HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — Nearly 75,000 Georgia children have military parents, and about 2,000 of them are in Houston County schools.
April is the Month of the Military Child. The Department of Defense recognizes the daily toll that children and families face between constant moves, family disconnection, and bonding through phone screens.
It's a feeling Veterans High School senior Ovani Navedo knows well.
Megan Western talked to him and some of his support about how he's used the journey to find success.
"I'm very thankful and blessed that I had both parents in my life -- not everyone had both parents," says Ovani Navedo.
However, his family life was still not typical.
"I forgot what my own father looked like he was away so often," he says.
Navedo's father served in the United States Air Force for 25 years and retired from Robins Air Force Base as a Senior Master Sergeant. This meant constant moves for Ovani.
"I was born in Okinawa, Japan. I moved to Florida at 1 years old, spent five years there, moved to California, spent another five years there, moved to Georgia," he says.
When asked what he wants people to know about life as a military child, he says for the ones that move often, it could be a challenge to adjust to changes of going to new schools and making new friends.
"There were times where my father had to watch me grow up through a laptop for months on end," he also recalls.
Now, he uses his family experiences as motivation to excel. In March, Ovani won the title of Georgia Military Youth of the Year award. Through interviews and essays, he shared his story of resilience, which he says came through having a tough mind.
"My dad convinced me to join wrestling, and I do believe that carries over into my success on winning the state title, because it has taught me to be disciplined and mentally-strong," says Ovani.
He says he also received a lot of support from his parents, especially his mother, to practice his speech and work hard. He says seeing how hard they have worked in life also encourages him to do the same.
Ovani uses his strength and discipline to encourage other military youth and his friends.
"I'm there for them, to train them when others won't, when they can't afford it, when they can't go to other places. I'm there for them and I'm trying to lead them to be better humans and better people, and I do that because it's something I wish I had," he shares.
"He is a role model to many at the youth center. You can see it the moment he walks in the youth center -- the kids run to him, he's like their hero," says Quanta Barfield.
To Ovani, Barfield is known as "Coach B," his coordinator/mentor at the Robins Air Force Youth Center. Coach B travels with Ovani for competitions and encourages him to share his truth in his essays.
"Even though not everyone will know what it feels like, it’s just the fact that I know what it feels like. Some people may not know, and I want them to feel that it’s tough," Ovani says
He later goes on to say now that he's older, he's more appreciative of his experience, "It wasn’t his fault, but he had to do it to provide for his family," says Ovani speaking of his dad.
These are some of the themes that Coach B and Ovani worked to share in his competition speech.
"He shows people that despite anything that you may go through as a military child, that you can achieve more and accomplish more despite the odds," says Coach B.
This is something school counselor Lisa Stewart says she's seen in Ovani as well.
"It's just like a huge sense of pride to see what he's accomplished and the goals that he sets for himself, he's just a kid with high expectations," says Stewart.
Ovani and Stewart were both coined by members of the Robins Air Force Base. Stewart was coined for her outstanding support for military students.
"My dad was a Vietnam vet, so military life and the sacrifices that they make is near and dear to my heart," she says.
She uses that to help students like Ovani.
"We want to do our very best to support these students, we need to go above and beyond for these students because they have moved around, their parents are gone for a really long time, so they're going to have particular needs," she adds.
Ovani will head to the regional competition in June. His goal is to advance from there, and win a National Military Youth title.
"With that title, with getting that scholarship money and winning I'm going be the first one in my family to go to college," he says.
He has goals of becoming an optometrist.