[Senate Hearing 108-123]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 108-123
UNDERSTANDING THE NEEDS OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES ESPECIALLY DURING
TIMES OF MILITARY DEPLOYMENT
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION,
LABOR, AND PENSIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
EXAMINING HOW EFFECTIVE THE ARMY HAS BEEN IN MAKING IT EASIER FOR
MILITARY FAMILIES RAISING CHILDREN AND TO DETERMINE WHAT ADDITIONAL
CHANGES CAN BE MADE TO FURTHER ASSIST MILITARY FAMILIES
__________
JUNE 2, 2003 (FT. CAMPBELL, TN)
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions
88-152 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 2003
____________________________________________________________________________
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COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS
JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire, Chairman
BILL FRIST, Tennessee EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming CHRISTOPHER J. DODD, Connecticut
LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee TOM HARKIN, Iowa
CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland
MIKE DeWINE, Ohio JAMES M. JEFFORDS (I), Vermont
PAT ROBERTS, Kansas JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico
JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama PATTY MURRAY, Washington
JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada JACK REED, Rhode Island
LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina JOHN EDWARDS, North Carolina
JOHN W. WARNER, Virginia HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, New York
Sharon R. Soderstrom, Staff Director
J. Michael Myers, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
______
Subcommittee on Children and Families
LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee, Chairman
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming CHRISTOPHER J. DODD, Connecticut
CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri TOM HARKIN, Iowa
MIKE DeWINE, Ohio JAMES M. JEFFORDS (I), Vermont
PAT ROBERTS, Kansas JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico
JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama PATTY MURRAY, Washington
JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada JACK REED, Rhode Island
LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina JOHN EDWARDS, North Carolina
JOHN W. WARNER, Virginia HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, New York
Marguerite Sallee, Staff Director
Grace A. Reef, Minority Staff Director
(ii)
C O N T E N T S
__________
STATEMENTS
Monday, June 2, 2003
Page
Alexander, Hon. Lamar, a U.S. Senator from the State of Tennessee 1
Summers, Col. Kim, U.S. Army, Garrison Commander, Ft. Campbell,
TN; Holly Petraeus, Spouse of Commander, 101st Airborne
Division, Ft. Campbell, TN; Maj. Josie Fees, Deputy Director,
Child and Youth Services, Ft. Campbell, TN; Willa Garrett,
Youth and Family Services, Ft. Campbell, TN; and Robert Vail,
Director, Community Activities Business Center, Ft. Campbell,
TN............................................................. 4
Dolinish, Maj. Joyce, U.S. Army (Ret.), 101st Corps Support
Group; Gricell Medley, Family Readiness Group (FRG) Volunteer,
Spouse of Deployed Soldier, Clarksville, TN; and First Sergeant
Hughes, National Guard Representative, 776th Maintenance
Company, Ft. Campbell, TN...................................... 18
ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
Statements, articles, publications, letters, etc.:
Col. Summers................................................. 34
Ms. Petraeus................................................. 35
Maj. Fees.................................................... 37
Willa Garrett................................................ 38
Mr. Vail..................................................... 40
Maj. Dolonish................................................ 43
Ms. Medley................................................... 44
Ms. Taylor................................................... 45
(iii)
UNDERSTANDING THE NEEDS OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES ESPECIALLY DURING
TIMES OF MILITARY DEPLOYMENT
----------
MONDAY, JUNE 2, 2003
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on Children and Families,
of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee was convened, pursuant to notice, at 1
p.m., at the Eagles Conference Room, Building 2607, Tennessee
Ave., Ft. Campbell, TN, the Senator Alexander, (Chairman of the
Subcommittee), presiding.
Present: Senator Alexander.
Opening Statement of Senator Alexander
Senator Alexander. Welcome. I'm Lamar Alexander and this is
a hearing of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Children and
Families. I'm delighted to be at Fort Campbell today and I want
to thank the witnesses who are here today. I want to thank
Colonel Ruggley particularly. He has been Garrison Commander
for 3 hours.
So we've come on a very busy day for him and I'm delighted
that he's here. And we've had a chance to have lunch together
with Colonel Summers and I thank you very much for that.
The way we will proceed is we have two panels of witnesses.
And what I would like to do is to make a brief opening
statement, which won't take long, and then I'd like to just go
right down the list. We will start with Colonel Summers.
Colonel Summers and Mrs. Summers have a 9-hour drive to Fort
Leavenworth, which they're to begin as soon as he finishes
testifying today.
When he finishes, I may ask him two or three questions and
then excuse him so he can get started on that long drive. And
then I'll ask the four of you to give just your testimonies,
and when you're finished, I'll listen to all four, and then
after that will give us some time for back and forth. I think
that will make for the best discussion.
And we will end the first panel by 2:00 and then we will go
to the second panel at 3:00, and we will finish the entire
hearing at least by 4:00 if that fits everyone's schedule.
I'd like to introduce a couple of people who are here with
me. Margarite Sallee is the staff director for the Children and
Families Subcommittee and she is right here. Kristin Bannerman
is a legislative assistant on my Senate Staff specializing in
education. I'm going to make my opening statement now, and then
we will proceed to Colonel Summers.
The United States Army is today more of a married Army.
Over half our active duty service members are married, and
nearly half of the men and women in the military today are
parents raising children. Three-quarters of married families
have dependent children living at home.
So what I guess we could say about today's Army is that
there are more missions, there are fewer soldiers, there are
more women, there are more spouses working away from home, and
there are more children. And we're here today to talk about
that, about military parents raising children.
Military men and women choose their profession, they choose
to marry, but as Colonel Summers said to us a little earlier
today at lunch, this is a matter of readiness. Family readiness
has everything to do with military readiness. In order to
continue to attract and retain the most talented men and women
in our volunteer Army and all of our Armed Services, we need to
do whatever we can to make it easier for military parents
raising children. And all of society benefits when children
grow up in a strong, nurturing, and attentive family.
We're holding the hearing here at Fort Campbell to see how
well the Army has done in making it easier for military
families raising children and to see what can be done better.
And I want to compliment each of you for your very honest and
direct testimony. You're very proud of what has been done and
you have some suggestions about what can be done better.
We will be talking about schooling, housing, child care,
health care, pay, taxes, frequent moves, deployment,
reintegration, that is when men and women come back from
lengthy tours, and how they integrate with their families and
in the communities. All of these issues impact on our services'
readiness, as well as just the individual family.
We have to remember that when we're talking about just
under a half million men and women in the active duty Army, 1.2
million family members are affected by every policy and every
decision. Today we will hear from several members of this
family. We will hear from Colonel Kim Summers who was Garrison
Commander at Fort Campbell until today. We will hear from those
involved in child care and education.
I had an opportunity this morning to visit the child care
center which is a superb center, obviously quality child care,
and to visit the Family Assistant Center. We will have family
members of those who are currently overseas. Holly Petraeus,
who is the wife of the Commander of 101st Airborne and I might
add has a significant background in her own right, will
testify. It's important to come here to hear from those who are
living the military life and to hear from those who are working
to provide for military families.
Let me say a word about our larger mission here. The
Children and Families Subcommittee intends over the next couple
of years to take a broad look at how Federal policies, laws,
and regulations affect all Americans raising children, because
we're all served better if families are strong and parents are
healthy. Too many Federal policies from taxation to work life
have made it harder for parents raising children and not
easier. We're starting with military families raising children
first because the military usually does things better than the
rest of American society, and second, because it's a big
integrated unit that's been in the news over the last several
months and we want to focus on military families as a unit.
We have four United States Senators who are doing what I'm
doing. Senator Saxby Chambliss who is chairman of the Personnel
Subcommittee of the Armed Services Committee is at Warner
Robins Air Force Base in Georgia today having this similar
hearing.
Then our two subcommittees, the Personnel Committee and our
Children and Families Subcommittees will join together on June
19th in Washington DC. to compare what we have found and to
further advance the discussion. The ranking Democrats on those
two committees, Senator Dodd of Connecticut and Senator Nelson
of Nebraska are also going to be holding hearings between now
and June 19th.
So we will have four United States Senators holding
hearings in their home states on the issues that affect parents
raising children, then bringing all that to Washington DC. on
June 19th to see what we can put the spotlight on and what we
can do to improve things.
Senator Alexander. I want to thank you for having me on the
post here today and for the courtesy that you've already shown,
and now I want to call on Colonel Summers. I suggested, by the
way, and I hope this is all right with all the witnesses, I
have your statements, I've read them all, I've commented on
them. I would suggest that you spend about five to 7 minutes on
your statement, and that will leave us some time for questions
back and forth. We will put your full statement in the record,
but if you could summarize it in five or 7 minutes, that would
be a big help.
Colonel Summers has served on multiple bases, both here in
the United States, as well as in Korea. He's been to Fort
Leavenworth before, where he is going today. How many places
did you say you had served?
Colonel Summers. This will be our 22nd move.
Senator Alexander. 22nd move in how many years?
Colonel Summers. In 25 years, sir.
Senator Alexander. 22nd move in 25 years. So compliments to
Mrs. Summers. In addition to his studies at the University of
Nebraska and Colorado, he attended the Army War College, served
in Desert Storm and Shield, he's Commander of the U.S. Army
Garrison at Fort Campbell, or has been until today, and he has
served as a Master Army Aviator and Parachutist. Colonel
Summers, thank you for your hospitality. I look forward to your
comments.
STATEMENTS OF COLONEL KIM SUMMERS, U.S. ARMY, GARRISON
COMMANDER, FORT CAMPBELL, TN; HOLLY PETRAEUS, SPOUSE OF
COMMANDER, 101ST AIRBORNE DIVISION, FORT CAMPBELL, TN; MAJOR
JOSIE FEES, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, CHILD AND YOUTH SERVICES, FORT
CAMPBELL, TN; WILLA GARRETT, YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES, FT.
CAMPBELL, TN; AND ROBERT VAIL, DIRECTOR, COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
BUSINESS CENTER, FORT CAMPBELL, TN
Colonel Summers. Thank you, sir. Senator Alexander, I'd
like to take this opportunity to thank you for allowing me to
speak to these critical issues. As the Garrison Commander of
Fort Campbell for the past 2 years, I have observed many facets
of these questions and hope to provide an informative
perspective.
Fort Campbell is the home to some 24,916 soldiers and
supports 14,700 Reservists and National Guardsmen, 46,177
family members, and over 124,000 retirees. The Installation
encompasses a little over 105,000 acres and borders two states
and four counties. Our association and relationship with the
local communities is top notch. In my 25 years of service, I
have seen none better. As a result of the extraordinary
relationship and these communities' genuine care for soldiers,
our community support structure is second to none. An example
is the joint commitment of both the Christian County and
Montgomery County school systems who teamed up with our own on-
post schools in adopting the Secondary Education Transition
Study Program more than a year ago. This program has made it
much simpler and smoother for high school students of military
families to transfer between duty stations and duty assignments
and associated schools without disadvantaging the student
academically.
The Chain of Command. That Chain of Command, better known
as the Rear Detachment, is staffed with dedicated leaders at
every level. The Rear Detachment structure and its high quality
soldiers illustrate the steadfast dedication to excellence our
deployed commanders place on insuring our families are properly
cared for.
But with all the successes and magnificent support from
Congress, our communities, the Army, the Post systems, we do
have areas that need attention, specifically, respite care
availability and facilities. Due to deployments, families
become single-parent households instantly. Even though our
systems and facilities are in place to support the family, we
lack enough capability to handle short-term child care on a
recurring basis. Before the deployment, both parents would work
the schedule. During deployments, that flexibility is gone. The
problem is magnified with special needs children. We have one
parent doing the job of two is the bottom line. If we could
enhance the availability of respite care resources, it would
qualitatively and quantitatively improve our family support.
The second area is that of resources to facilitate
improvement in our family support system. Dedicated facilities
on Fort Campbell are at a premium, but dedicated family support
facilities are necessary in order to provide a place for the
myriad of family readiness/family support tasks to be
accomplished. From FRG flyers to producing event calendars,
having meeting space and providing child care are all
requirements for successful programs. The Installation provides
for these needs, but not to the level we would expect for such
an important part of soldier readiness.
Unit areas are restrictive and often not available. Even
though the Installation provides space for our Family Readiness
Groups, the competition to support units and other priorities
is so intense that it makes sense to consider a new facility
for family support.
Sir, in conclusion, our support structure is critical in
maintaining soldier readiness. I personally and professionally
am very proud of what Fort Campbell does in that effort. Our
surrounding communities have embraced our soldiers and families
like none other. This teamwork and mutual support is proof we
are progressing in this effort. Fort Campbell is a wonderful
place to live, work, and play. When our soldiers are called to
duty in a distant land, with the continued help from all, Fort
Campbell will rise to the occasion and insure our family
readiness will be every bit as high as the readiness of our
soldiers. Thank you
[The prepared statement of Colonel Summers may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. Thank you, Colonel. If I may ask a
couple of questions. You partly answered this and let me give
you a chance to talk a little bit more about it. You've been
here now a couple of years.
Colonel Summers. Yes, sir.
Senator Alexander. You've seen the needs here of a very
active post. If you had to wave a magic wand and do one thing,
would it be the resources that you've talked about in your
statement, would it have to do with the Family Resource Center,
and explain what you have in mind why that would be needed.
Colonel Summers. Yes, sir. To answer the first part of your
question, absolutely. The Family Readiness Center is solely
devoted to the Family Readiness Groups and their multi tasks
and their missions, as well as resources available to them
provided by our Army would be one area where I think it would
have a tremendous benefit to not only family readiness, but
obviously the soldier readiness.
Family Readiness is a tremendous program, and a facility
dedicated to that would help with the efficiency of execution
of that program insuring that we do provide all the services in
a manner in which the Family Readiness Group, as well as the
soldiers, would meet and use in the future.
Senator Alexander. Talk a little bit, if you will, about
the need for what you call respite care. That's for parents who
need a break, need a little time off. It may be--an hour, or a
half day, or a day; is that my understanding of it?
Colonel Summers. Yes, sir. And that's right on target.
Respite care is a program in which a family member, as I said
in the testimony, where they become instant single-parent
families, where it becomes necessary for them to have some sort
of an outlet for whatever reason to include appointments, those
kind of taskings.
So respite care is absolutely critical for providing not
only the time, but also the capability to be able to handle and
continue with their family functions as a single parent.
Senator Alexander. In respite care, who pays for the
respite care?
Colonel Summers. Currently we provide it free of charge.
Senator Alexander. As you've looked over the last 10 years,
let's say from the previous Gulf War, Desert Storm, to today,
have you seen changes in the Army's attitude toward family
support efforts?
Colonel Summers. Sir, I think it's been a continual
evolution of that support structure. From that, we took some
very significant lessons learned very early on, especially from
the first Gulf War, and applied those across our Army. The Army
itself obviously takes family support and family readiness
very, very seriously, and as a portion of our soldier
readiness.
The programs that they have instituted over time have
everything from the Family Assistance Center, which is in fact
part of our deployment process, to Family Readiness Centers
that devote themselves solely to the support of Family
Readiness Groups. I think it's proof positive of how serious
and supportive that our Army really is in those kinds of
programs.
Senator Alexander. You said yourself--others might say, if
you join the Army, you choose to do that, it's a volunteer
Army, and if you choose to marry, that's volunteer, you would
expect that there would be perhaps long deployment, separation
from a family. What do you say in response to those who might
say that we're putting too much emphasis on the issue of family
readiness, long deployments, and the effect of other aspects
that surface in the Army on parents raising children?
Colonel Summers. Sir, I would say the first portion of that
is that I don't think we can put too much emphasis on the
family readiness in and of itself because of its criticality to
our overall soldier and unit readiness. I think it's a constant
effort in order to make sure that we're basically getting at
those needs of our soldiers and our families.
