Attention DC area spouses! If you are on the job search, be sure to put this event on your calendar.

We will be attending this job fair exclusive to military spouses and hope to see you there!

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Family Matters Blog

by Elaine Sanchez
Jan. 9, 2012

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is hosting a career fair in Washington, D.C., this week dedicated solely to helping military spouses find jobs.

The Hiring Our Heroes – Military Spouse Career Forum will feature a host of national and local employers specifically seeking qualified military and veteran spouses, as well as resume and interview coaching, and resources for starting a business. The forum is scheduled for Jan. 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

Spouses of active duty and reserve members, retirees, veterans and fallen service members are welcome to attend.

Job seekers and employers can register for this free event and learn about other chamber-sponsored career fairs around the country at hoh.greatjob.net. Be sure to upload your resume when registering. For assistance with registration, email hiringourheroes@uschamber.com.

The Chamber of Commerce launched the Hiring Our Heroes program last year. This yearlong, nationwide effort is aimed at helping veterans and spouses find employment, with a goal of conducting 100 hiring fairs across the country.

The chamber also is involved with the Wounded Warrior Transition Assistance Program, Student Veterans Internship and Employment Program and a Women Veterans and Military Spouses Employment Program.

This “aggressive agenda,” officials noted on the chamber’s website, “focuses on one measure of success: jobs for the 1 million unemployed veterans in America.”

Additional resource:
Family Matters Blog

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U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Warren, with Detachment 4, Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light 37, drops his helmet and runs to greet his wife in Kaneohe, Hawaii, on Dec. 1, 2011.

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Welcome Home!!

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This years Army Navy football game will take place on December 10, 2011.

This is the first Spirit Video I’ve seen this year, and I’d have to say it’s a good one!

For game information, game gear and more information you can visit http://armynavygame.com

Our favorite USAA is the presenting sponsor this year.

To view more Spirit Videos – Click here or http://armynavygame.com/spirit-spots.php

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Meet the Dow’s, Gina and Phil, our selection for the Home Depot’s Foundation GiveGood Campaign.

It was so hard to pick just one family in need. Our wounded warriors and disabled veterans are quiet about their experiences and what they have seen. Although the Dow’s submission and story was short, we felt a strong connection to their story.

Part of their story:

Phil Dow is a disabled veteran who served two tours in Iraq with the US Army. During his combat service Phil, an Army tanker, earned a Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal and other awards. Phil was injured from a vehicle bomb in Iraq and had multiple surgeries and recovered at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Despite all that he has been through he considers it a great honor to serve our country.

Phil has since been discharged from active duty, but continues his commitment to our military by serving in the Massachusetts National Guard.

The Dow’s now have three small children and could use some help converting their expensive oil heating system to gas, or replacing old, drafty windows or vinyl siding that is in disrepair.

Our selected military family will now be entered for a chance to have Home Depot fulfill their “Wish List” of home improvements up to a retail value of $20,000.

“Items on the “wish list” are things that will make a real difference in the long term efficiency and comfort of the family’s home, including things like a new HVAC system, new carpet, a new roof and new windows. The winning family will be determined by votes on a Facebook application on The Home Depot page Nov. 29-Dec. 9 and announced on Dec. 14.“

From the Home Depot Foundation, “We hope that with everyone who votes for a family, reads a blog post, sees a tweet or even just hears about the program is inspired to Give the Gift of Good in their local communities and keep the chain going.”

We delivered $250 of Home Depot holiday decorations and a leaf blower last Saturday. We are in New England home to one of the most beautiful places for fall foliage. That is also code for A LOT of leaves fall here.

We then presented them with a $250 gift card to towards a snow thrower or other needed item(s).

To learn more about this inspiring military veteran family and to vote for them in the $20,000 Wish List of home improvements please visit the Home Depot Facebook page. http://thd.co/uJJuS5

From the Home Depot page:

“VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE FAMILY AND HELP THEM WIN $20,000 WORTH OF HOME DEPOT HOME SERVICES! ONE VOTE PER PERSON PER 24 HOUR PERIOD; VOTING CONCLUDES DEC. 9 AT 11:59 PM EST.”

The Home Depot store in our neighborhood where we shopped for the Dow family.

Thank you Home Depot Foundation for all you do to support military families!

Another thank you to MilitaryAvenue.com our partner in finding a military family in the New England area.

