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She was 25 when they reunited. She flew down to visit him, and the two picked right back up as if they had never drifted apart. Within a couple of months, they knew they wanted to be together. One day, while dressed for a fun day at the beach, they decided to spend the rest of their lives together. Wearing a beach cover-up, Jaime accompanied Jody to the courthouse, and they made it official.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCrazy, huh?\u201d she said with a laugh. \u201cBut I have loved every minute of it. I wouldn\u2019t do anything differently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After spending years as a military wife, Jaime came to a simple conclusion \u2014 Jody King is her hero. She remains proud of the sacrifices he made to serve his country and of everything he has done to take care of their family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After serving in the United States Navy for 21 years, Jody retired as an aviation mechanic. He completed the full 21 years in Virginia Beach, so the family did not have to relocate. However, he went on six long deployments, two of which were back-to-back, each lasting nine months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy father passed away while he was out on one of those deployments, and I was devastated,\u201d Jaime said. \u201cThe Navy flew him off the boat so that he could come home for the service. I am so glad they allowed him to do that. It was hard on both of us when he was gone for so long.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Jody was on the Eisenhower, the ombudsman held monthly meetings with families to relay information from the ship. Families prepared care packages for their loved ones with food and other items. Jaime decorated her boxes with a theme and made sure never to forget the one thing her husband requested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJody wanted prank stuff in his box because he loves to laugh,\u201d Jaime said. \u201cHe always tried to make the best out of every situation, even if he was stuck out in the middle of the ocean.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Being apart for long periods of time was an obstacle that Jaime and Jody worked hard to navigate. But for their children, the obstacle was significantly more challenging. Fortunately, the Navy provided ways to help the children cope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFamilies could send in a picture of their loved one and then receive a stuffed doll about 12 inches tall with a hand-sewn picture on the front,\u201d Jaime explained. \u201cThe children could carry the doll around or sleep with it at night, which is what our kids did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the most meaningful ways loved ones connected with their children was through videos of them reading a story. The Navy recorded the readings on DVDs and sent them home for the children to watch during story time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJody asked questions as he read the book and then paused as if he heard their responses,\u201d Jaime said. \u201cThey loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The hardest part for Jaime and the children was the \u201cworkups.\u201d Jody would come home for the weekend, then leave. He would return for a week, then leave again until he finally shipped out on a long deployment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trying to explain Jody\u2019s absence to their toddlers was difficult. Jaime had no family nearby to help her stay strong for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though Jaime and Jody were separated by miles and months at a time, they remained committed to each other and have now been together for 16 years. Their four children, now grown or nearly grown, are doing well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jody continues to serve others, currently presiding over the Fayetteville-Lincoln County Veterans Advisory Committee. Jaime said he remains grateful to God for the blessings of family and country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe toughed it out through the years with his humor and his charm,\u201d Jaime said. \u201cHe is and always will be our hero.\u201d GN<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" LIFE CAN be lonely for a military wife. \u201cGood thing I\u2019m a very independent woman,\u201d said Jaime King, wife of veteran Joseph \u201cJody\u201d King. People warned her before she married, and Jaime admitted she was a little nervous. After all, she didn\u2019t live in a military town, and she never \u201cin a million years\u201d imagined […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":193,"featured_media":26027,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[4,69],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26025","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover","category-fayetteville"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/fayetteville\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/Submitted-1-1024x683.jpg\")
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