Moving from one duty station to the next is never fun, and transferring to a high cost area like San Diego can be fraught with even greater challenges. Military pay and allowances don’t always keep up with the steep cost of living, which can put additional financial burdens on young military families.
In an effort to soften the blow of relocating to Southern California, Blue Star Families and the retail giant, Target, partnered with the USS Midway Museum on an outreach project that gave back to local military families.
Midway’s flight deck was transformed into a patriotic celebration as more than 65 volunteers came together in one-of-a-kind community event to assemble 650 “Restock Your Pantry” kits, providing food essentials for military families who have recently relocated to the San Diego region. The kits went directly to families who moved to San Diego this summer – many arriving with unexpected costs and no local support system.
“Target has always wanted to be a part of the big moments that our guests and our community go through, especially for our military families that move across the country,” said Salam Lazkani, Target’s senior vice president for West Coast stores. “There are a lot of those changes that they go through and if we can help reduce some of that pressure, like restocking their pantry, we want to be a part of it. It is important for us to be here and it is an honor to be on the USS Midway Museum and with Blue Star Families.”
Blue Star Families (BSF) is a non-profit organization founded by military family members in 2009 to empower families to thrive as they serve. BSF’s innovative programs are solving specific challenges for military families, including fighting economic insecurity with resources that foster spouse career development, creating family strength with rich family programming, and providing critical peer support for caregivers.
“We have been partnering with Target for three years and this is the first time we’ve been able to activate at this level for their staff to come out and show up with more than 65 people,” said Noeleen Tilman, chief operating officer for Blue Star Families. “It is a big deal to have them here. We are so grateful.”
“Having this event aboard Midway was just a fantastic opportunity for us to demonstrate what we do in the community for our veterans and our military,” said Jack Gale, director of docent programs for Midway. “As a retired master chief petty officer, I know firsthand the types of challenges young, enlisted families face when moving. I’m thrilled that Midway could help with a project that eases the pain for families transplanted to an expensive area like San Diego.”
San Diego is home to the largest concentration of military families in the nation. With thousands arriving each year, these families are routinely confronted with myriad challenges as they rebuild their lives from scratch in a new town. The “Restock Your Pantry” event on Midway, which was the kickoff of Blue Star Welcome Week 2025, showed how the community can rally around them. Many of volunteers were Target’s local San Diego employees who happily lent their time to help make the day extra special.
“We were honored to kick off Blue Star Welcome Week with our premier sponsor, Target, aboard the USS Midway Museum,” said Michele Bradfield, senior director of brand partnerships at Blue Star Families. “Against the stunning backdrop of San Diego Bay, the day was both impactful and celebratory, with live music, a silent disco, and cupcakes marking the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The Midway team was fantastic in helping bring our vision to life, ensuring every detail was covered and making the event truly extraordinary.”
“This is the kind of event that I get the most enjoyment and satisfaction from,” said Cheryl Carlson, Midway’s director of special events. “We do more than 200 large corporate events on Midway every year, but a community project like this that gives back directly to our military families is part-and-parcel with the core mission of our museum.”
The project was a tremendous success and included a special appearance by Target’s Bullseye the Dog. The food kits assembled on Midway’s flight deck were immediately distributed to various Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard commands in the San Diego area.
“It was so fabulous,” said Penny Bolden, Blue Star Families’ vice president for brand partnership. “The Midway team was amazing and an absolute dream to work with. Everyone and everything ran smoothly, and the day was a roaring success for both Blue Star Families and our partners at Target.”
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