I'm in the Army, and my fiancee is a marine, and he is kind of worried about our future assignments. We're both in the Military Intelligence field; he's been in the service for 6 years, he's an E- 5, and I've been for one. The Army has a policy,called Married Army Couples Program, where applies as well for another service member, but does it really work for a marine like that? Navy regulations force young couple to start married life apart. SASEBO NAVAL BASE, Japan — Ashley Payne and Curtis Phillips were inseparable. Until he joined the Navy. The couple always knew they would be together forever, but marriage came down to the question of proper “timing.”After almost four years of dating, the two 1. March, deciding to exchange vows while Phillips was on leave following completion of the Navy’s security officer “A” school. After technical school, Phillips found out that he would be headed for Sasebo. But his wife would not be going with him. Under a longstanding Navy policy sailors stationed overseas and in Hawaii cannot gain command sponsorship for their spouse or children until they achieve the rank of E- 4. Phillips is a seaman apprentice, or E- 2.“I was heartbroken,” said Payne, “because I knew it would be the last time I would see him for a very long time.”Heading into military life, both were prepared for some initial separation and challenges that come with serving one’s country. However, Payne says they were overwhelmed when they found out Phillips was headed to Japan without her. They have seen each other for about 2. Phillips joined in October 2. The soft- spoken Phillips was reluctant to speak with Stars and Stripes.“Sometimes it’s hard focusing and stuff like that . Without it, on- base housing is denied. The Navy is the only service to put such restrictions on its enlisted troops. Spouses like Payne are still technically allowed to come and would still collect an off- base housing allowance, but the sailor and spouse are left to foot the bill for everything else. In addition, without command sponsorship, there are fewer employment options on- base for spouses, lower priority on medical care, and no enrollment of children in the base schools. The Navy discourages “self- sponsorship,” said Senior Chief Petty Officer Ramon Lustre of the Navy’s Personnel Support Detachment in Sasebo.“They’re dependent restricted,” he said. I don’t know how they can live with that.
Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard /marriage in the marine corps. The Army has a policy,called Married Army Couples Program. Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines.There’s no way” to afford self- sponsorship on an entry- level sailor’s salary. But the allowances that sailors like Phillips receive for being separated from their families nearly matches off- base rents in places like Sasebo. A modest two- or three- bedroom home can start at about $1,0. Sasebo Naval Base. Payne said the Navy pays her $7. Permissive Reassignment for Married Army Couples Program: Does anyone have any experience requesting a permissive reassignment in order to be relocated with their spouse? We will both have 24 month TOS by mid March so that's. Does anybody know exactly where to find the instructions for dual military bah with dependents. Married Army Couples Program in regulation AR 614-200. My wife and I are both airmen in the Navy. We got married a month ago. Tennessee, and Phillips receives $2. Were Payne to accompany Phillips unsponsored, the couple would be unable to afford rent and utilities, let alone the cost of her plane ticket and the shipping of their household goods. Navy officials say the lack of available housing is another reason for the rule.“Because of limited government housing in most overseas locations, established eligibility priorities, and the unusually high cost of housing in local economies, the Navy adopted its current practice,” Mike Mc. Lellan, a spokesman for the Navy Personnel Command in Tenn., said in an emailed response to Stars and Stripes. Yet according to data provided by officials in Sasebo, there are 6. Sasebo Naval Base or in surrounding base controlled areas. Out of those units, 1. Navy officials in Yokosuka declined to comment on the availability of family housing at that base near Tokyo. Navy’s different rules. It’s unclear exactly when the Navy instituted its policy, or why it differs from the other services. The issue of command sponsorship is decided by individual commands, according to Maj. Neal Fisher, the deputy director of public affairs for U. S. For sailors in Japan, the policy was adopted to fall in line with the overall Navy policy, Commander Naval Forces Japan spokesman Jon Nylander said. Citing the Defense Manpower Data Center, there are 1. E- 4 married to a civilian and stationed overseas, Mc. Lellan said, and 1,9. Mc. Lellan said that the Navy tries not to station these sailors overseas if they are married or have children.“It is a longstanding Navy practice to preclude assignment of sailors below the pay grade of E- 4 with family members to all overseas areas,” Mc. Lellan said. Lindsay Pirek, a spokeswoman for the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Unit. She said the Marine Corps in general doesn’t have a policy like the Navy’s.“We have married E- 3s and below here and their families,” Pirek said. U. S. Army Japan spokesman Maj. Randall Baucom said command sponsorship is determined by tour length (more than 1. Japan. He said there are 4. Japan below the grade of E- 4 who have command sponsorship for their dependents.“I know it has nothing to do with rank but has to do with the length of tours,” he said. Tania Bryan, chief of public affairs at Yokota Air Base, Japan. Bryan said there are over 1. Yokota airmen below E- 4 living in accompanied housing. Difficult for sailors. The Navy directive has led to some marriage problems for sailors in Sasebo, according to base chaplain Lt. Daniel Dawson.“For some sailors it can be difficult,” said Dawson, who has counseled sailors who are having difficulties with their marriages. Chaplains counsel sailors, he said, but even their best methods can do little to fill the void left by a distant family member. Chief of Navy Chaplains Rear Adm. Mark Tidd declined through a spokeswoman to comment on the policy and whether chaplains are advised on how to deal with the issue. Dawson suggested that separated couples keep communicating any way they can and as often as they can and, if couples do seek therapy or counseling, they should share their experiences with one another.“It doesn’t make the distance any easier, but it does make things a little easier,” he said. Even with an almost opposite time schedule, the couple keep in constant communication. They have started fighting over insignificant issues, Payne admits. She said she even finds herself holding back when speaking about her problems because being so far away, there is simply nothing Phillips can do to help. And their dreams of starting a family will have to be put on hold.“We’re in it for the long run. I’m not going anywhere,” Payne said.
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