Jennifer Barnhill

In addition to her reporting, Jennifer Barnhill is also the host of Military Dinner Table Conversations, a monthly reverse town hall with military families. She is the author of The Military Stories You've Been Told: And the Ones You Need to Hear (October 2025) as well as the 2025 AFI Navy Spouse of the Year, a 2023 Bush Institute StandTo Veteran Leadership Program Scholar, the editor-in-chief of the National Military Spouse Network’s Career Connections Magazine and the military spouse liaison on The League of Wives Memorial Project.

Latest Articles

The minuteman statue in front of the headquarters building following a snow storm

Why No One Understands National Guard Families

Despite making headlines for helping after the catastrophic flooding in Texas or being politicized as President Donald Trump...

Applications sit on a table at Marston Pavilion aboard Camp Lejeune, N.C., for potential volunteers with Combat Logistics Regiment 27, 2nd Marine Logistics Group.

The Cost of Spouse Volunteerism

Military spouses are often encouraged to pursue volunteerism as a way to stay professionally relevant during relocations and...

U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

For Military Spouses, OPSEC Isn't Political. It's Personal.

Military families know that OPSEC is more than a political talking point; it is a matter of life and death.

A teacher engages her 5th grade students in an interactive lesson at Kessler Elementary School

The Trump Administration Wants to Promote School Vouchers for Military Families. Would It Help?

In January, the Trump administration issued an executive order requiring the Department of Defense to come up with a proposal...

A military spouse carries a copy of their resume during a job fair at Ramstein Air Base.

Pentagon Ruling Eases One Employment Barrier for Military Spouses Overseas

Rules that had prevented some military spouses from holding jobs while stationed overseas have been relaxed, a parting gift...

Middle School students are picked up by bus

Banned Books, School Walkouts, Child Care Shortages: Military Families Confront Pentagon's Shifting Rules

At a public school, the protest might have led to a detention and maybe some revoked after-school privileges. But on a...

The Daily Stress Weighing on Military Spouses

The stress the military community holds is not just related to our proximity to deployments or combat zones. It is woven into...

A crew removes the statue of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson

How the Trump Administration Is Erasing History and Ignoring the Wishes of Descendants of Confederate Leaders

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently renamed Fort Liberty, North Carolina, choosing the name Fort Bragg. Not that Bragg...

person types on a laptop keyboard in North Andover, Mass.

The Return to Work Order Is Creating Chaos, Anguish for Military Spouses

Military spouse unemployment has been around 20% for half a century.

free hiring event held for service members, veterans and military spouses

Military Families Need the Same Legal Protections as Service Members

Although many states offer legal protections that could theoretically prevent discrimination on the basis of marital status -...

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Adrienne Warren, the 99th Air Base Wing command chief, greets drivers during a Suicide Prevention Awareness Month base wave-in at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

What Happens to Military Families After a Loved One's Suicide?

When a member of the military community dies by suicide, their neighbors, friends, brothers in arms, and families gather...

Does the Military Need Social Media Influencers?

New military influencers are popping up daily talking about military life -- the good, the bad and the ugly.

Military family members give a thumbs up while flying over Albuquerque

How Are Foreign-Born Military Spouses Doing?

Being a military spouse is challenging, and for foreign-born spouses, there are even more stressors to keeping a family...

A home is advertised for sale in Hampton Roads, Va.

Confusion, Misinformation and the VA Loan

The VA loan is designed to help and protect service members as they buy a home.

Moving boxes sit in the old home of a logistics flight commander in Las Vegas, April 28, 2020.

How Moves Put Military Families of Color at Risk

Moving may be a part of military life, but for families of color and other groups, military moves pose more than an...

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Most Popular Military News

Rep. Michael Lawler, R-N.Y., left, confronts House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.

Federal Government Shutdown Grinds into a Second Week as Tempers Flare at the Capitol

As the federal government shutdown enters a second week, there’s no discernible endgame in sight.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) questions U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi as she testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

Trump Targets Blumenthal, Calling for Investigation into Senator's Vietnam Service Claims

President Donald Trump is targeting U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal again after Connecticut’s senior U.S. senator grilled U.S...

Pvt. Paul Douglas, age 50, performs a rifle inspection with his drill instructor aboard Marine Corps Recruit Depot S.C., 1942. Douglas, at age 50 was the oldest recruit in the history of Parris Island, and went on to become a purple heart recipient and Chicago senator (DVIDS).

At 50, He Survived Marine Boot Camp — Then Fought at Peleliu and Okinawa

When 50-year-old Paul Douglas showed up at Marine Corps boot camp in 1942, the white-haired economics professor looked more...

Pack and transport platoon of the Russian army. Southern Military District. Ministry of Defense of Russia (Wikimedia Commons).

Ukrainian Drones Attack Russian Cavalry Troops in Rare 21st-Century Encounter

A short video circulating online this month appears to show a Russian mounted patrol being struck by a Ukrainian drone near...

