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TOPIC: Family Care Plans

DISCUSSION: With thousands of single parent families in the Army or families in which both parents serve in the Armed Forces, there is a considerable need Armywide for workable Family Care Plans which can be immediately administered in short-notice deployments. Unit and RDCs must expect that some family care plans may fail, especially during long deployments.

LESSONS: The adequacy of family care plans over time is the responsibility of the service member. However, unit commanders are responsible for critically reviewing family care plans and judging their adequacy (see AR 600-20).

• Family care plans must be carefully screened by unit commanders and hard questions asked, such as:
  
  • Can an elderly grandmother care for dependent children?
    
  • Will the designated guardian want to leave home to live at Fort X for a year with little or no notice?
    
  • Does the guardian drive?
    
  • Does the guardian speak English?
    
  • What is the soldier's plan if the guardian refuses to come when needed or leaves after three months?
• Rear detachment commanders should monitor family care plans, include guardians in the distribution of information, and provide support as appropriate.
• If a family care plan fails after deployment, the rear detachment commander must coordinate with the deployed soldier and his unit on actions to resolve the situation. Deployed soldiers whose family care plans fail are not able to concentrate on their duties until the situation is rectified.

TOPIC: Family Finances and Household Budgets

DISCUSSION: Family finances are an important area which can spawn problems for families during deployment. Soldiers and spouses must decide who will pay the family bills during deployment. If the spouse is to pay them, the spouse must understand what amount of money will be available and how it will be received. The soldier may elect to have a specific amount of money sent to the spouse in the form of an allotment or have his/her military pay send to a checking account accessible to the spouse.

LESSONS: Soldiers must ensure that spouses understand their monthly income, how it will be received (allotment or check to bank), and their monthly financial obligations, including amounts, due dates and creditor's addresses. Some spouses were surprised by unanticipated credit accounts or charges.

• Family budgets were sometimes aggravated by reduced income due to the loss of income from a soldier's second job. If monthly financial obligations depend on this supplemental income, the soldier will need to coordinate with creditors so that payments are adjusted to put them in line with the actual income available during the deployment.
• Single parents or dual military parents whose children will be cared for by a relative or guardian should ensure that an allotment is in place to provide for their children's needs during the deployment.
• Assistance in managing family finances is available before deployment. For instance, the Army Community Services (ACS) agency is staffed to provide help in planning household budgets.
• For Reserve Component soldiers:
  
  • The Army needs to correct the two month gap between when the service member is activated and when he/she first receives pay.
    
  • JAG support is needed to provide information associated with implementation of the Soldier and Sailor Relief Act.

TOPIC: Disposition of Leave and Earning Statements (LES) and W2 Forms

DISCUSSION: Many spouses of deployed soldiers had difficulty acquiring the LES and W2 Form. Often, the RDC would not release these documents to the spouse or the forms were forwarded to the Theater of Operations. In most cases, soldiers did not want or need the LES while in theater.

LESSON: Disposition of the LES and W2 Form is a command decision which should be made prior to deployment and relayed to Finance. Either the LES is forwarded to the soldier in theater or it is retained by the RDC. If the command decides to have the RDC retain the LES and W2, spouses should be able to acquire these forms by using a Power of Attorney. However, the soldier must specify that the spouse is authorized to receive the LES by requesting a Power of Attorney during the POR. Commands and families should also be aware of the types and criteria for acceptance of Powers of Attorney in their geographical area.

TOPIC: Preparing Children for Parental Deployment

DISCUSSION: The deployment of forces to Operation DESERT SHIELD placed soldiers under heavy work demands to prepare unit equipment for movement and to get their personnel records in order. Unit leaders were unable to give them predictable "family time" before departure. Recurrent false starts kept many soldiers and families from bringing closure to their "goodbyes."

LESSONS: Deployment farewell practices are a significant command issue affecting morale. Soldiers and spouses had no time or training in how to manage deployment departure from children or one another. Commanders attuned to these family concerns, who were able to allocate some free time to their soldiers enhanced the morale and cohesiveness of their unit.

• Soldiers need time to devote genuine attention to their children and the anxieties they hold. Their perceptions and concerns are very real. The disruption of the family during deployment can have continuing effects on how children see themselves and the world in which they live. It can affect their performance in school and their response to authority.
• The following actions may help children cope with the absence of a deployed parent.
  
