Guard and Reserve Family Support

New Flash - update

I wrote this article based largely on the experience of my familiy support group - it seems there are resources out there - though not well or universally publicized that do exactly what I was asking for with my article - I am happy to note that I recieved a response from a former Family Support Coordinator that provided the DoD one source location - it can be found at Military one source I stand unofficially educated and corrected - thanks to Chuck for setting me straight.

News Flash - update

All told, more than 417,000 National Guard and Reservists, or about 80 percent of the members of the Guard and Reserve, have been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, with an average of 18 months per mobilization. Of these, more than 84,200, or 20 percent, have been deployed more than once. Army National Guard and Reserve families are subjected to the greatest stress concerning the length of deployment due to remote location relative to military installations. The Army has moved to a 12 month deployment model which will partially address the duration of stress but there remains a glaring inadequacy in addressing support for families. The Guard and Reserve remain inadequately staffed to provide assistance on a consistent basis for deployed unit member families.

What is needed is round the clock access to resources – readily available –for the Reserve and Guard family member to one stop shop for support while their loved ones are deployed? Presently the Family Support program falls far short of this requirement. At most units, Family support is provided by volunteers (often the Cdr’s spouse) to members. The effort carried out by these volunteers is heroic but there is a morale responsibility on the Military to provide something more substantive than an adhoc volunteer group to aid family members that are located great distances from military installations and services.

One method we may harness is providing Family support services via the Internet. Most people have some form of access to the internet and deployed soldiers families could use this mode as a portal to aid and assistance when needed. Using a secure AKO platform and a live response element could enable the military to provide a place to turn when a Tricare issue, power of attorney problem, household question or other issue turns up. Imagine what a single site, oriented towards helping deployed soldiers families with all questions would do to reinforce the notion that the military establishment believes in the Army Family.

Internet search for relevant Family Support sites for Guard and Reserve offers a lot of PR to the effort but few hard stops (action agencies or officials) for real needs that families can experience. Don’t interpret sentence above to reflect that there is no value in the links out there – but they are not Army or DoD action sites that can step forward with assistance for remote families…. In reality, families in need must get themselves to an installation for any chance at assistance - not always possible.

Presently, the military provides ample staff for public affairs activities to talk and interact with the press, but nothing near equivalent to work with Reserve and Guard families – what does that say about us?

Is the Army being torn apart?

Recently House Speaker Pelosi's blog, the Gavel, expands significantly on a NYT story about the extent to which Bush's "surge" in Iraq is straining our military resources. The Gavel notes from her provide sound bite statements from a number of sources including Gen Schoonmaker, Army Guard sources and analysts that portray a concern that Bush may be breaking the Army. The New York Times story details Pentagon plans to send National Guard troops back to Iraq next year with potentially an adjustment to the period of time between deployments. It is inferred that the Bush administration change to Reserve and Guard deployments “abandonment of rules that limited call-ups of Guard members by the Bush administration in January” is a catalyst for destruction.

What is missed is that the policy change for Reserve and Guard deployments is better in many respects for those soldiers. Previous deployments were 18 months long with significant training at a distant military facility followed by a year long tour in Iraq. Ask any Guard or Reserve soldier that has deployed and they will candidly tell you that much of the 6 month period spent in training is wasted with administrative bureaucracy, redundant training events, unimaginative training plans, Active Duty trainer goading and insufficient resources which severely stress the unit even before deployment. Couple this with 6 additional months away from home and it is a great tribute to Guard and Reserve soldiers that they remain in the ranks.

I’m always happy when Congress takes an interest in Guard and Reserve issues. The fact that there is a concern for Guard and Reserve forces is always a good thing, because, frankly the Active Component has not been kind to the Guard and Reserve in the past – however much of that was due to the same congressional organization that is using Reserve and Guard preparation now as another barb to throw at the Bush administration.

The Active Army, Guard and Reserve are coming to a better understanding of capabilities, resources, training needs and equipment needs. No where was I treated as much as an equal than during my year of service as a Reserve Officer assigned to MNSTC-I – an active unit in Iraq. I believe the new leadership of the Army has had to count and come to appreciate the Guard and Reserve and will provide for needs as they arise.

With respect to the force being torn apart… every soldier spends up to 6 years per contract or commission on duty – as this conflict has lasted 4 years – conceivably 2/3rds of the soldiers have had an opportunity to leave in lieu of re-enlistment. All new soldiers today joined a volunteer force where the deployment cycles were already well known and defined. With the exception of 10000 soldiers on stop loss – it is 100% voluntary to serve in the Army… essentially if you wanted to leave in the last 4 years – you could. Its been a recurring theme with some nay-sayers that the Army is stressed and self-destructing… I don’t see that in the numbers…. I don’t hear it when I talk with soldiers…. I didn’t feel it in Iraq… I don’t read it in soldier blogs. I usually see it in articles and posts from defeatist… the press seeking another Bush bashing story… people that purport to know what is best for soldiers that have never served a day in uniform…

If you want to know the truth about the matter – seek an accurate assessment – ask a soldier.