Related post:

http://mymilitarylife.com/2011/11/14/giving-good-and-20000-to-help-a-military-family/

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GROTON, Conn. (Nov. 11, 2011) The Los Angeles attack submarine USS Springfield (SSN 761) makes her way through the fog to return to homeport at Submarine Base New London. Springfield returned from a scheduled six-month deployment. (U.S. Navy photo by John Narewski/Released)

Welcome Home to the Sailors of the USS Springfield (SSN 761)!

You can find more photos here and here.

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I’m so excited I can barely write this post!!

I’m usually not known for my curb appeal abilities. I can plant a flower in a pot and make it look pretty amazing, but when it comes to flower beds and using power tools I’m usually sipping lemonade by that point. All that changed this past Thursday when I was honored to be invited to participate in Home Depot’s Celebration of Service with Quest 35, who were building a section of housing exclusively for homeless veterans.  Celebration of Service is a major campaign by The Home Depot and The Home Depot Foundation to enhance the lives of U.S. military veterans and to highlight the needs and opportunities they face.  From September 11 through November 11, The Home Depot Foundation committed over 9 million dollars and over 200 projects dedicated to veterans’ housing issues, the Project on 11-11-11, being the grand finale!

We spent five hours improving the community outdoor spaces. This is the BEFORE of our landscaping project.

Next we gathered mums, plants, dirt, mulch and got to work!

After a couple of hours and many hands, this is our finished project!

Ready to get to work!

As part of this giving spirit, Home Depot Foundation has created the Give the Gift of Good campaign (#give good). It is their way of giving back to the local community, “paying forward” this philosophy by encouraging others to give the gift of helping others this holiday season.

The Home Depot Foundation surprised us nine bloggers, both milbloggers and DIY, with the opportunity to Give the Gift of Good in our own communities by giving us EACH a $500 Home Depot gift card to purchase holiday decorations for a local military family in need.

That’s not even the best part.

This is when tears started to flow!

These selected military families would also be entered for a chance to have Home Depot fulfill their “Wish List” of home improvements up to a retail value of $20,000.

“Items on the “wish list” are things that will make a real difference in the long term efficiency and comfort of the family’s home, including things like a new HVAC system, new carpet, a new roof and new windows. The winning family will be determined by votes on a Facebook application on The Home Depot page Nov. 29-Dec. 9 and announced on Dec. 14.“

From the Home Depot Foundation, “We hope that with everyone who votes for a family, reads a blog post, sees a tweet or even just hears about the program is inspired to Give the Gift of Good in their local communities and keep the chain going.”

So, beginning today all us bloggers are asking Americans in our local communities to help us find a deserving military family.

MyMilitaryLife.com will select a military family in the Northeast Connecticut area.

The contest is open to anyone currently serving (Active Duty, National Guard or Reserves) in any branch of the United States Military or anyone who is a Veteran, including Wounded Warriors. (You must have proof of service.) Also, the military family must own their own home.

How can you help?

Help spread the word and submit a military family, or nominate your military family!

You’ll want to include: A compelling story and a few photos: one of the family and few of the home areas needing improvement.

Send submissions and nominations to GiveGood@mymilitarylife.com Subject: HOME DEPOT GIVE GOOD. Submissions must be sent by Sunday, November 20th, at Midnight Eastern Time. MyMilitaryLife.com will choose one winner to submit as our nomination for the $20,000 Give Good Contest. The nominated family will be confirmed via email on November 28.

Thank you in advance for your help in getting the word out. Since we only have a week, PLEASE send your submissions or nominations asap!

It’s a great honor to partner with the Home Depot Foundation on this campaign.

Bloggers also participating:

Give Good Knoxville – Wife of a Wounded Soldier

Give Good Pensacola/Mobile – Being the Wife (Widow) of a Wounded Marine

Give Good Montgomery – Perfectly Imperfect

Give Good Northern California – Centsational Girl

Once I see the blog posts up on the other cities, I will update this post here.

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Thank you Home Depot and Home Depot Foundation for all you do to support military families!

Coming Soon – Give Good Part 2 – Benches!

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1001 Things to Love About Military Life

It’s not often a book is written by a group of military spouses, much less a group I call friends.

Today, November 2nd, is the official launch of 1001 Things to Love about Military Life.