As far as the Army and its deployments, I think that it's a
wonderful place to work, it's a wonderful place to live. The
Army truly does take care of its own and we will continue to
make improvements over time as to--obviously with meetings like
this and hearings like this, but continue to make improvements
over time to continue our evolution on supporting our families.
It is critical and it is something that we need to continue on
with.
Senator Alexander. Colonel Summers, thank you very much for
your testimony. We will make your whole statement part of the
record and your answers and suggestions have been very helpful.
And I know that in your new post command at Fort Leavenworth,
that you'll continue this interest. I look forward to hearing
from you if you have further suggestions about what we should
be doing.
Colonel Summers. Thank you very much, sir.
Senator Alexander. Drive safely.
Colonel Summers. I appreciate that very much.
Senator Alexander. Thank you.
We will move your chair out and I'll go to Ms. Petraeus.
I'll ask Holly Petraeus to say in her own words how many places
she has lived when she begins her testimony. But there's been a
lot of places and I've been impressed how each of those places
she has taken on a leadership role at her station.
She has been awarded the Department of Army's Outstanding
Civilian Service Medal, she's the wife of the Commanding
General of this post, who's being honored for his service in
Iraq, and last I heard, still there. I saw her a few weeks ago
at a luncheon here in honor of volunteers who helped with
family support.
So Ms. Holly Petraeus, thank you for being here, and
particularly because of your background and the number of posts
that you've seen, I look forward to your testimony,
Could you tell us how many different places that you have
lived in the Army.
Ms. Petraeus. Well, since I've married, I've moved about 16
times in 29 years, but I was also an Army daughter growing up,
so I think the total is somewhere around 25 or 26 moves total.
Senator Alexander. Does anyone keep up with the records?
Ms. Petraeus. The only time we have to remember is when my
husband does his security clearances. We have to go look up all
those old addresses.
Senator Alexander. Oh, that's right. Well, thank you very
much for being here. I look forward to hearing your testimony.
Ms. Petraeus. Thank you, Senator Alexander. I am here today
to speak to you as an Army wife of almost 29 years. You've
asked, ``How has the Army taken care of its soldiers' families
during this deployment?'' My experience here at Fort Campbell
has been a very positive one. The key element has been good
communication between the deploying units, the military and
civilian staff remaining here at Fort Campbell, and the
volunteer Family Readiness Group or FRG leaders.
Among the military remaining here on post, the Installation
commander has conducted bi-weekly information meetings with
senior spouses and key FRG leaders. These have been a great
venue for bringing up issues that concern us, and for hearing
what the Installation is doing to address those issues.
Also, the post hospital has been very responsive to family
concerns. The five chaplains who remain here have done a
wonderful job offering deployment-related counseling and also
running a very successful charitable effort, Operation Helping
Hand, which is used to help family members where Army Emergency
Relief cannot.
On the DOD civilian side, the people in Army Community
Services have been super. They run our Family Assistance
Center, a one-stop shopping for family members who need
assistance while the soldiers are deployed. They also
coordinate deployment-related training, such as Army Family
Team Building.
Morale, Welfare, and Recreation has worked with local
charities and sponsors to provide some very well-attended free
family functions, such as monthly family fun fairs. Our Fort
Campbell schools have not only addressed deployment-related
issues with their own students, but have provided the local
off-post school systems with training.
I have to mention also the invaluable service of our
volunteer FRG leaders. They are the command's link to the
families, and although they are dealing at home with the same
deployment issues as everyone else, they dedicate a substantial
portion of their free time to reaching out to help others.
Now, as to the question of what could be done better: I do
feel that the Army is asking a great deal of our FRG leaders.
They have no official status, but they bear a lot of
responsibility.
When Secretary of the Army White was here in April, he
suggested that some of the key FRG positions should be
salaried. These volunteers dedicate their time, and often their
own money, too, keeping in communication with family members
over a far-flung area, and they should have the status and
protection of being official DOD employees.
I'd also like to see more money available for child care
during deployments. The young soldiers' spouses will not come
out for meetings and social functions if they cannot bring
their children. And if we are to reach them with the
information they need, we must ensure that free child care is
available on site.
As deployments go on, respite care is also important. We
are stretching our dollars and using charitable donations, as
well, but more funding in this area would be great.
Another thing I think the Army and all the services can
improve on is casualty notification for seriously and very
serious injured. This has causes a lot of heartburn for us here
during this deployment, because of the lack of timely
information coming from overseas. Sometimes the first notice
the family has received has been a call directly from a
military hospital overseas, although there has been no
information about the casualty sent to the division casualty
office. On one occasion, a soldier who had been sent home for
convalescent leave called from the Nashville Airport looking
for a ride--and that was our first indication that he had
returned to the United States.
The problem has been particularly bad with soldiers treated
in the Navy system. It has been almost impossible to get
information on their status or their whereabouts. As you can
imagine, this has been very upsetting for the families. In this
automated age, we should be able to do better of tracking who
is where and letting the family members know in a timely
manner.
On a larger scale, I'd like to address what Congress can do
for us. No. 1 in the minds of many here is that we need more
soldiers on active duty, particularly in certain key
specialties. In recent years, the Army has downsized while
adding on more and more overseas missions. The obvious result
of this is that many of our soldiers have been deployed
repeatedly over the last few years. In this group, for example,
my husband has been deployed 16 of the last 24 months, and
Gricell Medley's has been deployed 15 of the last 17 months.
Many families in our Chinook helicopter battalion, our
Military Police Battalion, our logistics and special operations
units can tell the same story. This unrelenting pace of
deployment is a retention issue. Families will not be willing
to go it alone forever with little relief in sight.
I would also ask Congress to let us keep our on-post
schools. They provide a high quality and consistent education
for our children who move from State to State, where the
quality of education varies and where the local school
districts are underfunded in the area of impact aid. A number
of our schools here at Fort Campbell have achieved Blue Ribbon
status, and they are valued accordingly by the families.
In closing, I'd like to thank Senator Alexander for coming
here today. I'm proud of the way our military, our families,
and our local communities have worked together during this
deployment, and I would like that to be the main message that
you take away today. Thank you.
Senator Alexander. Thank you very much, Ms. Petraeus, and I
appreciate very much your being with us.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Petraeus may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. Josie Fees is our next witness, daughter
of retired Army veteran. Her husband is currently out of the
country while she's a mother working with Child Youth Services;
is that right and has for the last 15 years.
What we will do is, if we may proceed right down the line,
and then when the testimony is finished, I'll ask questions of
all four of you. Welcome.
Major Fees. Good afternoon. I'm Josie Fees, Programs
Operation Specialist, and I am here today to speak to you on
behalf of Fort Campbell's Child and Youth Services Program.
I am pleased to say that I am a military family member and
have been for over 33 years and with Child and Youth Services
for 15. I have been with Fort Campbell's Child and Youth
Services for 3 years, and I speak to you with a tremendous
sense of pride. I first noticed Child and Youth Services'
commitment to quality and high standards for families because
the Child and Youth Services' programs obtained national
accreditation to include Family Child Care homes. I then
witnessed the overwhelming kindness on 9/11 when the U.S. was
under attack and the Installation immediately went into action
to protect soldiers, the families, and the civilian workforce.
It was very difficult that day to get on and off the
Installation. And without hesitation, the Child and Youth
Services' staff volunteered to stay and do whatever was
necessary to ensure that all the children were safe and their
needs were met until their parents could pick them up. Child
and Youth Services' staff stayed past midnight and arrived back
at 5:00 in the morning to receive the children. The staff never
once complained. There is a saying that ``the Army takes care
of its own.'' Fort Campbell has proven that to me time and time
again.
Now, with the division deployed, how has Child and Youth
Services supported deployed families? Beginning with the
mobilization phase, a parent notified the Child and Youth
Services that they had a need for extended child care due to
mobilization requirements. Extended care for evening, weekends,
and holidays at no cost to the parent was immediately
implemented the same day so that the soldiers could focus on
the mission.
Since the deployment, Child and Youth Services continues to
provide contingency services so that soldiers and family
members are at ease knowing their child care needs are met.
Child and Youth Services provides on-site child care for Family
Readiness Group meetings, we offer respite care to family
members due to deployment issues.
The Family Assistance Center offers child care and it's
being provided by the staff of Child and Youth Services. The
Family Child Care Program provides emergency care for military
families due to deployment. Emergency care providers are
available 24 hours a day.
Child and Youth Services provides many family services,
``Pamper the Parents'' day so that the parents can get a break,
participate in Fort Campbell's Family Fun Fairs, America's Kids
Run, and there was an essay contest titled, ``I am a Military
Child.'' The winners were invited to read their essays at the
Volunteer-of-the-Month ceremony.
The staff of the child care centers is helping the children
put together scrapbooks so the parents will have pictures of
the events that they missed out on while they were deployed.
The teen program takes an active lead on mentoring the young
children and volunteering in the community in support of
deployed families.
The Sports and Fitness program depends largely on volunteer
coaches, and since many of them are soldiers, spouses, along
with some staff, have stepped up to ensure that the program
isn't interrupted and provide service for the children.
These are just a few of many examples of the partnerships
with Child and Youth Services and other Community Activity
Based Centers strong sense of commitment and dedication to our
military families during deployment.
Child and Youth Services is a large employer of family
members. We recognize that the support internally, as well as
externally, is very important during deployment and I have to
say Fort Campbell does a fantastic job. We provide training for
the staff so they can recognize and understand the effects
deployment has on children, we provide stress training since
many of our staff are family members facing the same deployment
issues themselves.
What type of support does Child and Youth Services need in
order to meet the needs of deployed families? Well, we
certainly appreciate the support Congress has provided to the
Child and Youth Services Program and we will continue to
maintain our ``model for the nation'' status with your support.
We continue to be able to provide a safe, healthy, and
nurturing program for young children and offer our youth a safe
and fun place to go instead of being home alone.
In closing, I'd like to say as a very proud Fort Campbell
family member and a representative of Child and Youth Services,
thank you for allowing us the opportunity to tell you about our
fantastic installation and some of the things we do to show
that families come first. As well as what we need to do to
improve the quality of life for military families during
deployment, the genuine concern that Congress has shown for our
military community means more than I can express.
[The prepared statement of Major Fees may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. Thank you, Ms. Fees. Willa Garrett
taught elementary school for 10 years at home and abroad and is
married to a 101st Airborne retiree. As an Army civilian, she
has been involved with many children, Youth and Family
Services. Welcome, and we look forward to your testimony.
Ms. Garrett. Thank you, Senator Alexander.
I have been a part of the Fort Campbell Child and Youth
Services for the past 13-and-a-half years, and am certainly
honored to address you today, sir, on the support services that
were offered to families during this deployment.
As the school liaison officer, I enjoy the privilege of
serving as a vehicle for information for parents, schools, and
students, as well as collaborating with local schools and
installation organizations to facilitate the education
transition for our children.
Currently, the majority of our school age population is
educated mainly by three school districts; one, our own host
school district, the Fort Campbell Department of Defense
Domestic Dependent Elementary Secondary Schools, sometimes
called DDESS schools, serve about 4,200 children that reside on
the Installation.
Clarksville-Montgomery County School System of Tennessee
educates approximately 5,600 of our students that reside in the
city of Clarksville, TN. Christian County Public Schools of
Kentucky educates about 1,100 of our students each year who
reside in Hopkinsville and Oak Grove, KY.
Continuity of education when family is transferred to and
from the Fort Campbell area has improved greatly over the past
3 years. Through the positive relations and continuous
communication, the local school districts have developed a
greater understanding and sensitivity about the challenges that
our children incur as a result of transitioning from one school
district to another.
Fort Campbell schools is a part of the original nine school
systems involved in the study commissioned by the Army and
conducted by the Military Child Education Coalition Secondary
Education Transition Study, mainly the SETS study.
Since the initial study, the School Liaison Officer and the
Fort Campbell schools have been working closely with the local
school districts of Clarksville and Christian County to develop
a local action plan that makes the transition for all our
mobile students a more seamless venture for students and their
families.
Each one of these school districts consistently worked to
ensure children who move have the same advantages and
opportunities as those students who remain in one location for
their entire school career. Efforts are being made to help
families move with greater ease and remain in the area when it
seemed that the move is harmful to children.
In support of a recent deployment, the Fort Campbell
schools did an excellent job of providing training for their
counselors and the neighboring school districts. The School
Liaison Officer partnered with the post hospital's chief of
psychology and the psychologist for the Soldier/Family Health
Readiness Program to offer training to counselors, teachers,
and administrators to off-post schools. These half-day training
sessions included a presentation on ``Deployment, Stress,
Families and School'' that addressed identifying stress in
adults and children, as well as ways to assist children in
dealing with such frustrations.
Other information provided to school during these training
sessions included information on the Family Assistance Centers,
current child care opportunities, and youth activities
sponsored by Child and Youth Services, along with many other
support services on the Installation. Suggestions for dealing
with the reunion cycle of the deployment, as well as what to
expect during this phase, was also presented.
Fort Campbell, Clarksville and Christian County schools
offer periodic parent sessions and family involvement
opportunities throughout the school year, such as Parent/
Teacher Organization, as well as site-based council meetings to
assist in making meaningful decisions about how their schools
are run.
Child and Youth Services' staff coordinate briefings for
parents on child development and stress management. Parent
advisory groups for full day and preschool enrolled children
have quarterly meetings to look at the program improvements and
share information. Training opportunities and family-oriented
activities are frequently communicated to each school district.
Thank you so much for the opportunity to speak on behalf of
our children in schools. Fort Campbell continues to provide
excellent support services to families of our deployed
soldiers. Each of our school districts continue to be extremely
positive and welcome as much information as possible on what is
needed to fully support our children and their school
districts.
The team work displayed by each one of our schools and
other installation support agencies is definitely commendable
and is what I consider to be a true demonstration of dedication
and commitment.
Senator Alexander. Thank you very much.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Garrett may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. I spent much of the morning with our
next witness, Bob Vail, who has had a distinguished career, he
is currently the Director of the Community Activities Business
Center at Fort Campbell. Among other things, he has also been a
past distinguished lieutenant governor in the Kiwanis Club,
graduate of Leadership Clarksville, and currently active with
Big Brothers, Big Sisters.
Mr. Vail, thank you for the tour this morning and the time
you spent with us today. We look forward to your testimony.
Mr. Vail. Thank you, sir, for giving me this opportunity to
talk about the support we provide to our Army families.
I'm extremely proud of the support the families and
children receive from the organizations on Fort Campbell that
are chartered to provide that service. I am also proud to be a
part of the surrounding communities that support Fort Campbell
so well.
One of the main benefits of providing superior support to
the families is keeping them in the area where we can better
help them in the event of need. We can keep them informed of
what is really going on and not have them rely on media and
rumor for their information.
Sir, you saw the Family Assistance Center that we set up to
provide a one-stop shop for virtually all services that are
provided. That center has proven to be extremely beneficial and
effective in helping families. That they can go to one site and
get everything from emergency food supplies, financial aid,
legal assistance, medical insurance information, and so on has
filled a critical need.
Our family Readiness Center has also proven to be extremely
valuable. In terms of facilities, it provides classrooms, mail
boxes for over 200 Family Readiness Groups, public access to
computers, training materials, and the like. It is a resource
center for the Army Team Building Program and the Operation
Ready Program. It is also the focal point for our installation
volunteer program. All these services tie together to support
the Family Readiness Groups and individual family members and
better prepare family members for deployments.
