An award that is given to military spouses for their dedication to the community has for the first time been awarded to an LGBT Navy spouse. The couple appeared on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" Monday.
Brian Alvarado, of San Diego, was recently selected as Navy Spouse of the Year by "Military Spouse," an organization that supports the military community when their husbands and wives are deployed.
The awards serve as a way to honor military spouses for their support and contributions to the military community. Alvarado is the first Navy spouse who identifies as LGBT to be awarded.
Alvarado and his husband Matthew, a 19-year Navy sailor based at Naval Base Point Loma, appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Monday at 3:30 p.m. PST. to share what the honor means to him.
Alvarado comes from a military family; his father is a Vietnam Veteran, according to his Military Spouse biography page. Alvarado has served on a Coronado-based family readiness group panel and was recently appointed as Command Ombudsman for Fleet Anti-Submarine Warfare Training Center, which provides information to and from deployed Navy sailors and their families.
"One thing is for sure, my life has forever benefited by being a military spouse and being a welcomed member of a leadership team who works hard to make sure that our community is taken care of in all of the delicate ways it needs," Alvarado said on his biography page.
The 2018 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year will be selected in May. To be awarded with the title will mean Alvarado can continue the charity work that is near to his heart, he tells DeGeneres.
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The Ellen DeGeneres show airs at 3 p.m. PST on NBC 7.