When The Government Can Afford Everything Except The Essentials

Every shutdown forces the government to decide what counts as “essential.” Air traffic controllers and TSA agents fall into...

Troops Will Miss Paychecks Next Week Without Action on the Government Shutdown

The federal government shutdown is raising anxiety levels among service members and their families, because those in uniform...

Latest Military Videos

Israel Carries Out a Series of Airstrikes in Southern Lebanon

Israel's army carried out a series of airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Thursday, targeting a cement plant and a...

Released Palestinians Describe Harsh Conditions in Israeli Prisons

The release of nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees offers a rare glimpse into the immediate health impacts of...

5 Incredible Navy Cross Recipients

Here are the stories of five incredible Navy Cross recipients.

Missing Bodies of Hostages Top List of Uncertainties as Fragile Gaza Ceasefire Holds

After the release of the last living hostages and Palestinian prisoners, the tenuous ceasefire in Gaza was holding Tuesday...

Investigations and Features

In One of the Marines' Most Iconic Jobs, a Stunning Pattern of Suicide

Marine Corps drill instructors are a national symbol of discipline. But for some, their imposing persona belies a dark...

Army Capt. Jeremy Kuykendall and his wife Kate, cradle their daughter

Unsupervised: Military Child Care Centers Slow to Report Abuse with Little Oversight

A Military.com investigation into military day care centers revealed that service branch rules generally prioritize...

Army News

U.S. Army soldiers launch a drone at Yakima Training Center, Washington, July 2025. The Army is creating specialized multifunctional reconnaissance companies that integrate drones, electronic warfare systems, and traditional reconnaissance capabilities. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Adeline Witherspoon)

How Ukraine’s Drone War Is Forcing the U.S. Army to Rewrite Its Battle Doctrine

The Army is overhauling how it fights in combat based on lessons from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, where drones have become...

Thousands of U.S. Government E-mails Exposed on the Dark Web — Including White House and Pentagon Accounts

NordVPN says thousands of U.S. government email addresses, including some tied to the White House, State Department and...

Navy News

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters.

US Will Send Survivors of Strike on Suspected Drug Vessel Back to Ecuador and Colombia, Trump Says

After Trump’s announcement, the Pentagon posted on X a brief black-and-white video of the strike.

US Commander Overseeing Fatal Strikes Against Alleged Drug Boats Off Venezuela Will Retire

The commander of U.S. military operations in the region where forces have been attacking alleged drug boats says he will...

Air Force News

What We Know About the Devastating Alaska Storm and the Evacuation Effort

Hundreds of residents from remote Alaska Native villages are being airlifted after a storm battered their communities.

The F-80C was more than a match for the propeller-driven fighters of the North Korean Air Force but suffered from short range when flying from Japanese air bases (U.S. Air Force photo).

Lessons from the Korean War: How Air Combat Then Still Shapes U.S. Tactics Today

When the Korean War began in 1950, the United States entered a new era of air combat it barely understood. Pilots trained for...

Space Force News

U.S. Air Force U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Rachel Harmon and Master Sgt. Tom Anderson, weapons loaders assigned to the 174th Attack Wing, checks an inert GBU 12 laser guided missile on an MQ-9 Reaper at Springfield-Beckley Air National Guard Base in Springfield, Ohio.

Two Space Force Units Bring the 'Invisible Front Line' to Ohio

A ceremonial ribbon-cutting is planned for Friday for the Space Intelligence Production Cell at the Springfield-Beckley Air...

A painting of a Defense Support Program satellite from the Air Force Art collection. DSP provides a variety of national security capabilities. Its flagship mission of launch detection was made famous during the Cold War. (U.S. Air Force image)

Clearing The Orbits: Space Force Partnerships In Orbital Cleanup

The growing congestion of Earth orbit has raised risks to satellites, space stations, and long-term space sustainability. The...

Marine Corps News

Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance watch a demonstration by Marines.

Plan to Fire Artillery Over a California Highway During JD Vance Base Visit Irks Governor

Camp Pendleton officials said there was nothing unsafe about the artillery exercise and no need to disrupt traffic on...

Raytheon Missiles & Defense and the U.S. Marine Corps successfully demonstrated the NMESIS off the California Coast (NavalNews.com)

Okinawa Marines Hone Littoral Edge with NMESIS

NMESIS itself is a game-changer: a mobile, ground-based launcher packing two stealthy Kongsberg Naval Strike Missiles with a...

Coast Guard News

Faulty Engineering Led to Implosion of Titan Submersible Headed to Titanic Wreckage, NTSB Finds

Faulty engineering led to the implosion of an experimental submersible that killed five people on the way to the wreck of the...

A Philadelphia Fire Department fire boat streams water as the USS Lassen passes by at the start of the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, Parade of Ships, as seen from Navy Yard, south Philadelphia.

A Grand Parade of Ships Kicked off the 250th Anniversary of the Marines and Navy

Hundreds of veterans, active service members, families of the lost, and dignitaries came to Mustin Field at the Navy Yard on...