TAPS International Events
We hear of conflict, but through TAPS we can can witness the hope and healing happening around the world. Our loved ones sacrificed for freedom, and now we will be their living legacies of peace in a global community. Join us to meet the inspiring peace builders who are proving every day that peace is not only possible; it’s already happening.
Upcoming Events
- January 17, 2023 - Online Forum
Global Federation of Organizations Caring for Families of Military and Conflict Deceased Quarterly Meeting
Past Events
- November 25, 2022 - Enugu, Nigeria
Boys Champions Shaping the Future Conference -
October 29, 2022 - Rome Italy
Remembrance Day -
September 13 to 15, 2022 - Warsaw Poland
ISOA Conference: Ukraine and the Changing Landscape of Europe -
June 28, 2022- Online Forum
Quarterly Virtual International Working Group Meeting -
March 8, 2022 - Online Forum
Understanding Ukraine: Community Forum with the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, TAPS International -
February 24, 2022 - Washington, D.C.
Congressional Office for International Leadership: Open World Program Ukraine Veterans’Issues - January 17 to 20, 2022 - Dubai, United Arab Emirates
TAPS International Global Gathering - December 7, 2021 - Quarterly International Working Group Meeting
- November 18 - 29, 2021 - International Delegation Trip to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq
Video | Photos - September 14 to 15, 2021 - Virtually from Washington, D.C.
Fourth Annual International Working Group for Organizations Supporting Families of Military Deceased - August 20, 2021 - Online Webinar
Finding Meaning in Afghanistan - Panel sharing perspectives through different experiences, exploring how each of us can hold on to hope to make meaning in honor of the life and service our loved ones gave to our great nation. - August 19, 2021 - Online Webinar
A Dialogue: Are We Abandoning Afghan Women? Panel examining the current crisis, predictions for the coming years, and new efforts to protect and empower the women of Afghanistan. - July 29, 2021 - Dnipro Ukraine
"International Dialogue: Support for Veterans and Families of the Deceased" hosted by TAPS Ukraine and TAPS International - December 8 to 10, 2020 - Virtually from Washington, D.C.
Third Annual International Working Group for Organizations Supporting Families of Military Deceased - November 2 to 6, 2020 – Geneva Peace Week
- Film Presentation: "Healing Grief and Rebuilding Trust as a Pathway to Peace Among Conflict Survivors"
- Live Session through GPW2020: "The Economic Transformation of Women in Post-Conflict Communities"
- November 2 – Virtual Event
- October 26, 2020 - Briefing 3 of series ahead of Geneva Peace Week
- September 26 to 27, 2020 – Dnipro, Ukraine
TAPS-Ukraine National Gathering for Families of the Deceased - Fall 2019 – Dnipro, Ukraine
In January 2019, TAPS mentored surviving families in Ukraine to launch TAPS Ukraine. To learn more, visit their Facebook page at TAPS Ukraine. Join us on our next trip to this beautiful city in Eastern Ukraine. - Fall 2019 – London, England
TAPS partners with the Bereaved Families Support Group of the Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen's Association along with the British War Widows and Scotty’s Little Soldiers to share hope and healing. London Event Photos - November 6, 2019 – Geneva, Switzerland
"Turning War Grief Into Positive Peace" panel discussion from 1 to 2:30 p.m. - November 7 -8, 2019 – Geneva, Switzerland
2nd Annual International Working Group for Organizations Supporting Families of Military Deceased will be held at Maison de la Paix in Geneva, Switzerland during the last two days of Geneva Peace Week. - September 2019 - Kabul, Afghanistan
The TAPS office in Kabul engages widows in the making of the lapis bracelets and the creation of a community of strength and hope. Join TAPS to stand beside these courageous women and see the hope happening. - April 1 to 8, 2019 – Istanbul, Turkey
The TAPS office in Istanbul welcomes delegations from the United States to experience healing in this timeless city and meet surviving families from cultures ranging from Turkish, Syrian, Libyan – European and Asian – as we find shared understanding of grief and loss. - April 1 to 8, 2019 – Erbil, Iraq
TAPS has a long standing presence in Iraq, and we invite those interested in joining an upcoming delegation to apply. We partner with international organizations focused on rebuilding and reconciliation in the region to bring about hope and healing. - January 2019 – TAPS Ukraine Delegation
TAPS mentored surviving families in Ukraine to launch TAPS Ukraine. To learn more, visit their Facebook page at TAPS Ukraine. - July 2018 – International Working Group
Representatives from 17 nations gathered at the TAPS Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, USA, joined by representatives from around the world on video conference, for a week of work in developing a global program of support for the families of military deceased. To address the need for a solid and sustained network of support and use of all available resources offered to those who are grieving the death of a military loved one demands that we stand together in our acknowledgment of the universality of grief, our respect for all who have served and died, and our dedication to peace. - August 2017 – Mosul, Iraq
- Fall 2003 - Vietnam
Fifty Gold Star sons and daughters bravely left on a Gold Star pilgrimage to Vietnam with "Sons and Daugthers in Touch". They visited sites where their loved ones died as well as embraced and cried with the Vietnamese people. - February 1997 - Vietnam
International Team member Mitty Griffis Mirrer documents her journey as a Gold Star Child to the crash site of her Marine father in Vietnam.
International Delegation Sign Up
If you are interested in applying for an international TAPS Delegation, please write to us at global@taps.org with information about your connection to a particular country and your goal in traveling there with TAPS.
What you need to know:
- TAPS Delegation trips are rich, cultural experiences focused on bringing understanding, hope and healing to a global community of those grieving the death of a military loved one.
- These trips are carefully planned with unique local experiences offering the opportunity to witness first hand the struggles and triumphs of our global peers.
- Delegates are responsible for their own airfare and the package trip cost, which will include lodging, meals, ground transportation, security, and experiences.
- Delegates will meet with surviving families, military members and others who share our mission of caring for the loved ones of deceased military visiting military memorials and attending remembrance ceremonies.
- The trips will be 4-7 days in length and the schedule will be full with meetings and events. In most countries, it’s also perfectly alright to plan an extended stay and we are happy to help with suggestions for you. This would not be possible in Iraq or Afghanistan.
- We ask that all who attend to go with an open heart and mind, and adhere to a code of conduct as ambassadors both of TAPS and of the United States.
What others have said:
- I didn’t realize how grief could actually bring the world closer until I hugged another grieving Mom from another country and another conflict. We didn’t speak the same verbal language, but we spoke the same heart language. We are bonded for life now.
- Going to Iraq and seeing first hand the peace my brother died to protect finally gave me sense of calm, and allowed me to let go of years of anxiety and fear. We are their living legacies.
- To be part of something bigger than myself, to have a hand in rebuilding the country where he died, to continue my husband’s mission of creating hope for the future was extraordinarily healing. Thank you, TAPS!
- Let us not be blind to our differences-but let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal. ~ John F. Kennedy