  • The deploying parent should talk with each child individually.
    
  • Explain what's going to happen. Be honest and keep it simple.
    
  • Talk about where you are going, what you will be doing and why you are going. A map or globe is helpful.
    
  • Talk about what your child will be doing while you are away; prepare your child for potentially anxious situations where your support as a parent is expected by your child, such as ball games and scout activities.
    
  • Talk about when you expect to be home in terms of special events.
    
  • Remind your child of previous separations and the happy reunions.
    
• Spouses should help children give the deploying parent personal items they've made to take along or to decorate a suitcase or locker. Also, help the children put together a survival kit of family photos, stationery and books.
• Your children should be included in family good-byes at the point of departure. If possible, let your children board the plane or boat to see how you will travel. Letting them see you deploy gives them a greater sense of reality and reduces fantasies.

TOPIC: Family Emergencies Requiring Return of Service Member

DISCUSSION: The Army recognizes that some family emergencies warrant return of the soldier - if existing military operations permit. The field commander determines whether mission conditions will allow the soldier's return. Emergencies involve the death, critical illness or injury to a member of the immediate family.

LESSONS: Immediate family members include the soldier's spouse, children, brother or sister, and parent or guardian who raised the soldier in place of parents.

• Critical illness or injury means the possibility of death or permanent disability.
• Illnesses such as the flu and injuries such as a broken arm, although not minor, are not considered emergencies.
• Prior to the soldier's departure, educate spouses and guardians on early return policy and notification process.
• The spouse or guardian must contact the Red Cross, which will verify the nature of the emergency. The Rear Detachment, FSG or the installation Family Assistance Center can assist the family in contacting the Red Cross, if necessary.
• The soldier's commanding officer must be notified by Red Cross message verifying the nature of the emergency before the commander can make a decision to return the soldier.

TOPIC: Family Security and Safety

DISCUSSION: Family security and safety are concerns to soldiers and families when the soldier is away from home. Units should include family security in pre-deployment family support planning.

LESSONS: Major commands can minimize soldier and family concerns prior to deployment through active support from their directorates of engineering and housing and the provost marshal.

• For example, on-post quarters should be equipped with dead-bolt locks. Housing areas should be well lighted and continually patrolled by military police.
• Off-post, especially overseas, families should be advised not to put up yellow ribbons or red, white and blue banners that call attention to their quarters as being those of deployed soldiers.
• Commands have been surprised by the "run on handguns" at local Rod & Gun Clubs. While family security is important, control of family firearms is a genuine safety concern to the military community. The purchase of firearms during unit deployment is sometimes a last minute action imbedded in a multitude of other important deployment actions. Often, there is little or no time to effectively train the spouse in proper control and use of firearms. There is an ever-present danger that family weapons may become accessible to adolescents who are largely naive about their potential dangers or proper handling.
• Commanders have moral and statutory responsibilities to control privately-owned firearms, especially in on-post housing areas. Soldiers have a responsibility to register privately-owned firearms with the command and to secure them while they're deployed. (See AR 190-11 and local command supplements.)
• While soldiers living in the billets are required to secure privately-owned firearms in unit arms rooms, commanders can also offer the use of unit arms rooms to soldiers living in family housing or off-post to secure their privately-owned firearms during deployments.

TOPIC: FSG Initiatives

DISCUSSION: FSG activities should include ongoing initiatives to sustain family members in dealing with common problems.

LESSONS: Family support initiatives could include pre-deployment training classes or programs on:

• Family stress management
  
• Anti-terrorism precautions, especially overseas
  
• Keeping busy by taking up new sports, crafts and other projects or by participating in volunteer efforts
  
• Reading leave and earnings statements (LESs)
  
• Spousal employment information and opportunities
  
• Basic home maintenance, including DEH self-help program
  
• Auto servicing
  
• CHAMPUS procedures
  
• Dealing with news media
  
• Control of privately-owned firearms
  
• Managing finances
  
• Counseling of Children about Deployment
  

TOPIC: Disposition of Pets During Deployments

DISCUSSION: Pets easily become important members of a family, especially to children. Pets of single parent soldiers or of dual military parented families also need a place to go, especially if the family relocates while the parent is deployed.