Through my military life walk I’ve gotten to know each of the authors personally starting with “meeting online” to in person. They are each remarkable women. Holly and Kathy are the trailblazers and have brought their workshop, “Follow Your Dreams While You Follow the Military” to military installations around the globe, training thousands of spouses and their signature book, “Help, I’m a Military Spouse! I Get a Life Too!” has inspired thousands more. Tara and Star and have changed the face of how us military spouses connect, first with Army Wife Talk Radio, their Field Exercise events and now with Army Wife Network. They have each left a lasting legacy on the military spouse world and frankly, they’ve only just begun. I am proud and honored to call them each a friend.

1001 Things to Love About Military Life tells the military life story from many angles, the personal accounts and resources are rich. The book is layed out in such a way you will find yourself smiling and remembering what you love about military life, especially on days when living that life might feel like you cannot take another step. For the new spouse it will be a valuable guide behind the curtain of military life and service. You can flip to any page and learn something new or have a chuckle. You’ll stand a little taller and have new insights into the importance of your role of supporting your service member.

I’m honored to have our site, MyMilitaryLife.com and Navy Wife Radio | Military Life Radio listed in the book as #501. What a treat!!

This book should be on every coffee table and certainly in every Kindle!

Here’s how to get your copy and while you’re at, pick up a copy to give!

I’m happy to report you can order via Amazon.com - http://www.amazon.com/1001-Things-Love-About-Military/dp/1455502839

Thank you Amazon.com for carrying this book. It’s available via Hardcover (whoo-hoo) and Kindle.

For more information on the book and each of the authors visit:  www.lovemilitarylife.com

Introduction to 1001 Things to Love About Military Life

When we first told people we were writing this book, responses ranged from “How can you talk about things to love with a war going on and military members being horribly wounded or killed?” to “Thank you for reminding us of all the good in the military and military life.”

There are certainly a lot of things to not love right now about our military reality, as we continue into our 10th year at war. Military members and their families only make up 1% of the population but they are bearing 100% of the sacrifice of war. The horrors of war, death, physical wounding, stress disorders and emotional suffering, and repeated separations, will impact our military families and society for a long time to come. War is hell. Even in peacetime, military life is constantly challenging.

However, research continues to show focusing only on the negatives can pull you into a downward spiral of despair and loss of hope. So, we decided to count the positives. The fact is, there are many things to love about military life. We really did not have trouble getting to 1001.

Our desire is that those of you who are or were in the military will read this—keeping in mind families and children serve too—and find yourself nodding in agreement at many of the items. Of course we know every example won’t apply to every military member. Our military experiences differ as much as we do as individuals. We trust the examples we include will trigger your own memories and encourage you to share your favorites with your family and friends.

For those of you who are not in the military, we are confident this book will give you some insight into this military life and help you see why we have such pride in our military and lifestyle. Why we have not lost hope.

There is no greater love than a love that is willing to sacrifice or die, paying the ultimate sacrifice, for another. Our service members love their brothers-at-arms and at-large, their country. Freely and selflessly, wanting very little in return. In a perfect world, that love is returned. Our aim is to help the country love back, without holding back for lack of introduction to, knowledge of, and insight into our military way of life.
Ask any of us, “Knowing what we know now, would we choose this lifestyle again?’”

“ABSOLUTELY!”

Mostly because of the other amazing people we’ve come to know in our Military Family and because of whom we’ve become as a result of this lifestyle.

There are indeed 1001 things to love about military life or more.

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Hi Everyone,

As previously mentioned, “we are igniting our military spouse group blog! We will be featuring several new bloggers, each with a unique voice and background.”

Next up, I’d like to introduce you to Kristen. She will be writing about wellness / fitness in addition to military life in Hawaii. Kristen is a Navy spouse  and you will find her blog entries under “KristenM”.

About Kristen:

Kristen is a submarine wife, who’s totally in love with her husband, her dogs, and her yoga practice. She believes in seeking out the positive, doing what makes you feel good, and doing good for others. Yoga found her a decade ago, and it was the first step on a path to mind and body wellness. 10 years later, she’s earned her Yoga Alliance Teacher’s Certification. She loves sharing yoga and other positive lifestyle choices with anyone who wants to manage stress, increase wellness, and just feel better!

But wait, there’s more!  I’d like to introduce you to Tessa. She will be writing about “inventing new recipes, photography and interior design”, plus her adventures while living in Italy. Tessa a very new Air Force spouse  and you will find her blog entries under “Tessa”.