The Child and Youth Services programs have proven why they
are recognized as a model for the Nation. The exceptional
services they provide have been invaluable in support of the
family. We expanded our operating hours as needed, we provided
many sessions of child care in support of the Family Readiness
Group meetings, and emergency child care as needed. And the
child care facility at the Family Assistance Center have all
been provided without charge to the soldier or family. In
addition, we have strived to provide special entertainment and
recreation events on post free of charge to the families.
As I mentioned, the community has embraced the family and
their outpouring of support has been incredible. Some groups
have focused on raising money and provided financial support
where the official channels cannot. Others have wanted to adopt
a family, donate products, and so on. This support has been
truly heartwarming and has done a lot to improve the morale of
the family members.
Overall, I feel the support to the families and children
has been outstanding and considerably better than during our
last major deployment during Desert Storm. Still, there is room
for improvement. The most important is to cover the incredible
need for child care by the parent left as the sole provider
during a deployment. Some of this is so the parent can do
critical things such as doctor's appointments, house repairs,
and so on. Other times, they just need a break.
This is especially true of families with special needs
children. Care of a special needs child can become overwhelming
for the remaining parent. While we have been providing some
free respite care, it has been on a fairly limited basis partly
due to the cost, partly due to the capacity to provide this
care.
In conclusion, I am extremely proud of the role that
community activities has played in providing support to the
families of the soldiers that defend our freedom. Many of the
employees that provide these services are family members
themselves and can really relate to the problems that their
customers bring to them.
Thank you again for this opportunity and I stand ready to
answer any questions that you might have.
Senator Alexander. Thank you, Mr. Vail. Thanks to the
witnesses for being here. I think we have some time for
questions or for you to make further comments.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Vail may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. Now, let me ask of each of you the
question I asked of Colonel Summers. I'll just start with Mr.
Vail and move down the table this way, if I may. If you had a
magic wand and could wave it for one item that would improve
family readiness at Fort Campbell, what would it be?
Mr. Vail. Sir, I think I would have to echo Colonel Summers
and indicate the need for a Family Readiness Center that is
more capable of meeting the needs of the Family Readiness
Groups and the family members. The one we have is good, but it
really needs to have on-site child care, for example, as was
mentioned earlier. It's very difficult to get people out,
especially for evening classes, and that's oftentimes the only
time available to the family members to come to classes. They
typically won't come unless child care is available. So a more
comprehensive Family Readiness Center would be my answer, sir.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Fees?
Major Fees. Well, since the Army is more of a family
organization, in order to provide quality child care to the
family members so they can focus on their mission, the Army has
a great need for more facilities, child care centers.
In Fort Campbell, we have a large need for two stand-alone
school age programs there. And as of right now, out of the five
elementary schools, which are located all over the post, it is
very difficult to provide the type of facility that these
children deserve. It's at the cafeterias or the gyms, and so
it's a set-up and take-down everyday procedure for the staff.
And that also causes more physical labor on the staff, and they
have to do that before the children arrive after school. So
facilities would be requested.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Petraeus?
Ms. Petraeus. I would like to see more money for the child
care programs. Obviously the facilities are needed, as well,
but I know that we have over 220 Family Readiness Groups on
this post and a number of them end up obliged to do a serious
amount of their fund-raising just to cover child care costs for
their social functions.
There is some child care for them free of cost, but that's
only at their informational meeting. So if they want to get
folks to come out and bond in a social setting, then they're
having to find the money to pay for that child care. So that's
what I'd like to see. If I had the choice, I'd love to see more
money addressed to that area.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Garrett?
Ms. Garrett. If I had a magic wand, I'd like to see money
made available to our off-post school districts to provide a
transition lab in each one of the high schools and middle
schools that would allow for an easier transition for students
who are coming in. Maybe they are just about to complete a
particular course from the losing school, maybe the school that
they're coming to is on a different schedule.
A teacher in a transition lab would be able to help them
get through that particular course, maybe finish the one they
were just in at the previous school.
Senator Alexander. This would be in, like, Montgomery
County School District and Christian County School District?
Ms. Garrett. Yes, sir.
Senator Alexander. Since you brought up schools, let's go
back the other way on schools. There has been some discussion
in the Congress about on-post schools; schools on the post and
bases around the country. I was hoping to come down last Friday
when Mrs. Bush came to be at the graduation here, but the votes
were close in the Senate, so the vice president and I and all
the other senators stayed to vote.
What advice would you have for members of the Congress
about the usefulness of on-post schools?
Ms. Garrett. Sir, we value all of our local education
activities on post and off post, and I have to say because of
that, we don't compare them at the moment. We've never done
that because they're excellent educational institutions and we
just have not compared them.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Petraeus, do you want to make any
comment about the schools?
Ms. Petraeus. Well, yes. As a parent, I'm willing to say
that we do value our on-post schools very much. As I mentioned
in my statement, that is a little bit of stability for us when
we move. It's definitely a drawing point that attracts people
to live on post, the opportunity to go to an on-post school.
I know that impact aid is a question. Often the local
communities are not given the kind of money they need to
support our school children. And to me, if you got rid of on-
post schools, that would just compound that problem, make it
worse. So I think they are very valuable to us, and I would be
very dismayed to see them go away.
Senator Alexander. May any family stationed here send their
child to the on-post school or do they have to be living on-
post.
Ms. Petraeus. They have to be living on post, or within a
certain number of days of living on post.
Senator Alexander. And if they live on post, may they send
their child to an off-post school?
Ms. Petraeus. To a private school, if they chose to.
Ms. Garrett. Private schools. One off-post school in
particular I know will not except them because they have to
reside in their county.
Senator Alexander. I see.
Ms. Fees, what about the schools?
Major Fees. As a parent myself, my children attended the
Fort Campbell schools for 2 years, and currently we're off-post
in Montgomery County. And during this deployment time, it has
been as you can see the big difference of Fort Campbell
understanding the deployment issues of these children and the
teachers being family members themselves. It provides that
sense of security for the children because they have behavior
issues or they have days where they're down and they're not
sure.
And I think the teachers here are so much more
understanding than the ones that are off post. As a parent,
it's very valuable.
Senator Alexander. Mr. Vail, any comment?
Mr. Vail. Sir, I would tell you my perception is from
having children in the off-post schools that the on-post
schools are superior. I think that at least part of that is
because of their funding stream. It is typically more reliable.
It's not as reliant on the tax base or property taxes in the
area and may be a little less subject to political variances in
the local community.
So I think they are typically viewed as being superior and
though that's an opinion--and I do know it's a pretty
significant emotional event for the folks that do live on post.
Senator Alexander. I'll ask one more question of this
panel, so if you want to throw in something I haven't asked
you, this is a good chance to do it.
I wanted to talk a little bit because this comes up in
almost all of the comments, not in a critical way, but just as
Colonel Summers said, Family Readiness is military readiness
with more missions, and longer deployments. That's bound to be
having an effect on families.
What would you say to the Congress and the American people
about the effect of more missions and longer deployments on our
ability to retain and keep talented people in the volunteer
Army? Mr. Vail, let's start with you and then go back that way.
Mr. Vail. I don't think there's any question that it is
having impact. I think the continued separations for the
families is causing retention problems. You certainly hear
about it in just day-to-day conversations with folks that are
impacted by that in the work force. A lot of the work force is
family members and so you do hear it from that perspective. So
I don't think there's any question that it is having a very
significant impact on retention.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Fees?
Major Fees. I think that what's important is if we continue
to support the Family Readiness Programs and ensure that when
the family member is a single parent, that there is options for
them because they are located so far from the family members
that we rely on one another for support.
If there are options for us to reach out and get that
support, the deployments wouldn't be such a hardship.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Petraeus?
Ms. Petraeus. I have to agree with Mr. Vail that I think it
is a very significant thing to retention. No matter how good
your family programs are, if you have your spouse continually
deployed and often in harm's way, eventually people are going
to say, enough.
And, unfortunately, you know, it takes a long time to train
a soldier, especially one in a specialized field, and it's not
the ones who have been in a year or two that may decide to get
out after their 3 years are up, but these are family members
that have been in for some time. And when you lose them, you
lose something very valuable.
But I don't think the families will be willing to just
continually go it alone, do it by themselves with the prospect
of more and more of the same in sight.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Garrett?
Ms. Garrett. Sir, I agree with everything that's been said
by the other witnesses. Our family members certainly have
demonstrated a lot of strength. Just since I've been here at
Fort Campbell, I've seen families hold it together when I know
that their sponsor has deployed several times and for long
lengths of time.
We've also seen the negative effects of that on our
children in schools just by some of the phones calls that I get
from school administrators and some teachers and so forth. I
have to also say that I agree that it's very difficult for some
of them to stay in the Army and maintain their family
connections. Sometimes it's very difficult for them to do.
Senator Alexander. I said that was my last question, but I
have 2 minutes left in this panel and I'm not going to let all
this wisdom get away from me. Plus, this question is related to
the last one.
We talked about longer deployments, more frequent
deployments. But another aspect that can uproot a family is
what Colonel Summers and Mrs. Summers are about to do, to drive
nine hours to Fort Leavenworth. And he was talking about the
large number of assignments he's had over the years, and that's
been true with all of you who have been in the military.
I heard Secretary Rumsfeld talk recently about looking at
ways to cut down on frequent moves by military personnel. Would
you have any comment about that, any insight you'd like to
offer about the wisdom of that or the effect that might have
on, morale and the ability to retain talented people? Ms.
Garrett, I'll start with you.
Ms. Garrett. A few years ago, the Army implemented a new
stabilization policy for soldiers that had juniors in high
school or those who would be juniors, that if they wanted to
stay at that particular post to allow their child to graduate
with the current graduating class, they could do that.
And I know at Fort Campbell, we've had a number of requests
and they've all been approved. And it has really, really done a
lot for the family stability and the education of our children.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Petraeus?
Ms. Petraeus. I know one house committee was looking at one
way of stabilizing families would be to have unaccompanied unit
rotations to Europe and Korea. And I want to say very strongly,
I don't think that's the way to go. Again, to the family, that
would be perceived as one more deployment, not to mention, this
may not be the spot where they choose to be stabilized.
I know the Marines and the Navy--often the families do
spend long periods of time in one particular area, but often
those are major metropolitan areas that are on the coast. They
offer a lot of employment opportunities.
Army bases tend to be where you have lots of land for
training. They tend to be more rural areas with often less
employment and less career opportunities. I don't know that
it's necessarily a virtue to stabilize a family in that
particular area, so I have some concerns about that. Yes, the
frequent moves can be a challenge, but again, I don't think
unaccompanied unit rotations are going to be a way to make that
better.
Senator Alexander. Thank you. Ms. Fees?
Major Fees. I'm facing the issue with my husband being in
the Sinai, and he has orders to return to Fort Hood and has
requested to delete them to stay at Fort Campbell for our
children, and they have been approved.
It's so difficult for military children, and being one
myself my entire life growing up, when you move as a soldier,
you take your rank and you take your title and your status and
you take it to the next installation. As a child, you could
have been the All-Star on a soccer team or done really well on
a baseball team, but you take nothing with you.
So it's very important, I feel that if family does request
that they can stabilize in an area, that they can.
Senator Alexander. Mr. Vail, you get the last word.
Mr. Vail. Well, sir, you mentioned a few minutes ago that
some things are perceived to perhaps come with the job or with
the territory, and I don't think that the numbers of moves has
probably dramatically changed over the years. I think it
probably kind of comes with the job.
I don't think it has the same impact as does the frequent
deployments, so I would--although it might be an issue and
particularly there may be needs to have some provisions under
special circumstances to do more stabilization. I think it's
probably not as key as deployments.
Senator Alexander. Thank you very much for your candor and
for your help on this. Now, this is a continuing discussion. We
will have another hearing on June the 19th, as I mentioned, and
we're going to continue to look at this for the next couple of
years.
So if you have additional comments, I want to set up an
easy way for you to get in touch with me or with our staff and
let us know your suggestions. They'll be welcome.
I'd like to invite the second panel to come forward,
please.
Welcome. And we will try to follow the same procedure we
did before. I was saying to commanding officers a little
earlier, I cannot imagine an institution more different than
the United States Military than the U.S. Senate.
The U.S. Senate is completely undisciplined. If I were to
have asked four senators to speak for five or 6 minutes, the
first one would barely be through coffee. And here we got
through that testimony beautifully and had time to discuss.
Thank you for that.
And if you could submit your full statement for the record
and then it will be a part of our committee record for
Congress. Please keep your remarks to five to 7 minutes, then
that will leave us time to have the kind of discussion we did
with the last panel.
Thank you very much for coming. I read your comments
already and I'm impressed with their directness and I look
forward to questioning you about some of them. And we will
start with Major Joyce Dolinish. She began as Army ROTC at
Western Michigan University. She's been stationed in the United
States and Europe, now a Family Readiness advisor. Her husband,
who began in the 101st Airborne, now is a colonel with the
101st Corps Support Group.
Major Dolinish, welcome. Thank you for being here.
STATEMENTS OF MAJOR JOYCE DOLINISH, U.S. ARMY (RET.), 101ST
CORPS SUPPORT GROUP; GRICELL MEDLEY, FAMILY READINESS GROUP
(FRG) VOLUNTEER, SPOUSE OF DEPLOYED SOLDIER, CLARKSVILLE, TN;
MICHELLE TAYLOR, CARETAKER OF CHILDREN OF TWO DEPLOYED PARENTS,
CLARKSVILLE, TN; AND FIRST SERGEANT HUGHES, NATIONAL GUARD
REPRESENTATIVE, 776TH MAINTENANCE COMPANY, FORT CAMPBELL, TN
Major Dolinish. Sir, I'd like to thank you for the
opportunity to discuss the military family deployment with the
committee today. I am able to discuss these issues from a
rather unique perspective of 20 years of active duty, 19 years
as an Army spouse, 12 as an Army mom, and 2 years as a retiree
and a disabled veteran. I'm the Family Readiness Group Advisor,
as you stated, for the 101st Corps Support Group.
Deployment issues are a key topic to all military families.
As part of a volunteer force, individuals choose the life of a
soldier because they believe that they are part of an
organization that can make a difference in the world and in
them as individuals. Their career choice is not an easy one for
the soldier or for the family.
The money is not great, the housing often substandard, the
relocation is difficult, and the time away from their family
increases yearly. Yet they remain on duty serving despite these
hardships proving again and again that they are the best Army
in the world.
While the families feel nothing but pride and support for
all soldiers, they all at some point begin to question when the
constant separation becomes too much to bear as a family.
Within our Group, units redeployed from Afghanistan only to
begin preparation for deployment to Iraq. As we made plans for
welcoming home soldiers returning from Iraq, we're
simultaneously planning the departure ceremonies for units
redeploying to a nine-month tour of Afghanistan.
We continue to hear plans to further reduce the size of the
Army and know that our soldiers will spend even less time with
their family. We hear of efforts to change accompanied tours to
Europe to a rotation which we believe is a friendly euphemism
for another deployment.
Most Americans think that a military mission is done when
the press stops reporting it. Families know it takes years to
complete the job and bring everyone home. Pride and loyalty
hold the military family together, but at some point in the
near future, soldiers may face ultimatums from their families
as the amount of time together becomes less than the amount of
time apart.
I'd like to address the issue of mothers facing deployment
as been in the news. I believe it's being viewed from the wrong
angle by most observers. The Army, as you have stated, is a
volunteer career choice, and all single soldiers or dual
military couples with children are at all times aware of their
potential for deployment and they're required to provide
extensive legal documentation of a valid family care plan. If
they cannot provide this plan, they are relieved from active
duty.
The parents and mothers who are currently deployed are very
proud soldiers. They had plans in place and they executed those
plans. The real problem is the number of soldiers whose care
plans, when notified of deployment, suddenly were not valid.
These soldiers knowingly, willingly lied to their commanders
and provided false legal documentation. The units then deployed
without these soldiers, perhaps compromising their mission.
