Community Conversations: Military Families

Watch the Community Conversation

America250 invites you to join a Community Conversation with other Military Families. Our ongoing series of Community Conversations will engage with communities across the United States and around the world. Panelists and participants have the opportunity to share what the US Semiquincentennial means to them and their communities, and their hopes for the America250 commemoration and celebration. These sessions are nonpartisan and will be held regularly through 2026, giving people the opportunity to speak into and shape the America250 commemoration.

We invite military members, veterans, and their supporting communities to join our Military Families Community Conversation on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, at 4pm ET, and help shape history.

Meet the Panelists

Major General Peggy Combs (Ret.) hails from Oriskany, NY, and was commissioned a Regular Army second lieutenant in the United States Army Chemical Corps in May 1985, as a distinguished military graduate of the Reserve Officer Training Corps Program at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York. Throughout her 33-years of service, General Combs served in a variety of leadership and staff positions at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels. As a Major General, she served as the Commander of the US Army Cadet Command at Fort Knox, Kentucky, and culminated her career as the Chief of Staff, North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. General (Retired) Combs’ military education includes the US Army Command and General Staff College, and the US Army War College. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Syracuse University, a Master of Science from Saint Mary College, and a Master of Strategic Arts from the US Army War College.

Jennifer Dane is a veteran of the United States Air Force who served as an intelligence analyst focused on geopolitical relations, terrorism, and threat vulnerability issues. Jennifer currently serves as the Executive Director of the Modern Military Association of America – the nation’s largest non-profit organization working to advance fairness and equality for the LGBTQ military and veteran community. She currently serves as a founding board member of Partners in PROMISE and is a Vet Policy Fellow. She is passionate about her commitment to leaving the world a better place than it was before she was born.

Emily Dixon is originally from Lexington, Kentucky, and following college, served for a short while as a Weather Officer for the Air Force. Emily’s husband is Active Duty Air Force and they just celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary. Emily and her husband have a 10-year old son and two cats. Upon graduating in December 2021 with a Master’s in Library and Information Science, Emily aspires to work in government libraries and archives. Her current duty station is Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas.

Kathy Roth-Douquet is a non-profit executive, author, commentator, strategist, and attorney. As Co-Founder and CEO of Blue Star Families, Kathy is a national spokesperson for military-connected families and has appeared on the Today Show, Fox and Friends, NPR, CNN, and other media outlets. A frequent speaker at universities, policy forums, military audiences, and civic groups, Kathy is the co-author of two books, including AWOL: The Unexcused Absence of America’s Upper Classes from Military Service and How It Hurts Our Country, (HarperCollins, 2006), with Frank Schaeffer. Her work has also appeared in magazines and newspapers across the country. Having served in the White House and in the Department of Defense, Kathy received the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service for her work on defense reform. She is also a recipient of President George H. W. Bush’s Daily Point of Light Award and received the Chief of Staff of the Army Outstanding Civilian Service Award.

Meet the Moderator

Dr. Megan Springate is the Director of Engagement for the America250 Foundation where she drives its efforts to make America’s complex, expansive histories–from local to national–accessible and meaningful to all. To do this, Springate and her team work collaboratively across America250, external communities, and partners to foster communication, teaching, learning, and engagement with America’s past and its future. Springate comes to America250 from the National Park Service, where she served as national coordinator for the successful National Park Service 19th Amendment Centennial Commemoration. She has received several awards for her work, and is the author and editor of several books and articles both online and in print. Springate earned her doctorate in anthropology from the University of Maryland.