About Tessa:

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Guest Post by Navy Wife Jill

Even as Secretary of Defense Panetta starts to back pedal about the proposed radical changes in military retirement, there is a lot of fear of the unknown.  Just today I overheard a conversation between a military spouse and an active duty nurse while trying on some jeans at the mall.  It seems that nobody really knows what is going on.  There are people who swearthat retirement ”can’t” be changed.  They believe that the bait and switch of it would be such an affront that it just isn’t possible and are comforted by the fallacy that the public would be too outraged to allow such a change. Then there are the people who look at it and feel that financially, our current retirement system is extremely expensive and out of date.

As is true with most organizations, people are pricey.  Whether it be salaries, benefits, or retirement, the human factor of most budgets is enormous.  In the military, keeping up with the costs for retirees who have earned free health care and a pension is draining.  In today’s system, a young person can enlist at 18 and retire at 38, then go on to collect their pension and medical benefits while working a second career.  As people live longer and require more medical care, the costs are higher than ever.

At first blush, I get where “they” (The Defense Business Board) are coming from when they take aim at my husband’s retirement benefits.  It looks like a windfall, out of date, and too good to be true retirement package that needs to be updated.  The times, they are a changin’, right?  Yes.  But as this committee seems to have missed completely, the ways of the world have changed in more ways than one.

Recently a PowerPoint was distributed to active duty military members outlining the proposal.  Lucky for them, I was just geeky enough to read every last word.  My background is not in economics or finance nor am I particularly in love with researching it.  But there is no excuse for putting your head in the sand and willing this issue away.  I want to be educated because my husband and I are a team, this is my money and security too. I am not naive enough to think this won’t be on the table again for another 10 years when my husband will be eligible to retire.  Please.  Panetta might be able to stiff arm it for now, but retirement is going to change – it is just a matter of when and how.  And the more we know a spouses, the more we can question the people making these decisions and hope that the decisions are smart and fair.

Reading this details to the retirement changes made me feel invisible as a military spouse.  It made me wonder if the people who created it and researched it actually gave thought to the military family as a whole and not just to my husband as a monetary expense that needs to be lowered.  I actually searched the document and in 24 pages the word “spouse” isn’t mentioned one time.  The word “family” is mentioned one time.  It made me sad and really illustrated the painful truth that at the end of the day, the military doesn’t truly get the sacrifices that the whole family makes.  Or how retirement benefits are for the family, not just the service member, especially in this lifestyle.  My rose colored glasses are officially off.

Even more laughable was how the entire presentation was comparing the military lifestyle to the private sector.  If I have learned anything over the past eight and a half years, you cannotfor one solitary second compare the military family experience to the private sector experience.  I’m not going to go into some whiny diatribe about why but it is painfully obvious that the DBB glossed over some really important factors when making their recommendations.

When I was a brand new military spouse and in graduate school I was completely naive to how draining starting and stopping a career is.  How every time I move, even if I am lucky enough to land a new job, I am exhausted the whole first year while I learn a new system, culture and set of personalities and responsibilities.  Since my husband and I were married in 2003 I have left two wonderful jobs where I earned good money and benefits.  Two tenured jobs.  I realize how completely golden tenured positions are in this economy, and I have walked away from both of them because Uncle Sam needed my husband somewhere else.  The latest one just last fall.   In between those jobs I didn’t make an income.  Our family had to depend on my husband’s salary only. When I’m not working, we save less.  Simple math.

In a report I did for a class back in 2005, I researched the losses that military spouses experience while being married to active duty service members.  Here is a small excerpt (references will be at the end of the post):

On average, military families earn substantially less annually than their civilian counterparts. Hosek (2002) states, over the 1997-1999 period, husband-and-wife family earnings totaled $51,115 on average for civilian families and $40,587 for military families, or $10,527 less (p.xii). Military families often times have a great deal of difficulty making ends meet. 41% of wives married to E-3 and below characterized themselves as being “in over [their] head” (Bureika, et al, 1999). Importantly, the primary reason for this problem is the lower earnings of military wives as compared to earnings of civilian wives. It has been documented that military wives may be willing to accept jobs at lower wages rather than spending more time to find a higher wage job (RAND, 2003, p. 2). Lower earnings for military wives often stem from variables over which they have no control, including frequent moves, undesirable duty stations, lack of seniority, and overwhelming familial responsibilities due to deployments. The total undiscounted loss of a three-year rotation policy is fully 40% of what the wife would have earned had she been able to remain at one location for six years (Gill & Haurin, 1998). Military families are also three times more likely to have an out-of-country move during their career. The longer distance moves entail a greater financial loss due to decreased work time for spouses (RAND, 2003).