Soldiers are informed adults who must make difficult
decisions regarding their families. Life as a soldier is not an
easy one, especially for single parents or dual military
couples. If they decide to pursue it, they must be prepared for
separations and have a valid care plan for their children. If
they do not have someone they trust ready to assume the role of
parent at any time, they must pursue another career.
Civilians make hard decisions based on the amount of time
they'll be away from their families and make job decisions
based on that. Soldiers must make the same tough decisions. The
Army life is not for everyone.
Contrary to popular belief, the return of a soldier from a
long deployment is often more difficult than their departure.
The redeployment briefings are normally offered at the Family
Readiness Group meetings when rumors start that soldiers are
coming home. FRG leaders hope that each family will attend at
least one of those briefings, but we cannot enforce it.
FRG leaders, chaplains, and social workers from the
hospital jointly present these briefings, but there is
currently no standard format or books to use. The resources
available on military installations are insufficient to provide
the on-going support needed by many soldiers and their
families.
On-post schools are one of the positive aspects of
deployment and military life. Children are surrounded by peers
going through the same thing they are. Teachers and counselors
are experienced with deployments and are trained to watch
children for signs of excessive stress. Teachers have constant
access to the families and support from military units and the
Installation. Exceptional discipline is maintained, in part
because the military parent can be held accountable for their
child's actions.
Fort Campbell is fortunate to have outstanding community
support, but the off-post schools cannot compete with the on-
post schools' ability to prepare children for the constant
deployment and redeployment of soldiers. Funding continues to
be reduced for on-post school systems at a time of increasing
soldier deployments, when they can least afford to cut corners
or reduce programs.
On-post schools are better prepared to ensure the
continuity of education for each child as a military family
transfers throughout their career. Department of Defense
guidelines ensure that all schools on military installations
have similar curriculums. Improvements have been made and
agreements coordinated with many off-post schools near military
bases to ease the transition of military students; however,
gaps continue to occur. Constant moves are extremely difficult
on children. Gaps in curriculums or the calculation of credits
for graduation can make the move even more traumatic. On-post
schools are something we would not want to lose.
The most positive aspect of this deployment has been the
way the Installation, military rear detachments, families, and
the local community have pulled together. Large-scale
deployments are difficult on everyone. Communication and mutual
support has been outstanding. Most military families are
extremely self-sufficient, but they need to know what is going
on. The relatively few families that need support receive the
help they need quickly and from many sources.
The key negative areas of this deployment were casualty
notification and the tracking of casualties in the medical
system, as Ms. Petraeus has already stated. Embedded media
provided real-time coverage of events. Families knew
immediately that an accident or casualty had occurred, and by
watching closely, could often narrow the event to a specific
unit.
While no one argues that all casualty notification must be
100 percent accurate, the time from the incident until the time
the Department of the Army approves notification of next of kin
is currently unacceptable given today's media and communication
capabilities. Soldiers are calling back and notifying spouses
of a casualty before the assistance officers can get to the
homes to do a notification.
Injured soldiers are nearly impossible to track in the
multiservice medical system. Today's military family depends
and deserves a casualty notification system that recognizes the
impact of instant media and communication.
Basically the military family doesn't want special
treatment. They're very self-reliant and they're proud of what
they do, but they do want uninterrupted support in critical
areas, medical, schooling, an on-going post support. And
together, we can all do that and do a very good job of it. I'd
like to thank you for the opportunity for coming, sir.
Senator Alexander. Thank you for your comments.
[The prepared statement of Major Dolinish may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. Ms. Gricell Medley has managed the
Support Team Building and Readiness Groups for families at Fort
Campbell as well as in Panama. Welcome. We're glad you're here
and look forward to your testimony.
Ms. Medley. Senator Alexander, good afternoon. Thank you
for allowing me this opportunity to talk to you about our
family's experience with the military.
My name, as you said, is Gricell Medley. My husband, Major
Lee Medley, is the commander of the CH47 Chinook Helicopter
Company in the 7th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment.
We have been married 9 years and have been blessed with two
young daughters, Lia and Emma. I met my husband during his
service in Panama. We married in 1994. The challenges of being
newlyweds from two different cultures created a special bond
between my husband and I. The main reason we have stayed in the
Army is because simply, my husband loves his job, and he loves
the fact that he is serving our Nation.
Some of the other reasons we stay in the Army is because of
the excellent medical care, career advancement, continued
training, retirement benefits, on-post housing, DOD schools,
and the great sense of community. My husband took command of
his Company in 2001. As the commander's wife, I assumed the
role as the unit's Family Readiness Group leader.
Since Desert Storm, the Army has continued to place
emphasis and importance on the Army's FRG. I think this is one
of the things the Army has done well in the business of taking
care of soldiers and their families. Simply defined, the FRG
consists of volunteers, usually, the spouses of the soldiers,
working together to provide assistance and information to all
families and single soldiers within the unit. It is important
to remember that everyone is welcome to participate regardless
of their rank.
Above the company level, we join with the FRG from our
higher headquarters supporting the larger efforts and
beneficial projects. Our FRG organizes informational briefings
for the spouses, updates, and disseminates information about
deployments, welcomes new spouses, visits hospitalized family
members and soldiers, plans Easter egg hunts and many other
special events.
In my opinion, the most important role of the FRG remains
information management. Without our dedicated volunteers, the
FRG simply would not function. While the FRG is a great
strength of the Army, we could do better by actually funding
the FRG with paid personnel to continuity and stability for the
unit.
One of the things the Army needs to take a closer look at
is the price the op tempo takes on its soldiers and family
members. The operational tempo of the Army has increased over
the last decade, while the divisional strength of the Army has
decreased; in other words, more missions, more deployments with
fewer people, especially in certain fields like Chinook
Helicopter Units.
I would like to take a moment to tell you how these
increased deployments have affected my family. Our youngest
daughter, Emma, is 17 months old. My husband has been deployed
15 of those months. He has been deployed to Korea, 2 JRTC
rotations to Fort Polk, Afghanistan for 8 months, and finally
Iraq since March of this year. He was only home for 21 days
between Afghanistan and Iraq. The majority of that time was
spent training and preparing his soldiers for redeployment.
While I am extremely proud of our soldiers and our
families, this number of separations and deployments to
stressful environments have taken an enormous toll on our Army
families. I am afraid it's a retention issue for our young
officers and enlisted personnel. Many of them get out of the
Army because simply they do not like the repeated separations
from their families.
As I mentioned before, my husband's company spent 8 months
in Afghanistan. I would like to make sure that you know that
the 7th Battalion of the 101st has maintained all of the
Chinook personnel rotations in Afghanistan since January 2002.
C Company, currently in Afghanistan, was previously there
for 4 months, home for two, and went back to Afghanistan in
December of 2002. We do not know when they will return.
This unknown is one of the frustrations that soldiers and
families face. We do not know when they will return or what
their recovery time will be. In addition, I have read in the
Army Times about the Army's plan to send fewer families to
Europe and Korea and instead, rotate battalions for six-month
deployments. To our family, this is one more deployment.
My family hopes that change never happens. We would much
rather go as a family for two or 3 years. It is very important
to us to keep our families together as much as possible.
Again, thank you for taking the time to listen to my
comments today. I feel honored to have had the opportunity to
express my thoughts to you and I deeply appreciate your
interest in improving the quality of life of our Army families.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Medley may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. Thank you, Ms. Medley. We have been
talking some about there being more missions, fewer soldiers,
longer deployments, more women in the service, more families
with children, and also, more spouses working at those
assignments. Michelle Taylor is one of those. She's a military
spouse, a dedicated volunteer, and she also is a sales director
for Mary Kay Cosmetics. We welcome your presence and look
forward to your testimony.
Ms. Taylor. Good afternoon. As you mentioned, my name is
Michelle Taylor. My husband, Kirk, is a major in the division's
plan section.
As an Army wife of 15 years and geographically a single
parent for two of the last 3 years, I'm here to share my
thoughts and observations concerning support for the families
of deployed soldiers.
Overall, I have to commend the efforts of the Installation
staff and leadership. I am convinced that they have put their
best foot forward in attempting to handle the myriad of issues
that arise when an entire Division deploys.
Army Community Service and the Family Assistance Center are
both examples of the larger effort to take care of the families
and communities left behind. In addition, the hospital has
remained responsive, despite the deployment of many of its
medical staff.
However, the lynchpin of support is provided through the
Family Readiness Groups that exist to support families at the
grassroots level. This is essentially a self-help resource in
that the more a spouse attends and participates, the greater
the benefits he or she will receive. Family Readiness Groups
exist year-round and the familiarity it breeds amongst its
members aids in the early identification of families who are in
need. This early screening helps the more experienced group
members steer others to resources before the situation becomes
a crisis.
I have been frustrated at times by the seemingly lack of
information flow down to the company level, but I suspect that
the problem resides largely in the adage, we don't know what we
don't know.
Another source of enormous support resides in our church
communities. As you might expect, many of the post chaplains,
including all of the Catholic chaplains, deployed in support of
the troops. The foundation of community that resides uniquely
in our church community, regardless of faith, has truly helped
the family members who fall through the Family Readiness safety
net.
Last, the local communities of Clarksville, Oak Grove, and
Hopkinsville have responded in their always gracious manner.
The knowledge that the community-at-large values the sacrifices
of both the soldiers and their family members is reassuring and
takes a little of the sting out of the series of separations
we've recently experienced.
The most obvious response as to how you and your fellow
Members of Congress can help is easily summed up in one word,
money. More specifically, we need help in several areas to
include improvement in the Tri-Care System and delivery of
health care services. The long wait for nonthreatening, yet
essential to quality-of-life care is unacceptable.
Changes to the maintenance and development of on-post
housing is also needed. As an off-post family, the result of a
12-month plus waiting list upon arrival to Fort Campbell,
gaining access to several of the available programs is
problematic.
Funding for child care facilities is also needed. Spouses
with young children are far less likely to attend a family
support group meeting or other organizational meetings when
they have to spend their meager disposable funds for child
care.
While the Government has relieved soldiers in the Iraqi
theater of war of the Federal tax burden, others are not so
lucky. Many hardship or unaccompanied tours do not enjoy the
same relief. A good example is our forces serving in Korea.
Despite my husband's commitment to living a very Spartan
lifestyle during his deployment there, the assignment was a
financial hardship based solely on the need to maintain two
households. This additional financial burden was managed on a
Major's salary and my additional income, but this can't be said
for all of our younger soldiers and families.
Last, I am tired. I would not trade the friends or
experiences that our family has enjoyed as a result of my
husband's service, but the pace of deployments has reached a
point that personally I find unacceptable. I'm proud of Kirk's
service to our Nation. He is my hero. But he is also a father
and a husband.
The Army needs people like my husband to lead soldiers
where it matters most, at the tactical unit level. I will
accompany Kirk where the Army sees fit to assign him next, but
I will not encourage another move to a tactical unit. I find
this sad and a loss to the Army. However, the bottom line is
that an assignment to a Divisional unit right now is a near
guarantee of prolonged separation with little hope for change
in the future.
Senator Alexander, thank you for joining us today and
allowing us to give voice to our concerns. The Army is a close-
knit family, and when possible, we take care of our own.
Whatever help you and the Members of Congress can provide for
us is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Senator Alexander. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Taylor may be found in
additional material.]
Senator Alexander. First Sergeant Thomas Hughes is from
Carter County, Tennessee, and he is a representative of a
phenomenon we're increasingly seeing, served in active duty,
now he's been in the Tennessee National Guard since 1985 or
1986.
Sergeant Hughes. Yes, sir.
Senator Alexander. He was deployed in Desert Storm and
still in the Guard. And we hear more and more that we're
thinking of our Armed Services and our Guardsmen, and our
Reservists as a single unit, but at Fort Campbell, we're very
much aware of that. And we welcome you here to hear your
perspective.
Sergeant Hughes. Thank you.
Good afternoon. I'm First Sergeant Thomas Hughes of the
776th Maintenance Company stationed here at Fort Campbell. I
feel privileged to be able to speak to Senator Alexander from
my home State on issues that have affected my National Guard
Unit.
Answering your first question, ``What has the Army done
well for our families?'' Being from East Tennessee, many of our
soldiers have seen an increase in their salary. This has
resulted in a better lifestyle for their families. Some
soldiers have struggled with bills and medical payments prior
to mobilization.
The housing allowance and family separation allowance has
benefited greatly to their base salaries. These additional
allowances give the soldiers a chance at taking care of their
bills and also any extra expenses that has occurred during
mobilization. This allows their families to receive proper
medical care physicals and cover any emergencies that might
arise. This is an important issue with the soldiers as long as
they know their families are taken care of, they perform their
duties and maintain a higher level of morale.
Our Family Support Group has worked hard to keep the
families informed of their family members here at Fort
Campbell, as well as any changes that may affect the members of
the family at Home Station. We have developed a newsletter to
mail to families due to the fact that some are unable to attend
scheduled meetings. Family Support Groups play a critical role
in mobilized units.
Second, ``What can be done better for our families?''
Having served on active duty for 4 years in an infantry
company, also 18 years in the Tennessee Army National Guard, I
have experienced many problems associated with the mobilization
of troops. I've been mobilized three times during my career in
the National Guard.
More emphasis needs to be placed on the initial briefing
for Tri-Care Health Insurance. Many issues have arisen about
benefits and providers. The soldiers do not understand how the
system works. It's very complicated and it needs to be
simplified. We need to utilize representatives from Tri-Care to
do the briefings making sure families know whom to see for
health care. We've had one soldier whose wife was dropped from
Tri-Care since we've been here. This is unacceptable. The
soldier is present at Fort Campbell and working in active-duty
status.
I would like to add to that comment, that has been taken
care of since this was written.
One entire day needs to be spent during pre-mobilization to
get identification cards for families and all required forms
filled out correctly. This needs to be accomplished before the
National Guard Unit deploys to the mobilization station. Upon
arrival at the mobilization station, it's too late to help your
spouse. Many of our soldiers worked at resolving issues for
several weeks after arrival at Fort Campbell. It takes time to
prepare documents for Powers of Attorney, Wills and required
medical forms, birth certificates, social security cards.
More emphasis needs to be placed on supporting the Family
Support Groups by the Army. Money needs to be allocated for
materials, stamps, and any necessary equipment required by the
elected staff of the support group. The Family Support Group
are the unsung heroes of this war. They must assume the role of
both parents in our absence.
In closing, thank you for allowing me to discuss the issues
concerning National Guard deployment. By making these changes,
you will see highly motivated soldiers ready to go the extra
distance to accomplish any and all required duties.
Senator Alexander. Thank you, Mr. Hughes. Now we have time
for some questions and further comments.
I'd like to start with the one about care plans. I think
many civilians haven't thought much about this, haven't really
thought about what happens when military parents with children,
suddenly receive orders to be deployed to Iraq or Korea,
wherever, training, and suddenly one parent is left with what
two parents were doing. Or sometimes it's a single parent or
occasionally, it might be both parents.
Last year when I was campaigning, I spent the night with
Ted and Jean Purtam here, both retired, both at Fort Campbell.
I see Ted at the back of the room. He was a colonel in Iraq 10
years ago in Desert Storm. His wife, a lieutenant colonel, was
in charge of a nursing unit. They were both there. They had two
young sons and Grandma was their care plan, and they had that
worked out.
But that caused me to think about the care plans. And then
Major Dolinish has pointed out that in some cases, servicemen
and women who were required to have a care plan, didn't have
one, and that meant that their unit suffered when the unit was
deployed.
Talk to me a little bit about the care plans and how that
works and whether there's anything that Congress or the
Services might do to make it easier for military parents
raising children to plan for the times when one or--when the
only parent or both parents might be deployed.
