology sector to accelerate social innovation—new strategies, concepts, ideas, and coalitions—in collaboration with nonprofit organizations, government entities, academic institutions, and the private sector. ConvergeUS will function as a facilitator and convener to bring diverse stakeholders together to create a "Technology Innovation Blueprint" that focuses on purposeful applications of technology and social media. For ConvergeUS, the primary areas of interest are education including science, technology, engineering, and math education (STEM), support for military families, healthcare, sustainability, and emergency preparedness. For 2011 ConvergeUS selected issue areas for collaboration that focus on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math education), early childhood education, and children's nutrition. To learn more, visit www.convergeus.org.

CONTACT: Bailey Bernius, +1-703-931-6632, [email protected]

SOURCE National Military Family Association