40% over six years, people!  Do that math over 20 years, then add interest that the money lost would have made. Because the military expects families to PCS every 3 or so years, they are asking military spouses to sacrifice a lot professionally.  And if the Defense Budget Board is going to start comparing the military to the private sector, they are going to have to start looking more closely at the choices families living in the private sector are making.

It is a sad fact that many families need to be dual income in order to survive.  Especially ones in the income range of military members.  The idea that a woman will stay home when the children are born and dad will work to earn enough to live on and retire is “a thing of the past” and the demise of pensions is a large part of that.  In order to afford to live and play for tomorrow, two incomes is the norm.

Here is the crux of the issue (sorry this has taken me so long):  If the military models their retirement after the private sector then we cannot afford to stay in the military. If every penny we make today is the only money that we will ever have to invest and save, then I need to be working.  Full time.  Just like a gigantic portion of the civilian population.  We can’t afford for me to take a 40% hit every 6 years if the military removes the pension security blanket.  My husband loves his job and is extremely loyal, but we are not martyrs.  And I refuse to jeopardize our future, the future of my children’s college educations, and our comfort because the military decided that somehow our lifestyle mirrors that of a doctor or accountant.

The pension isn’t perfect, but it offers some financial security that allows us to live this unique lifestyle, that allows my husband to serve his country without worrying about how he is already making a fraction of what he would make at a private engineering firm.  If the military decides that we aren’t worth the pension, I have a feeling that many valuable assets (people) will decide to go make a go at the 401K system from the comfort of a job that doesn’t send them away for 12 month deployments or ask their kids to change schools 3 times in 6 years.

I hope that the DBB, the President, the Secretary of Defense, and all other powers that be start paying more attention to the finances of the military family and not individual service member when making these retirement changes.  If they do, I think they will realize that stripping the pension would make the military unaffordable for many families.  And a financial sacrifice that many good people aren’t willing to make.

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References:Bureika, R., Riser, M., Salvucci, S., Maxfield, B., & Simmons, R. (1999).
Effective strategies to assist spouses of junior enlisted members with employment: analysis of the 1997 survey of spouses of enlisted personnel. Defense Manpower Data Center Report 99-007, Arlington, VA.
Gill, H.L. & Haurin, D.R. (1998). Wherever he may go: how wives affect their husband‘s career
decisions. Social Science Research, 27, 264-279.

Hosek, J., Asch, B., Fair, C.C., Martin, C., & Mattock, M. (2002).
employment and earnings of military wives compared with those of civilian wives.
Monica, CA: RAND
RAND Research Brief. (2003).
13, 2005, from http://www.rand.org/publications/RB/RB7555 The employment and earnings of military wives. Retrieved April

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About the Blogger:

Jill is a Navy Spouse, find more of her writing on her blog Keep Calm and Have a Cosmo

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(Getty Images)

Today the news was filled with stories of Bank of America announcing it will soon charge customers $5 a month to use their Debit Card for retail transactions. This move after Wells Fargo and Chase tested similar fees to their customers. For the 38.7 people who carry Bank of America cards, they will now have to decide if $60 a year is just too much to pay.

I have to say I felt a sense of relief knowing USAA does not charge any extra fees for using their debit card. I like using my USAA debit card for gas, groceries, Starbucks, retail therapy, the list goes on and one. It’s nice to know I don’t have to pay an extra fee to have this convenience. Thanks USAA!

From USAA.com:

USAA Bank announced today that its debit card will remain fee free. We’re proud of our service to military members and their families and that USAA Bank remains committed to offering a free checking account – and free debit card – with superior features such as:

• Free checking – No monthly service fees regardless of balance.
• Free nationwide ATM use – First 10 ATM withdrawals are free, and if another bank charges, we’ll refund up to $15 of their bank fees each month.
• Deposit options – Make a deposit through one of more than 2,000 The UPS Store® locations, and qualifying members can also deposit checks from home, an iPhone™ or Android™ phone.
• Free online and mobile banking – Check balances, transfer funds and pay bills using a computer, smartphone, iPad® or mobile.usaa.com.
• Free USAA® Money Manager – Track spending with a personal budgeting tool.

Related article:

Bank of America debit fee is only the latest

How do you feel about BoA charging to use their debit card? Share your thoughts in the comment section!

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