Why don't we start with you, Ms. Taylor, and we will go
down this direction.
Ms. Taylor. Well, I can only speak from a spouse's
perspective because I've never been active duty. I read
recently that the Army is looking into possibly only allowing
one active duty to deploy at a time, and I don't necessarily
know that that's the answer because that's asking the person
that stays back to sacrifice their career or to perhaps not
advance.
I honestly don't have an answer for that issue because
although it's hard being a sole parent, I'm blessed that I'm
flexible in my career and am able to be home for them when
necessary.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Medley?
Ms. Medley. The exposure that I have is limited as a
spouse; however, my thought would be definitely more
challenging when we have two active duty personnel going to war
because they definitely count on the other parent, and I would
focus on that. I definitely think that we do our best, but it's
by choice. It's an Army by choice. So definitely we have to be
responsible for the choices we make in life.
Senator Alexander. Major Dolinish, you used some pretty
strong words. You said that some members of the service didn't
tell the truth about having a care plan; therefore, when they
were called to go, they couldn't go.
Major Dolinish. Right. Sir, family care plans are provided
from the moment--for one thing, a single soldier with children
is not supposed to come into the Army. They may do so by
transferring guardianship. And then what happens, though, is
that as soon as a certain time period has passed, they regain
that guardianship.
Any single parent in the Army or dual military couple has
to have a family care plan. It's a very itemized legal document
and it deals with everything from--if you were to leave this
instance and you had 15 minutes, interim right here, who are
you going to leave your child with? And it's notarized
documents from that individual saying, I accept that
responsibility, it includes financial documentation on how
you're going to take care of your child in your absence, and
includes long-term care in that extent.
It's a voluntary service. It's not a social institution. We
come in knowing the risks. I know I spent 12 years with one or
the other of us gone a lot of the time. Only one time did we
both deploy, both to Haiti, and in recognizing the Army Child
Care System, my child at that time opted to stay with her
interim care provider at Fort Bragg because she was more
comfortable there with the other children. She thought it was
just her turn to spend the night for a long time.
But we were fully prepared, we knew that was an option. And
one of the reliefs of this deployment, it had been the first
time where that wasn't a risk. But we made calculated decisions
as a family and executed our care plan and did that.
But there are families that provide all that legal
documentation, and then it has to be reviewed every year. It's
a very detailed legal process. But then at the time they're
told they're deploying, Aunt so-and-so can't take my kids or
there's a myriad of problems. And many soldiers have done this
many times and have avoided every deployment.
It's not right. It's not fair to the units. They then
deploy without a soldier, without a skill, and there are not
any excess soldiers running around. That hole doesn't get
filled up. Someone they've trained with is now gone and is
unavailable to the real-life mission, perhaps compromising that
mission. And in a volunteer Army, that's unacceptable.
They know the risks, they've planned it legally, they're
provided legal documentation.
Senator Alexander. Sergeant Hughes, for Guardsmen and
Reservists, I guess the issue is a little different. At least
at one time it was a little bit more of a surprise to be called
up for a long time, and now it's not so much of a surprise.
What would you have to say about the planning for the care
of children when a single parent or both parents are suddenly
called upon.
Sergeant Hughes. Sir, we had a lot of issues, you know,
once we got called up and stuff in trying to assign--like she
talked about, assigning someone to take responsibility, whether
it was going to be an aunt or a family member or something like
that. But, you know, currently, we've got people to stay not
only with their brothers or sisters or grandmother,
grandfather, also with the neighbors, friends. It's not even a
part of the family who's got actual custody of the children
during the single parent deployment. It's hard for the single
parent.
And what makes it really hard for my single parents is
because we're at Fort Campbell, it's only about 380 miles from
home and a lot of them can't bring their kids up here. And I
have a lot of them that have asked that question and stuff. As
of right now, based on their housing needs, that's impossible.
Senator Alexander. There were some comments about what you
call reintegration. The one witness said that leaving is
difficult, coming home is more difficult sometimes. And
sometimes that results in tragic incidents when soldiers come
back from long periods of time away and something happens in
the family, including in rare instances, spousal abuse. Maybe
that's gone on for a long time and hasn't been discussed--it's
just being more talked about today. Maybe it's a phenomenon of
the long deployment.
Talk to me about reintegration and coming home and what the
Army can do and what we in Congress can do to make that easier
on families. Sergeant Hughes, I'll let you go first and we will
go this way this time, if I may do so.
Sergeant Hughes. I think the best thing they can do is
provide counseling initially, you know, once they get back, or
you can actually start the counseling in theater at that time.
And I think keeping a good communication line open between them
and their families maybe prior to coming home, you know, they
don't expect it has changed drastically or anything like that.
You know, basically that's about it, I think.
Senator Alexander. Major Dolinish?
Major Dolinish. The counseling I understand is improving
and they're trying to standardize some of the briefings given
on both sides from the soldier leaving the area of operation
and the family here.
The Army has also recognized after the last incidents that
a lot of the families are not going to like it, but they're not
going to immediately come back home and go on block leave. The
soldiers will be reintegrated a little bit more slowly by
spending about half a day at work for the first couple of weeks
so they're not just thrown in with the family. It's very
difficult.
Many of the wives never had much control, and then for
expanded periods of time, they are in charge and the children
start to look to them. They're doing the finances, they're
doing everything. Suddenly the husband is back and immediately
thinks that, I'm home, I'm back in charge, the kids are going
to answer to me, I'm going to take back over the checkbook.
But that's got to happen slowly and they've got to think it
through and talk it out. The Army is good at talking to us
about that in counseling, but it's not an easy process.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Medley?
Ms. Medley. I do agree it's not an easy process. I will say
that definitely we assume two different roles. We become single
parents, we become the household of the house. Our spouses, on
the other hand, are exposed to a lot of danger in performing
their missions.
I definitely would say that we have been receiving reunion
briefings now. The good news is that we do have a standard
reunion brief and it's going to be given to the soldiers, as
well as to the spouses.
I definitely believe that probably the strongest or the
most important process comparing the deployment process versus
the redeployment process, definitely the reunion is going to be
hard on the families. What is important to me and I am very
happy to learn is that the initial brief, it will be definitely
distracting to many families that are really focused on having
their spouses back. That's the only thing we can focus about.
That is our source of joy.
However, my understanding is that the reunion process will
be taking a briefing prior of our soldiers coming back, and
later on, meeting again to see how we are doing. That will
allow us to have the tools and go back and say, okay. Probably
I am okay because that process, I understand. We are doing
fine.
It's definitely a challenge, but I do believe that if we
have been surviving until this point--if we have the right
tools, we definitely will survive.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Taylor?
Ms. Taylor. I agree with what's been said. In our family,
we call it re-entry and we've had to do it quite often. The
initial re-entry was during Desert Storm and I think that the
Army has come a long way with assisting families with that part
of the deployment because we learned from past experiences.
However, on a personal note, I have tried to do some
proactive counseling, and in my statement, I mentioned the
unacceptable waiting periods. I called to receive counseling
for myself and my daughter because this has been an extremely
difficult deployment for the three of us. And because it was
not life-threatening, as in, you know, something's going to
happen in the next 24 hours, it was a three-and-a-half week
waiting period before we could be seen.
And to me, that's unacceptable because the issues are
ongoing. And at the point where someone makes that phone call,
it's reached a level where you need help now. Whether or not
there's an issue of harm, the emotional phase, you've reached
that point.
So I think that somehow maybe in working with Tri-Care and
the local civilian counseling centers, perhaps that could be
addressed.
Senator Alexander. Thank you, Ms. Taylor. Let me ask all of
you this question, and I'll start with Ms. Taylor. I'll come
back with you. My sense is that the family issues, the issues
of parents raising children is at least being more talked about
today within the Army, within the Armed Services, than it was 5
years ago or 10 years ago.
I guess the first part of my question, is that true? And
the second part, why is it true? Is it because the Army is
changing? Is it because there are more women in the Army,
because of somewhat more marriages, because there are more
children, because there are more women and husbands, each of
whom has a career, as many of you do, or is it just because we
are becoming more open and willing to talk about issues like
this?
How do you look at the last 10 years, say, in the Army
dealing with issues of parents raising children, and to the
extent there have been changes, what do you think has caused
that change?
Ms. Taylor. Absolutely, I do think that there have been
changes to the positive. My thoughts would be that it's a
necessity because of the frequency of deployments.
When my husband and I went to our first assignment, he was
gone, but not the frequency that he is now. The Army is
smaller, there are more missions, and I think that out of
necessity and because we're an educated people, we have
discovered that counseling--and maybe it is a pride thing,
that, you know, before, people just didn't talk about it. And
in today's society, it's something that's just common. There's
not as much negative stigma requesting counseling as perhaps
there was in the past.
But I would say the frequency of deployments has
necessitated the counseling and intervention.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Medley, you've been looking at this
for about 10 years. Have you seen any changes in the last 10
years, and if so, what do you think has caused those changes in
terms of our attitude toward military families raising
children?
Ms. Medley. Well, I would start mentioning--what I
mentioned in the beginning of my statement, the military
provides you with a sense of community that is very unique. It
is one to be proud to be in the military. I think we are
blessed by that.
And with that, I will link that with the FRG's. I will
definitely say that it is a combat multiplier. What I will say
is that the people are comfortable with their surroundings, the
people that are dealing with the same issues they are, they are
more willing to speak about their issues, definitely. That's
why it's so important, and we stress so much about the support
to the FRG's.
And people definitely are more willing to speak to others
that are dealing with the same situation. We all see ourselves
being completely bonded with the people surrounding us, and not
so much with the civilian world, not because we do not feel
their support, but we definitely do not understand if they have
a sense of reality, of our own reality.
Parent raising children? Yes, it is an issue and we feel
more open when we have other mothers dealing with the same
issues we are. And I do believe that the reality is, true, we
are improving in being more open and the sense of community,
too.
Senator Alexander. Thank you. Major Dolinish?
Major Dolinish. The demographics of the Army have
definitely changed, society has changed. Fathers are more and
more demanding a place in their children's lives where--even my
father, just one generation back, he basically went to work and
came home. Mom took care of us. Today's fathers want to be a
part of their children's lives and I think military fathers are
no different.
I think the talk has definitely improved over the years,
the programs have somewhat improved, the money has slightly
improved. So we're going in the right direction and we're
making strides, but there's a lot that we can continue to work
on with the military family.
Senator Alexander. Sergeant Hughes?
Sergeant Hughes. There's been a big change between Desert
Storm--that's when family groups really got initiated, I think,
from our aspect. The difference between there and now is a huge
change.
And like you said, we're going in the right direction, but
it's different for a National Guardsmen. Here at Fort Campbell,
I think--from what I've seen and heard through Family Support
Groups and the programs they've set up and what I've seen here
on base of all the programs they do for the kids, it's a role
model for the Army, I think. But for the National Guard, it's a
whole different picture because we don't have anything back
home, you know.
It's a challenge for our Family Support Groups to get
stamps to mail out our newsletters that we print off a little
copy machine. And, you know, we've got a long way to go still
on the National Guard aspect as far as helping the Family
Support Groups, I think.
Major Dolinish. If we ever get some kind of integrated
system--the support group has reserve components that fall
under us. Trying to link my readiness groups with their
readiness groups is extremely difficult because there's no
standard.
Sergeant Hughes. And there needs to be a standard Army-wide
thing--don't you agree with that--on the Family Support Groups?
Let's all go on the same sheet of music.
Senator Alexander. Am I correct that during Desert Storm,
many families went, quote, home, away from post to some other
place where they felt more comfortable, but during this war in
Iraq, that most families stayed at the post, or more families
stayed at the post. A, am I right about that impression and, B,
if it's true, why do you think it's true?
Sergeant Hughes. More comfortable, I believe. You know, if
their parents--if their husband has gone overseas or something,
it may be more, and they get more comfort at home, you know,
being home with their family members.
Senator Alexander. Well, is it true that more stayed here?
More families have stayed here?
Ms. Medley. I will say I have been exposed to deployments
back to back, and I can say, the first deployment, I did see a
lot of people just go home.
Senator Alexander. When was the last one?
Ms. Medley. Last summer.
Major Dolinish. That's part of the difference, though. This
is a winter deployment during school. And as school is letting
out, you're starting to see some people starting to drift home,
but kind of afraid to because they keep hearing rumors, they're
coming home, they're coming home.
So I think a lot of people are kind of holding on waiting
here waiting for news. They're afraid to leave, that they're
going to have to turn around and come back.
Senator Alexander. Desert Storm was in the winter, as well.
Ms. Taylor. I think the difference--having stayed in
Germany during Desert Storm and the majority of the spouses
went home--what they learned is that if they stayed closer to
the unit, they'll gain information as opposed to going home to
Mom and Dad where maybe they're in a civilian community, there
is no military understanding. What they found is it was better
to stay to be around the people who understood, they're in the
same situation. Even though Mom and Dad were a comfort, here
was where you were going to gain information and have the real
support structure.
Senator Alexander. I've got a last question and I'm going
to make it an easy one. I'm going to ask you the magic wand
question and I'll start with you, Sergeant.
If you had a magic wand and you could think of one thing
that would make life easier, in your case, for the National
Guardsmen and their families raising children, what would you
do?
Sergeant Hughes. I'd like to see the State of Tennessee get
more involved in the Family Support Groups funding-wise,
facility-wise, and better coordination between the State and
the Family Support Groups. I think that would be the biggest
help, because I'm going to tell you, if you support your
families and the troops know their family is being taken care
of, they'll do anything you ask them.
Senator Alexander. Major Dolinish?
Major Dolinish. A paid officer member to be the Family
Readiness Group leader all the time, at least for Brigade
level, to provide the continuity so that no matter who's
moving, who's coming, who's going, you maintain a steady keel.
And also, that office member needs to be in the National
Guard and Reserve components where we could link in. We would
have an established network of these folks to have some
continuity, a real-life address where we can coordinate with
each other, maintain the lessons learned and not--the FRG
leadership and leaders tend to operate on a wave. It depends on
whether there's a deployment or not.
Things get very low key and it's hard to get rosters. And
it will peak up and you're getting all kinds of information
flow from a fire hydrant and then it will back down again. And
it's very easy to lose everything every time it dips. An office
member would maintain that throughout.
Senator Alexander. That means a paid full-time person to do
what a volunteer now does?
Major Dolinish. I know I put in probably three or four
hours a day on to military-related specifics.
Senator Alexander. It's usually true that volunteer
organizations work better if there's a full-time coordinator
and volunteer.
Major Dolinish. And not all the way down to Company levels.
At least at Brigade and up where everybody has access to that
resource and can spread the wealth.
Senator Alexander. Ms. Medley?
Ms. Medley. I definitely would go for a sense of
proportion, which is a magic scenario anyway, but definitely
allow our soldiers to be soldiers. They are soldiers by choice
and we cannot doubt that they are in love with their mission,
they really are, but they will get discouraged if they don't
have the opportunity to become good parents and good spouses.
So I would definitely focus on their sense of proportion to
provide the soldiers a healthy life, mentally and also
emotionally.
Senator Alexander. Thank you.
Ms. Taylor?
Ms. Taylor. My magic wand would involve housing. As someone
who has been researching for the past 2 months the area of
Virginia because on-post housing is impossible, the ability to
have on-post housing or maybe contracted housing.
And with that issue is the schools. The standards in every
area that we have been is so different, different than when we
started in New York to Kansas to now here, and again now to
Virginia, and trying to have all the necessary records for what
they require is a huge challenge.
And if every place that we went had a school available on
post and we could live on post, that would be ideal. I know
that that will probably never happen, however, that's an issue
that I would like to see addressed.
Senator Alexander. Thank you.