LESSONS: The disposition and care of family pets must be considered before deployment. It is inhumane to go off and leave a pet to fend for itself.

• If the soldier intends to retain ownership of the pet through and after the deployment, arrangements should be made with a non-military neighbor or friend.
• If the soldier does not plan to keep the pet, it should be offered for adoption before turning it over to an animal shelter.

TOPIC: Dealing with News Media

DISCUSSION: News media relish the opportunity to interview soldiers and their families during military operations. Interviewers focus on the sensational, the emotional or the controversial; these areas supposedly 'sell' news. American news media play a vital role in democracy. It is not harassment when they ask for an interview. It is harassment when they persist after you've declined to comment.

LESSONS: Before answering questions, write down the name of the reporter and his/her news organization. This will discourage the reporter from persisting if you decline to comment.

• Before an interview, set the ground rules. Tell the interviewer what you will or will not discuss, especially when talking to a TV or radio reporter. If the interviewer breaks your ground rules once the taping session starts, end the interview. Keep in mind that, with today's technology, even the enemy has access to your comments the moment you make them.
• Do not address specific units, personnel strength, or anything that would identify your (or your spouse's) mission. Talk only about those areas in which you have first-hand knowledge. Do not speculate about future operations.
• Do not attempt to speak for your unit, installation, the Department of the Army, or the Department of Defense.
• Do not comment on our national policies, especially foreign affairs; leave this to the highest levels of government.
• Don't say anything, even in jest, that you don't want to read, see or hear later. Be aware of these levels of attribution:
  
  • On the Record: You will be quoted directly or indirectly by name.
    
  • Background Information: The interviewer agrees to report your remarks only if they're attributed to a nonspecific source. For example: "According to a family member..." Do not make "background" remarks if you are being taped.
    
  • Off the Record: Your remarks are to be held in confidence and are not to be used in any form. "Do not quote me" is not the same as "off the record." If you tell a reporter not to quote you, he/she assumes you are providing "background" information and will use the information as long as he/she does not attribute it to a specific source.
    
• It is always best to assume you are speaking "on the record."

TOPIC: Soldier and Family Housing

DISCUSSION: The following deployment-related housing situations adversely affected soldiers and families in European communities.

• During the months immediately following the service member's assignment to Europe, spouses still in CONUS called overseas to check the status of housing and possible further deployment of the service member from Europe to Operation DESERT SHIELD/STORM. This caused uncertainty as to whether dependents should vacate their quarters in the States and relocate to Europe or remain in their stateside housing.
  
• Some soldiers living on the economy in Europe were notified before STOP LOSS action that government quarters would be available and subsequently told that the projected quarters would not be vacated. Landlords, on receiving termination notice from the soldier, contracted to rent the apartment to another tenant. The current occupant had to vacate but had no government quarters in which to relocate.
  
• Some landlords raised rental fees and soldiers were unable to find other affordable housing.
  
• In some cases, landlords evicted deploying soldiers because they were afraid they would not pay their rent while deployed, the apartment would be subjected to vandalism while unoccupied, or the heat would be turned off and pipes would freeze and burst.

LESSONS: Unit and rear detachment commanders must work closely with local housing officers to identify problems with either landlords or the local housing office.

• The community commander or local housing officer may find that granting exceptions to policy is prudent or necessary to provide temporary or permanent relief to some soldiers and families. Consider temporary lodging allowance (TLA).
• Commanders need to stay abreast of the local off-post housing situation and advise soldiers accordingly so they can make the best decisions in fluid situations about whether to bring their families to Europe or leave them in CONUS.

TOPIC: Advance Return of Dependents

DISCUSSION: Some soldiers do not understand the "one move at government expense" policy. There have also been a significant number of dependents without passports or with expired visas. If dependents move at government expenses they cannot move again until they receive PCS orders to the next duty station.

LESSONS: The community commander (or deputy) is the approving authority for advance return of dependents. To be favorably considered, requests must reflect compelling personal reasons.

• Service members are responsible for initiating prompt action to secure necessary passport and visa documentation (for newborns, marriages to local nationals).
• Unit leaders must investigate and ascertain whether appropriate and timely action is taken by their soldiers to get necessary documentation.

Table of Contents
Section II: Family Support Groups (FSGs), Part 1
Section III: Family Assistance Centers