Charlotte Stanbaugh, a Child and Youth Program assistant

Charlotte Stanbaugh, a Child and Youth Program assistant with the Holloman Child Development Center, leads her class of toddlers during a march to commemorate the start of the 2012 Month of the Military Child April 6. The CDC's 31 staff members provide a safe, educational and cost-effective daycare environment for more than 80 children daily, ranging in age from six weeks to five years old. The Defense Department made April the Month of the Military Child to highlight nearly 1.7 million American children under the age of 18 who have a parent who serves in the U.S. armed forces. The families of military members undergo many of the same stresses as their active duty parents. The initiative also serves as a means to highlight the importance of family in the military and focuses on building character, courage, sacrifice and continued resilience.