Let me thank all of you for your testimony. And let me just
observe, I guess I should have expected this, but I am
impressed with the directness of your testimony and balance of
your testimony. You've looked hard to see things that have gone
well, and you've not been afraid to talk about things that need
work. And that gives those of us in the Congress a way to go
about doing things.
Let me leave with an invitation to you. As I mentioned to
the first panel, this is an ongoing discussion. I'll be getting
together with the three other senators who are holding hearings
between now and June 19th.
Four senators actually working on the same thing at once is
nearly a record, I want you to know that. So I want you to know
how important we believe it is, the subject of military parents
raising children and supporting military families.
And we won't stop with June 19th. We will continue to be
interested, not just in Fort Campbell, but other places in the
country, and some of you are likely to be in those places in
the country, so I hope you'll stay in touch with me or my staff
and help us do a better job.
I can't come to Fort Campbell without saying to Colonel
Ruggley and Ms. Petraeus and General Petraeus how proud we are
of all the forces here, the Special Operation Forces, 101st
Airborne, the civilians, the National Guardsmen, and
Reservists. It's a great source of pride to all of us from
Tennessee and Kentucky to be associated with such terrific men
and women, and you have represented them well today.
Thank you very much for your time.
[Additional material follows.]
ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
Prepared Statement of Col. Kim L. Summers
Senator Alexander, I would like to take this opportunity to thank
you and the committee for allowing me to speak to these critical
issues. As the Garrison Commander of Fort Campbell for the past two
years, I have observed many facets of these questions and hope to
provide an informative perspective.
Fort Campbell is the home to some 24,916 soldiers and supports
14,700 Reserve and National Guard soldiers, 46,177 family members, and
over 124,000 retirees. The installation encompasses 105,000 acres and
borders two states and four counties. Our association and relationship
with the local communities is top notch. In my 25 years of service, I
have seen none better. As a result of this extraordinary relationship
and these communities' genuine care for soldiers, our community support
structure is second to none. An example is the joint commitment of both
the Christian County and Montgomery County school systems who teamed up
with our own on-post schools in adopting the Secondary Education
Transfer Study program more than a year ago. This program has made it
much simpler and smoother for high school students of military families
to transfer between duty assignments and associated schools without
disadvantaging the student academically.
In order for our soldiers to properly prepare for missions when our
nation calls, we as an installation offer a variety of family support
services to our soldiers and families. This support allows the military
member to train to the highest standard. As part of that readiness
preparation, the Garrison of Fort Campbell, as well as the entire chain
of command of our Army, know the importance and relationship family
readiness plays in each soldier's ability to accomplish the mission. As
with our community support programs, our family readiness operations
are world class due to the support we receive from Congress, the Army,
and our own work force. Our programs include such services as Family
Readiness Center, Volunteer Coordinator, School Liaison, Child and
Youth Services, Family Assistance Center, Army Emergency Relief,
Chaplains Helping Hand, to name but a few. The Family Readiness Group
(FRG) system is a key element in the support of families. This
organization provides the link between family requirements and the
Chain of Command. That Chain of Command, better known as the Rear
Detachment, is staffed with dedicated leaders at every level. The Rear
Detachment structure and its high quality soldiers illustrate the
steadfast dedication to excellence our deployed commanders place on
insuring our families are properly cared for.
Another vital program in supporting family readiness is providing
child care services. Our continued expansion of child care
opportunities is a daily challenge during times of deployment. Respite
care is at a premium. With the increased demands of single parenting as
a result of the deployment, it is evident that this is an area of
increasing need. Availability of child care services, from hourly to 24
hour service, is ripe for enhancement.
It is not enough to bring services and make facilities available to
our families. We must also provide a means to assist in educating our
families, spouses, and soldiers. A key tool is the Army Family Team
Building program. This program provides training to family members on
military environment, financial readiness and goods and services
available to them in order to function in the military structure. This
program proves itself every day during deployments. Families and
soldiers are better prepared as a result of this training.
As we provide services and products to our families, none of this
would work without a solid and regular communication process. Fort
Campbell provides forums for our families and Rear Detachments to not
only communicate with each other through family readiness group
meetings, social settings and recreational opportunities, but through
official channels as well. We hold a bi-weekly senior Family Readiness
Group leader meeting. At this meeting are the primary representatives
from the service areas and the Installation Chain of Command. Also
attending are the Senior Spouses from the major units on post down to
the Battalion level. These spouses/representatives provide the link for
information flow back to families. Even though communicating official
information is a command responsibility, this critical aspect of family
support is an excellent way to insure maximum information distribution.
The process of keeping the families informed of unit activities,
surfacing issues in the family support arena, and providing a feedback
loop is essential to sustaining current, accurate and timely
information flow. Our Installation Rear Detachment Command and Staff
meeting is a parallel effort that compliments our Bi-Weekly FRG. In
this meeting, we focus on military business; but as previously stated,
taking care of families is military business. As a result of these
meetings and procedures, we have harnessed the collective intelligence
in order to prioritize issues and redirect resources as needed. These
meetings compliment our installation media and communication methods,
like Fort Campbell Channel 9, Courier Post Newspaper, and local media
venues.
But with all the successes and magnificent support from Congress,
our communities, Army, and Post systems; we do have areas that need
attention. The most prominent of these lies in the child care arena.
Specifically, respite care availability and facilities. Due to
deployments, families become single parent households instantly. Even
though our systems and facilities are in place to support the family,
we lack enough capability to handle short-term child care on a
recurring basis. Before the deployment, both parents would work the
schedule. During deployments, that flexibility is gone. The problem is
magnified with special needs children. We have one parent doing the job
of two is the bottom line. If we could enhance the availability of
respite care resources, it would qualitatively and quantitatively
improve our family support.
The second area needing attention is that of resources to
facilitate improvement in our family support system. Dedicated
facilities on Fort Campbell are at a premium, but dedicated family
support facilities are necessary in order to provide a place for the
myriad of family readiness/family support tasks to be accomplished.
From FRG flyers to producing event calendars, having meeting space and
providing child care are all requirements for successful programs. The
Installation provides for these needs but not to the level we would
expect for such an important part of soldier readiness. Unit areas are
restrictive and often not available. Even though the installation
provides space for our FRG's, the competition to support units and
other priorities is so intense that it makes sense to consider a new
facility for family support.
Programs to leverage other sources of support are alive and well at
Fort Campbell. An example of this is the support we receive from the
Armed Forces YMCA. Donations from charities are wonderful and very
generous but do not cover the requirements. Volunteers give back to our
Installation literally millions of dollars in time each year, but we
can do more. Dedicated full time support personnel in the family
readiness business would be a tremendous sign of commitment and
progress. Additionally, a family readiness facility certified for child
care and having the ability to provide for the needs of our families
and those that support them would be tremendous.
In conclusion, our support structure is critical in maintaining
soldier readiness. I personally and professionally am very proud of
what For Campbell does in that effort. Our surrounding communities have
embraced our soldiers and families like none other. This teamwork and
mutual support is proof we are progressing in this effort. Fort
Campbell is a wonderful place to live, work and play. When our soldiers
are called to duty in a distant land, with the continued help from all,
Fort Campbell will rise to the occasion and insure our family readiness
will be every bit as high as the readiness of our soldiers.
Prepared Statement of Hollister K. Petraeus
Good afternoon. I'm Holly Petraeus, wife of Major General David H.
Petraeus, the Commander of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)
and Fort Campbell, and I'm here today to speak to you as an Army wife
of almost 29 years.
You have asked ``how has the Army taken care of its soldiers'
families during this deployment?'' My experience here at Fort Campbell
has been a very positive one. The key element has been good
communication between the deploying units, the military and civilian
staff remaining here at Fort Campbell, and the volunteer Family
Readiness Group (FRG) leaders. There has been a commitment to leaving
high-quality officers back as Rear Detachment Commanders, and that has
paid dividends. The Rear Detachment Commanders are our link to the
units overseas, as well as having the power to resolve many issues here
at home.
Among the military remaining here on post, the Installation
Commander has conducted bi-weekly information meetings with senior
spouses and key FRG leaders. These have been a great venue for bringing
up issues that concern us, and for hearing what the installation is
doing to address those issues. Also, the post hospital has been very
responsive to family concerns. They made every effort to bring in
Reservists and civilians to quickly fill the gaps left by deploying
doctors. They've done some special things for the moms who give birth
while the dads are deployed, and they've also started up a fitness
program for family members. The five chaplains who remain here have
also done a wonderful job, continuing to run the regular religious
programs while offering deployment-related counseling and also running
a very successful charitable effort, Operation Helping Hand, which is
used to help family members where Army Emergency Relief cannot.
On the DoD civilian side, the people in Army Community Services
(ACS) have been super. They run our Family Assistance Center, a ``one-
stop shopping'' for family members who need assistance while the
soldiers are deployed. They also coordinate deployment-related training
such as Army Family Team building. Other civilian activities which have
played an important role have been: Morale Welfare and Recreation
(MWR), which has worked with local charities and sponsors to provide
some very well-attended free family functions such as monthly Family
Fun Fairs; Child Development Services which runs our post day and
after-school care; and our Fort Campbell Schools, which have not only
addressed deployment-related issues with their own students, but have
provided the local off-post school systems with training on how to
handle deployment-related problems.
I have to mention also the invaluable service of our volunteer FRG
leaders. They are the command's link to the families, and although they
are dealing at home with the same deployment issues as everyone else,
they dedicate a substantial portion of their free time to reaching out
to help others.
Now, as to the question of what could be done better: I do feel
that the Army is asking a great deal of our FRG leaders. They have no
official status, but they bear a lot of responsibility. When Secretary
of the Army White was here in April, he suggested that some of the key
FRG positions should be salaried. These volunteers dedicate their time
and often their own money, too, keeping in communication with family
members over a far-flung area, and they should not only receive some
reimbursement for that, but also have the status and protection of
being official DoD employees.
I'd also like to see more money available for child care during
deployments. Young soldiers' spouses' will not come out for meetings
and social functions if they cannot bring their children, and if we are
to reach them with the information they need we must ensure that free
child care is available on-site. As deployments go on respite care is
also important. We are stretching our dollars and using charitable
donations as well, but more funding in this area would be great.
Another thing I think the Army (and all the services) can improve
on is casualty notification, not so much for fatalities but for
seriously and very seriously injured. This has caused a lot of
heartburn for us here during this deployment, because of the lack of
timely information coming from overseas. Sometimes the first notice a
family has received has been a call directly from a doctor at a
military hospital overseas, although there has been no information
about the casualty sent to the division casualty office. On one
occasion, a soldier who had been sent home for convalescent leave
called from Nashville Airport looking for a ride--and that was our
first indication that he had been returned to the United States! The
problem has been particularly bad with soldiers treated in the Navy
system. It has been almost impossible to get information on their
status or their whereabouts. As you can imagine this has been very
upsetting for the families. In this automated age we should be able to
do a better job of tracking who is where and letting the family members
know in a timely manner.
On a larger scale, I'd like to address what Congress can do for us.
Number one in the minds of many here is that we need more soldiers on
active duty, particularly in certain key specialties. In recent years
the Army has downsized while adding on more and more overseas missions.
The obvious result of this is that many of our soldiers have been
deployed repeatedly over the last few years. In this group, for
example, my husband has been deployed 16 of the last 24 months and
Gricell Medley's has been deployed 15 of the last 17 months. Many
families in our Chinook helicopter battalion, our Military Police
battalion, our logistics and our special operations units can tell the
same story. This unrelenting pace of deployments is a retention issue.
Families will not be willing to go it alone forever, with little relief
in sight. By the way, I know that a House Committee is currently
looking at the possibility of making some European and Korean tours
unaccompanied unit rotations, and I can tell you that to the families
that will be perceived as just one more deployment added to the load
that they already bear.
I would also ask Congress to let us keep our on-post schools. I
know they are being reviewed, and I would like to say that they provide
a high-quality and consistent education for our children who move from
State to State, where the quality of education varies and where the
local school districts are underfunded in the area of impact aid. A
number of our schools here at Fort Campbell have achieved Blue Ribbon
status, and they are valued accordingly by the families.
In closing, I'd like to thank Senator Alexander for coming here
today to let our voices be heard. I'm proud of the way our military,
our families, and our local communities have worked together during
this deployment, and I'd like that to be the main message that you take
away today. Thank you.
Prepared Statement of Maj. Josie Fees
Good afternoon. I'm Josie Fees, Program Operations Specialist and I
am here today to speak to you on behalf of Ft Campbell's Child and
Youth Services Program. I am pleased to say I am a military family
member for over 33 years and with Child and Youth Services for 15
years.
I have been with Ft Campbell's Child and Youth Services for 3 years
and I speak to you with a tremendous sense of pride. I first noticed
Child and Youth Service's commitment to quality and high standards for
families because the Child and Youth Services programs obtain national
accreditation status--and that includes the Family Child Care homes. I
then witnessed the overwhelming kindness on 9-11 when the U.S. was
under attack and the installation immediately went into action to
protect soldiers, their families and the civilian workforce.
It was very difficult to get on or off the installation that day.
Without hesitation, the Child and Youth Services staff volunteered to
stay and to do whatever necessary to ensure that all the children were
safe and that their needs were met until parents could pick them up.
The School Age Services staff gathered the children who were remaining
at the schools because parents not able to pick them up at the
scheduled time in order to allow the teachers to go home. All the
children were fed and involved in fun activities until the last child
was safely picked up. Child and Youth Services staff stayed past
midnight and arrived back at 5 in the morning to receive the children.
The staff never once complained. There is a saying that ``the Army
takes care of their own.'' Ft Campbell has proven that to me time and
time again. I will share the one that really touched me.
My husband left for the Sinai in January and his commander, CPT
Himes told me before James left that if ever I need them just call.
Just because James is gone we will still be here for you. To my
surprise I received a call in February from CPT Himes letting me know
he was deploying but wanted to give me the POC and number in his
absence in case I needed anything. I know as a commander he had a lot
going on due to the deployment yet he remembered about a family member
who was no longer in his unit. It was such a wonderful feeling to be
apart of such a great installation. Now with the division deployed how
has Child and Youth Services supported deployed families?
Beginning with the mobilization phase, a parent notified the Child
and Youth Services Manager on Feb 10, 2003 that they had a need for
extended childcare due to the mobilization mission requirements.
Extended care was established immediately the same day. Child and Youth
Services offered extended care evening weekends and holiday at no cost
to the parent so that the soldiers could focus on their mission
requirements.
Since the deployment Child and Youth Services continue to provide
contingency services so that soldiers and family members are at ease
knowing their child care needs are met. Child and Youth Services
provided on-site childcare for Family Readiness Group meetings both
during the mobilization and the deployment. We also provided many
evening briefings to explain childcare options available to family
members. Child and Youth Services provided training for units that want
to do their own childcare through a program called Volunteer Child Care
Unit Setting. We offer respite care to family members due to deployment
issues. The Family Assistance Center offers childcare that is being
provided by Child and Youth Services staff. Family Child Care provides
emergency care for military families due to deployment issues. Social
Work Services will coordinate placement of children with a provider
designated to providing emergency care. Emergency care providers are
available 24 hours a day. All programs are allowing parents the
flexibility to withdraw children and take vacations as needed without
the parent having to pay to hold their slot.
Child and Youth Services provided many family services in April
during the Month of the Military Child including a ``Pamper the
Parent'' day where parents were treated to free facials, haircuts, and
manicures. Child and Youth Services participate in Fort Campbell's
Family Fun Fairs. School Age Services sponsored the Americas Kids Run
held 17 May 2003. The free event was a huge success for children and
families at Fort Campbell. There was an essay contest titled ``I am a
Military Child''. Winners received special prizes and were invited to
read their essays at the Volunteer of the Month Ceremony at the Eagle
Conference Center. School Age Services have implemented a program to
help children with deployed parents stay connected by setting up maps
at all 6 satellite sites so that the children can map where their
parent are around the world. The staff at the childcare centers is
helping the children put together scrapbooks so the parents will have
pictures of the events they missed out on while they were deployed. The
teen program has taken an active lead on mentoring the younger children
and volunteering in the community in support of deployed families.
Sports and Fitness program depends largely on volunteer coaches and
since many of them are soldiers the deployment has caused a shortage of
coaches for the children/youth. Fortunately spouses along with some
Child and Youth Services staff stepped up and volunteered to coach the
children/youth sports. This ensured no interruption in the youth sports
program. These are just a few of many examples of the partnerships with
Child and Youth Services and other Community Activity Based Centers
strong sense of commitment and dedication to our military families
during this deployment.
Child and Youth Services is a large employer of family members. We
recognize that the support internal as well as external is very
important during deployments and I have to say Ft Campbell has does a
fantastic job. We provide training for the staff so they can recognize
and understand the affects deployment has on children. We provide
stress training for staff since many are family members facing the same
deployment issues themselves. Many such as myself who have been a
spouse during Desert Storm/Desert Shield and Just Cause, are able to
support the younger family members going through it the first time. We
understand the unique challenges that come with deployments.
What can Child and Youth Services do better to meet the need of our
deployed families and what type of support does Child and Youth
Services need in order meet their needs?
Because the Child and Youth Services program has a mobilization and
contingency plan in place, we are able to implement it as soon as the
need for need for extended child care arises. With even more advanced
notice from the command of the mobilization of the division, we can
implement sooner rather than later if parents express a need for the
extended hours care.
We appreciate the support Congress has provided to the Child and
Youth Service Program and we will continue to maintain our ``model for
the nation'' status with your support. We continue to be able to
provide a safe, healthy nurturing program for young children and offer
our youth a safe place with fun activities to go to instead of being
home alone.
In closing I would like to say as a very proud Ft Campbell family
member and representative of Child and Youth Services thank you for
allowing us the opportunity to tell you about our outstanding
installation and some of the things we do to show families come first.
As well as what we need to do to improve the quality of life for
military families during deployments. The genuine concern that congress
has for our military communities means more than I can express.
Prepared Statement of Willa Garrett
Hello. I am Willa Garrett, Fort Campbell Child and Youth Services
School Liaison Officer (SLO). I feel quite honored to address you on
the support services offered to families during this deployment. Along
with serving as a vehicle for information for parents, students and
schools, my responsibilities include collaborating with local schools
and installation organizations to facilitate the education transition
experience for our children. Below I provided the following information
on our schools and the support offered to our families during the
recent deployment.
SCHOOLS: At present, the majority of Fort Campbell married soldiers
live off the installation in cities located in Kentucky and Tennessee.
Consequently, more than half of Fort Campbell's school-age children
(averaging 8,000) are educated in off-post schools.
Currently, the installation has five Department of Defense Domestic
Dependent Elementary Secondary Schools (DDESS) Schools located on the
installation--five elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high
school. Each year, the Fort Campbell School District serves over 4200
students that reside on the installation. Each of the schools offers a
half-day 4-year old program and full day kindergarten based on National
Association of Education for Young Children standards. The schools
utilize the Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) curriculum
that is based on national standards.
Fort Campbell Schools have received several distinguished awards
such as the US Department of Education School of Excellence Award--the
Blue Ribbon Award for overall achievement. Fort Campbell's Parent
Partnership Program is considered one of the best in the nation, and
was researched by Vanderbilt University in relation to student
achievement, ``March Toward Excellence: School Success and Minority
Student Achievement in Department of Defense Schools'', Report to the
National Education Goals Panel. At the onset of the deployment, Fort
Campbell Schools readily offered training for their staff and parents.
Clarksville/Montgomery County School System of Tennessee serves
almost half of our school-age population. Active duty military-
sponsored students comprise more than 23% of CMCSS total enrollment.
The school district provides cutting edge technology for students by
offering Distance Learning Labs, Video Broadcasting Classes, Mobile
Technology Labs, Automated Libraries, and a Junior Technology Program.
CMCSS administers the Terra Nova Test to evaluate student achievement,
and has consistently scored above state and national averages in all
academic areas. The school system brings business into the high school
classroom to give students work experiences through internships, co-op
opportunities and job shadowing. The district has received many awards.
These include ``Expansion Management'' magazine's blue ribbon award for
outstanding achievement, chosen by School Match, a service company for
parenting magazines, Governor's A+ Award for three consecutive years,
and recognized as best in Tennessee for three years. Counselors
conducted individual and group counseling sessions for children of
deployed parents. Some schools also conducted parent workshops with
free childcare to assist with the stress of the deployment.
Christian County Public Schools in Kentucky educate approximately
1100 military-sponsored students each year. There are eleven elementary
schools, three middle schools, and two high schools in Christian
County. All of the Christian County schools are accredited by the state
of Kentucky and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In
addition to the traditional educational settings, programs are offered
at a career & technical center, a day treatment center, an alternative
school, a preschool center, an optional high school, and an Adult
Education Center. Christian County consistently seeks opportunities to
support the military by sponsoring events such as ``Salute to the
Military.'' This past year, the School Liaison Officer served on the
district's Barriers to Learning sub-committee for the Consolidated
Training Plan for Teachers. As a result of the committee's commitment
to children, the board voted to provide awareness training targeting
the unique factors of educating military students. During the
deployment, many schools made phone calls to individual families to
offer support as needed.
CONTINUITY OF EDUCATION WHEN FAMILY IS TRANSFERRED: Continuity of
education for students that are transitioning to and from the Fort
Campbell area has improved greatly over the past three years. Through
the positive relations and communication established through the School
Liaison Officer position, together with the local school districts have
developed a greater understanding and sensitivity about the challenges
that military-sponsored students incur as a result of transitioning
from one school district to another. Fort Campbell Schools were part of
the original nine school systems involved in a study commissioned by
the Army and conducted by the Military Child Education Coalition
Military Child Education (MCEC) Secondary Education Transition Study
(SETS).
Since the initial study, the School Liaison Officer and the Fort
Campbell Schools have been working with the local school districts of
Clarksville-Montgomery County and Christian County to develop a local
action plan that makes transitioning for all mobile students a more
seamless venture for students and their families. Fort Campbell,
Clarksville and Christian County Schools consistently work to ensure
children who move have the same advantages and opportunities as those
children who remain in one location for their entire school career.
Efforts are being made to help families move with greater ease and
remain in the area when it seems that the move is harmful to children.
The area schools have implemented some of the following measures to
ensure a smoother transition of students into the area: 1) Enrollment
information is available on district web sites; 2) Enrollment
information is available on the local TV station and in the newspaper
during the summer; 3) Student Ambassadors assigned to new students once
school starts; 4) If a student transfers as a senior, counselors work
with the new school to ensure graduation without delay. 5) Schools
provide transitioning student with an unofficial copy of their
transcripts to allow for immediate placement upon arrival at the new
school. At the installation, soldiers in-process through the School
Liaison Office to receive first-hand information about area schools and
child care and youth programs. Soldiers also out-process through the
School Liaison Office to ensure local school clearance. Also, many
soldiers have requested and received approval for stabilization for
their high school junior or senior to allow graduation with local
class.
To prevent loss of credit and access to opportunities, many
transition efforts have been considered and implemented in each of our
school districts. Fort Campbell Schools have incorporated many programs
to ease the transition of students. To name a few: 1) Implementation of
the Chart Your Course Program to assist students who are transitioning
to high school; 2) Summer enrollment counselor works June and August as
well as being available two days a week in July to help new students in
their class selection; 3) A transition lab established to help new
students catch up in classes in which they may be behind or need to
earn credit; 4) All grades are given both as number grades and as
letter grades; 5) The Interactive Counseling Center (ICC) is becoming a
great tool for assisting with tryouts, interviews, and record reviews;
6) Stabilization letters are written in support of parents who have
juniors/seniors that are nearing high school completion.
WHEN THERE IS A TRAGEDY IN A CHILD'S LIFE, ARE THE TEACHERS
EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH IT? In support of the recent deployment, the Fort
Campbell Schools did an excellent job of providing training for their
counselors and those of a neighboring school district. The School
Liaison Officer (SLO) partnered with post hospital's Chief of
Psychology and the psychologist for the Soldier/Family Health Readiness
Program to offer coping strategies to the counselors, teachers and
administrators of the off-post school district. The ultimate goal was
to furnish the educational staff with information needed to fully
support our children during such a critical time.
Half day training sessions were conducted and specifically
addressed the following:
Information about services provided by the Family Assistance Center
(FAC)
Presentation on 'Deployment, Stress, Families and School' that
addressed identifying stress in adults and children, as well as ways to
assist children in dealing with such frustrations.
Suggestions for dealing with the reunion cycle of the deployment,
as well as what to expect during this phase.
Current childcare opportunities and youth activities sponsored by
Child and Youth Services, along with many other support services on the
installation such as the YMCA Coop Nursery and the Chaplains Operation
Helping Hand.
Recommended hands-on activities for children.
Information/recommendations were also offered on developing
emergency contingency plans.
During this most recent deployment, it has been quite obvious that
each of our Secondary Education Transition Memorandum of Agreement
Signatories are serious about their commitment to our children.
Superintendents, principals and counselors welcomed information about
how to work with our children during this time. Teachers and counselors
were extremely positive and demonstrated a genuine interest in the well
being of our military-sponsored children.
FAMILY INVOLVEMENT: Fort Campbell, Clarksville and Christian County
Schools offer periodic parent sessions and family involvement
opportunities throughout the school year. Military parents are invited
to participate in local Parent Teacher Organizations, as well as site
based council meetings to assist in making meaningful decisions about
how their schools are run.
Child and Youth Services staff coordinate briefings for parents on
child development (age and stages) and stress management. Parent
advisory groups for full day and preschool enrolled children have
quarterly meetings to look at program improvements and share
information. Training opportunities and family oriented activities are
frequently communicated to each school district.
The School Liaison Officer serves on the Family Resource Youth
Service Center advisory board for a Christian County school that has a
predominantly military enrollment. The Family Resource Center is
designed to promote the flow of resources and support to families in
ways to strengthen their functioning of individual members and family
unit. The center's focus is on education to enhance parenting skills,
education for preschool parents and their children, health services or
referral to health services, GED (for adults) and literacy based
programs for students and adults and programs promoting family
activities.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of our children
and schools. Fort Campbell continues to provide excellent support
services to the families of our deployed soldiers. The teamwork
displayed by each one of our support agencies was definitely
commendable, and was what I consider to be a demonstration of true
dedication and commitment. I am most grateful to be a part of the Fort
Campbell family, as it has afforded the opportunity to make a
difference in the educational experience of our children and support
mission readiness.
Prepared Statement of Robert E. Vail
Good afternoon, I am honored to provide input to these field
hearings on how well the Army serves our soldier's families and
children during a major deployment. As Director, Community Activities
Business Center, I am responsible for administering the Morale, Welfare
and Recreation (MWR) programs at Fort Campbell as well as the Army
Community Services (ACS), Army Substance Abuse Program, Lodging and
Continuing Education Programs.
The support Fort Campbell has been able to provide to the families
and children has been outstanding. I attribute this to the great
programs that the Army has in place to provide this support, a
tremendously supportive surrounding community, an installation
commander and garrison commander who care, and excellent communication
with the families, primarily through the Family Readiness Groups
(FRGs). We have successfully improved processes as a result of lessons
learned in Desert Shield/Storm. Many of these improvements have come
from getting input from the families that we are supporting and the
senior FRG leaders have been a great source of ideas in this regard.
I will summarize some of our successes:
COMMUNICATION TO THE FAMILY MEMBERS: This has been a huge success
and has started at the top. The Installation Commander holds routine
meetings with the spouses of senior leaders and the leaders of the
primary FRGs. We make extensive use of that forum as well as the
mailboxes at the FRC to alert family members of opportunities available
to them, both on and off post. The Rear Detachment Commanders have also
been a great conduit of information to the families.
FAMILY ASSISTANCE CENTER (FAC): Upon deployment of the soldiers,
the Garrison Commander directed the stand up of the FAC to provide a
``one-stop shop'' to provide virtually all assistance a family might
need. The FAC is located in the Lee Family Center, a building that
already houses most of the ACS functions. Personnel from Finance,
Personnel, Legal Assistance, Tri-Care and Health Services joined Army
Emergency Relief, Exceptional Family Member Services, Relocation
Assistance, Employment Assistance and other services already in the
building. Family members also have immediate access to information on
Child and Youth Services, Community Mental Health, American Red Cross,
Housing, Transportation and the Chaplains Office. A food closet and
emergency housing assistance are also available at the center, though
the latter has not yet been needed. On site childcare is provided at no
charge so the parent could seek assistance without the distraction of
tending to the needs of their children. We also have a toll free number
in order to provide assistance for family members living outside of the
Fort Campbell Community. This center has been especially important for
the families of Reserve Component Soldiers that have little on-going
contact with the military community.
FAMILY READINESS GROUP (FRG) SUPPORT: We have long had a Family
Readiness Center (FRC) to support our FRGs. The center includes a
meeting area, mailboxes for over 200 groups, public access computers,
printing support, copier support and training materials. Upon
deployment, the Commanding General (CG) immediately directed that we
increase the funding for this center to support the increased printing/
copier demands to maintain communication with the families and to
provide training materials for the FRG deployment meetings. Additional
copiers were made available as well to meet the demand. Our goal is to
expand this facility even further, to include providing more space and
on site child care.
ARMY FAMILY TEAM BUILDING PROGRAM (AFTB): This program, which
provides training to family members on the military environment,
financial readiness and the like, proved its worth during the
deployment. Families are better prepared than they might otherwise have
been. Further, with the training modules in place they are able to
export training to groups as needed.
CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES: Fort Campbell's childcare and youth
services are exemplary in normal conditions and they have proved
themselves capable of providing exceptional services in extraordinary
conditions. As we became aware of the need for expanded services needed
due to deployment preparations, we immediately expanded the hours of
the Child Development Centers, at no additional charge to the parents.
This included nights, weekends and holidays as needed. As stated above,
we set up a satellite childcare facility in the FAC, also at no charge.
When the Family Readiness Groups (FRGs) needed to meet on deployment
issues we provided free childcare for them, either on site or at the
centers. Family Child Care Homes proved to be a special asset. These
providers were available to care for children 24 hours a day. In some
cases they are also included in soldiers' Family Care Plans as the
primary custodian of the children. This is especially important for
single and dual military parents.
ENTERTAINMENT EVENTS: MWR was able to gain sponsorship from
businesses and charities to provide monthly, free of charge, ``Family
Fun Days'' at various activities on post. These events incorporate
things like fire safety emphasis with games for children and free food
and drinks. They have been very successful with as many as 3500
participants and have garnered extremely positive feedback. We have
conducted these events since March when it was done concurrently with
the opening of a new Fire Department in the Lee Village housing area.
The April event was held at Hooper Bowling Alley and the May event at
Destiny Parks and Pavilions/Horse Stables. All events include
information booths on such things as Safety, Continuing Education
Opportunities, Library Services, etc. as well as inflatable games for
the younger children, dunking booths, climbing walls and the like.
CROSS LEVELING OF RESOURCES: We were able to divert personnel from
activities that have a primarily soldier support function to those with
a family support function, which kept our costs down significantly. For
example, some of the government employees that normally work on drug
prevention classes in the units were diverted to the FAC when their
workload decreased due to the deployment. Likewise, some of the
government employees involved in soldier education counseling were also
diverted to the FAC. Having these resources available helped
tremendously, but would have been CRITICAL if the Family Assistance
Center had had to open on a 24 hour a day basis, which we were prepared
to do upon demand.
REFOCUSING OF SOLDIER FACILITIES/SERVICES TO FAMILIES: We made a
special effort to refocus facilities and services that were in place to
support the soldiers to benefit families and youth. For example:
Fort Campbell has six Physical Fitness Centers that exist to
support soldier fitness/readiness. We focused on the family's needs and
family usage was up about 43%.
We have two exceptional softball complexes with four fields each
that are dedicated primarily for soldier intramural sports. Since the
demand from units is down, we have reconfigured one of the facilities
for youth sports programs.
COMMUNITY SUPPORT: This has been absolutely outstanding. Various
organizations have raised about $200,000 in support of the families
living in the Fort Campbell community. Some of these funds have been
provided to support MWR events such as the Family Fun Days, events at
the on-post schools, childcare in exceptional circumstances, and the
individual needs of soldiers and their families. We have even had to
designate a ``Donations Manager'' to keep track of the outpouring of
support. Individuals and businesses have asked to ``sponsor'' a family;
we have literally gotten truckloads of products for ``any soldier'' or
for their families. There is no question that the surrounding
communities support the soldiers, families and especially the kids.
Naturally there are things that could be done better:
CHILD CARE: Upon deployment there is a critical and almost unending
need for childcare. First and foremost, the soldier needs to get his/
her unit ready to deploy so they cannot be released from work at the
usual time and need expanded child care. They often need weekend and
holiday child care as well. Family Readiness Groups need to have
meetings to help the families prepare for deployment and to keep them
informed. There is a need for childcare in the Family Assistance Center
as mentioned above, and also emergency childcare, especially in the
event of casualties. There is also the need for respite care for the
parent that has no break and no assistance in their parental
responsibilities. Congress has provided resources for ``contingency
related child care''. Often, the installation must provide the services
and reimbursement comes after the fact. This is not the best way to
manage operations, but supporting soldiers is the goal. Quicker
reimbursement would ease the burden on the installation.
SUPPORT FOR EXCEPTIONAL FAMILY MEMBER CHILDREN: EFMP childcare
needs often cannot be provided for on post. For example, we had a
family with four special needs children; two were diabetic and required
insulin injections. Government child development facilities are not
staffed with the medical personnel authorized to administer shots. The
respite care for this family had to be provide off post, and but for
the Chaplain's Fund, we would have been unable to meet the needs of
this family.
FAMILY READINESS CENTER: As stated, this is a great initiative to
support the FRGs. Because we had an FRC in place, the transition to
deployment conditions was relatively easy. One shortcoming was the lack
of some specific resource materials that are not available through Army
channels. FRGs and families voice the need for and value of some books,
comic books, coloring books, etc. that help explain the departure of a
parent to their children. Some of these materials cost as much as $5
each and we are unable to devote the necessary resources to stockpile
or reproduce them by the tens of thousands needed. Recommend that
``deployment kits'' for FRCs with these materials be made available
copying the kits that the library system stockpiles for use during
deployments This is a critical need, and is often overlooked (over
20,000 paperbacks were handed out to soldiers as they deployed.) This
would provide a ready supply of deployment materials and could be used
during major deployments at any impacted installation.
In closing I would like to say that it is these family support
services that are key to keeping families in the area where they can be
better nurtured, and kept aware of the information they need to have.
They also serve to help with long-term retention of our great soldiers.
I am extremely proud of what CABC, the post, as a whole and the
surrounding communities have done to put their arms around the military
families. Fort Campbell is a great place to live, work, play, and when
the need arises, be supported during a deployment.
Prepared Statement of Maj. Joyce Dolinish
Deployment issues are a key topic to all military families. As part
of a volunteer force, individuals choose the life of a soldier because
they believe that they are part of an organization that can make a
difference in the world and in them as individuals. Their career choice
is not an easy one--for them or their family. The money is not great,
the housing often substandard, the relocations difficult, and the time
away from their family increases yearly. Yet they remain on duty,
serving despite hardships, proving again and again that they are the
best Army in the world.
While the families feel nothing but pride and support for all
soldiers, they all at some point begin to question when the constant
separation becomes too much to bear as a family. Within our Group,
units redeployed from Afghanistan only to begin preparation for
deployment to Iraq. As we make plans for welcoming home soldiers
returning from Iraq, we are planning the departure ceremonies for units
re-deploying to Afghanistan. We continue to hear plans to further
reduce the size of the Army and know that our soldiers will spend even
less time with their families. We hear of efforts to change accompanied
tours to Europe to a ``rotation''. . . a friendly euphemism for another
deployment. Most Americans think that a military mission is done when
the press stops reporting it--families know that it takes years to
complete the job and bring everyone home. Pride and loyalty hold the
military family together--but at some point in the near future soldiers
may face ultimatums from their families as the amount of time together
becomes less than the amount of time apart.
I believe that the issue of single parents or both parents facing
deployment is being viewed from the wrong angle by most observers. The
Army is a voluntary career choice and all single soldiers or dual
military couples with children are at all times aware of the potential
for deployment and are required to provide extensive legal
documentation of a valid care plan that will activate upon deployment.
If they can not provide this plan they are released from active duty.
The parents who deployed had plans in place and executed them. The real
problem is the number of soldiers whose care plans, when notified of
deployment, suddenly were not valid. These soldiers knowingly,
willingly lied to their command and provided false legal documentation.
The units deployed without these soldiers, perhaps compromising their
mission. Soldiers are informed adults who must make difficult decisions
regarding their families. The life of a soldier is not an easy one,
especially for single parents or dual military couples. If they decide
to pursue it, they must be prepared for separations and have a valid
plan to care for their children. If they do not have someone they
trust, ready to assume the role of parent at any time requested, they
must pursue another career. Civilians make job decisions based on the
amount of time they will be away from their family--soldiers must make
the same tough decisions. The Army life is not for everyone.
Contrary to popular belief, the return of a soldier from a long
deployment is more difficult than their departure. Redeployment
briefings are normally offered at family readiness group (FRG) meetings
when rumors start that soldiers are coming home. FRG leaders hope that
each family will attend at least one briefing, but can not enforce it.
FRG leaders, chaplains, and social workers from the hospital jointly
present these briefings, but there is no standard format or books to
use. The resources available on military installations are insufficient
to provide the ongoing support needed by many soldiers and their
families.
On-post schools are one of the positive aspects of a deployment and
military life. Children are surrounded by peers going through the same
thing they are. Teachers and counselors are experienced with
deployments and trained to watch the children for signs of excessive
stress. Teachers have constant access to families and support from
military units and the installation. Exceptional discipline is
maintained, in part because the military parent can be held accountable
for their child's actions. Fort Campbell is fortunate to have
outstanding community support--but the off-post schools can not compete
with the on-post schools' ability to prepare children for the constant
deployment and redeployment of soldiers. Funding continues to be
reduced for on-post school systems at a time of increasing soldier
deployments--when they can least afford to cut corners or reduce
programs. A bare bones educational system is not enough for the
children of soldiers. The funding to ensure that teachers and
counselors are trained and available in sufficient numbers to meet the
students' needs is critical on all military installations.
On-post schools are also better prepared to ensure the continuity
of education for each child as a family transfers throughout a military
career. Department of Defense guidelines ensure that all schools on
military installations have similar curriculums. Improvements have been
made and agreements coordinated with many off-post schools near
military bases to ease the transition of military students. However,
gaps continue to occur. Constant moves are extremely difficult on
children--gaps in curriculums or the calculation of credits for
graduation make the moves even more traumatic.
The most positive aspect of this deployment has been the way that
the installation, military rear detachments, families and the local
community have pulled together. Large scale deployments are difficult
on everyone. Communication and mutual support has been outstanding.
Most military families are extremely self sufficient, but they need to
know what is going on. The relatively few families that needed support
(emotional, health, financial) received the help they needed quickly
and from many sources. A positive environment willing to listen and
assist when needed was immediately established and maintained.
The key negative areas of this deployment were casualty
notification and tracking of casualties in the medical system. Embedded
media provided real-time coverage of events. Families knew immediately
that an accident or casualty had occurred and by watching closely could
often narrow the event to a specific unit. While no one argues that all
casualty notification must be 100 percent accurate, the time from the
incident until the Department of the Army approves notification of the
next of kin is unacceptable given today's media and communication
capability. (A death in our Group occurred at about 5 a.m. local time--
approval to notify the wife was received too late to notify her that
day, but by the 6 a.m. notification the next day the spouse had already
been called from Iraq.) Injured soldiers are nearly impossible to track
in the multi service medical system. Today's military family demands
and deserves a casualty notification system that recognizes the impact
of instant media and communication.
Prepared Statement of Gricell Medley
Senator Alexander (Distinguished Members of Congress)--good
afternoon! Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to talk to you
today about our family's experience with the military.
My name is Gricell Medley. My husband, Major Lee Medley, is the
Commander of a CH47 Chinook Helicopter Company in the 7th Battalion,
101st Aviation Regiment. We have been married nine years and have been
blessed with two young daughters, Lia and Emma.
I met my husband during his service in Panama. We married in 1994.
The challenges of being newlyweds from two different cultures created a
special bond between my husband and I. The main reason we've stayed in
the Army is because my husband loves his job and serving our nation.
Some of the other reasons we've stayed are because of the excellent
medical care, career advancement, continuous training, retirement
benefits, on-post housing, DOD schools and sense of community.
My husband took command of his company in 2001. As the Commander's
wife, I assumed the role of the unit's Family Readiness Group (FRG)
Leader.
Since Desert Storm the Army has continued to place emphasis and
importance on the Army's FRGs. I think this is one of the things the
Army has done well in the business of taking care of soldiers and their
families. Simply defined the FRG consists of volunteers, usually the
spouses of the soldiers working together to provide assistance and
information to all families and single soldiers within the unit. It is
important to remember that everyone is welcome to participate
regardless of his or her rank. Above the company level we join with the
FRG from our higher headquarters supporting the larger efforts and
beneficial projects. Our FRG organizes informational briefs for the
spouses, updates and disseminates information about deployments,
welcomes new spouses, visits hospitalized family members and soldiers,
and plans Easter Egg Hunts and other special events. In my opinion the
most important role of the FRG remains information management. Without
our dedicated volunteers FRGs would not function.
While the FRG is a great strength of the Army, we could do better
by actually funding the FRG program with paid personnel to provide
continuity and stability for the unit.
One of the things the Army needs to take a closer look at is the
price the op tempo takes on its soldiers and family members. The
operational tempo of the Army has increased over the last decade while
the divisional strength of the Army has decreased. In other words, more
missions and more deployments with fewer people, especially in certain
fields like Chinook helicopter units.
I would like to take a moment to tell you how these increased
deployments have affected my family. Our youngest daughter, Emma is
seventeen months old. My husband has been deployed fifteen of those
months. He has been deployed to Korea, two JRTC rotations in Fort Polk,
Afghanistan for eight months and to Iraq since March of this year. He
was only home for 21 days between Afghanistan and Iraq. The majority of
that time was spent training and preparing his soldiers for
redeployment. While I am extremely proud of our soldiers and families
these numerous separations and deployments to stressful environments
have taken an enormous toll on our Army families. I am afraid it is a
retention issue for our young officers and enlisted personnel. Many of
them get out of the Army because they don't like the repeated
separations from their families.
I mentioned to you that my husband's company spent eight months in
Afghanistan. I would like to make sure that you know that 7th Battalion
of the 101st has maintained all of the Chinook personnel rotations in
Afghanistan since January 2001. C Company currently in Afghanistan was
previously there for four months, home for 2 months and then returned
to Afghanistan in December of 2002. We do not know when they will
return.
This ``unknown'' is one of the frustrations that soldiers and their
families face. We don't know when they will return home or what their
recovery time will be. In addition, I have read in the Army Times about
the Army's plans to send fewer families to Europe and Korea and instead
rotate battalions for 6-month deployments. To our family we see that as
``one more deployment''. My family hopes that change never happens. We
would much rather go as a family for two or three years. It is very
important to us to keep our family together as much as possible.
Again, thank you for taking the time to listen to my comments
today. I feel honored to have had the opportunity to share my thoughts
with you and appreciate your interest in improving the quality of life
for our Army families.
Prepared Statement of Michelle M. Taylor
Hi. My name is Michelle Taylor, my husband Kirk is a Major in the
Division's Plans Section. As an Army wife of 15 years and geographic
single parent for two of the last three years, I'm here to share my
thoughts and observations concerning support for the families of
deployed soldiers.
Overall, I have to commend the efforts of the Installation staff
and leadership. I am convinced that they have all put their best foot
forward in attempting to handle the myriad of issues that arise when an
entire Division deploys. Army Community Services and the Family
Assistance Center are both examples of the larger effort to take care
of the families and communities left behind. In addition, the hospital
has remained responsive despite the deployment of many of its medical
staff.
However, the lynchpin of support is provided through the family
support groups that exist to support families at the grassroots level.
This is essentially a self-help resource in that the more a spouse
attends and participates, the greater the benefit he or she receives.
Family support groups exist year round and the familiarity it breeds
amongst its members aids in the early identification of families who
are in need. This early ``screening'' helps the more experienced group
members steer others to resources before the situation becomes a
crisis. I have been frustrated at times by the seemingly lack of
information flow down to the company-level, but I suspect that the
problem resides largely in the adage ``We don't know what we don't
know.''
Another source of enormous support resides in our church
communities. As you might expect, many of the post chaplains (including
all the Catholic chaplains) deployed in support of the troops. The
foundation of community that resides uniquely in our church community,
regardless of faith, has truly helped to catch family members who fall
through the family support group safety net.
Lastly, the local communities of Clarksville, Oak Grove and
Hopkinsville have responded in their always gracious manner. The
knowledge that the community at large values the sacrifices of both the
soldiers and their family members is reassuring and takes a little of
the sting out of the series of separations we've recently experienced.
The most obvious response as to how you and your fellow members of
Congress can help is easily summed up in one word: Money. More
specifically, we need help in several areas to include:
Improvements in the Tri-Care System and delivery of health care
services. The long wait for non-life threatening (but essential to
quality of life) care is unacceptable.
Changes to the maintenance and development of on-post housing is
also needed. As an off-post family (the result of a 12-month waiting
list upon arrival to Fort Campbell), gaining access to several of the
available programs is problematic.
Funding for childcare facilities is also needed. Spouses with
young children are far less likely to attend family support group and
other like organizations when they have to also spend their meager
disposable funds for child sitting services.
While the Government has relieved soldiers in the Iraqi theater of
war of the Federal tax burden, others are not so lucky. Many hardship
(unaccompanied) tours do not enjoy the same relief. A good example is
our forces serving in Korea. Despite my husband's commitment to living
a very Spartan lifestyle during his last tour, the assignment to Korea
was a financial hardship based solely on the need to maintain two
``households''. This additional financial burden was managed on a
Major's salary, but the same cannot be said for our younger soldiers
and families.
Lastly, I'm tired. I would not trade the friendships and
experiences that our family has enjoyed as a result of my husband's
service, but the pace of deployments has reached a point that I
personally find unacceptable. I'm proud of Kirk's service to our
Nation. He is my hero, but he is also a husband and father. The Army
needs people like my husband to lead soldiers where it matters most, at
the tactical unit level. I will accompany Kirk where the Army sees fit
to assign him next, but I will not encourage another move to a tactical
unit. I find that sad, but the bottom line is that assignment to a
Divisional unit right now is a near guarantee of prolonged separations
with little hope for change in the near future.
Senator Alexander, thank you for joining us and allowing us to give
voice to our concerns. The Army is a close knit family, and when
possible we take care of our own. Whatever help you and the members of
Congress can provide is greatly appreciated. Thank You.
[Whereupon, at 4:00 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]