Welcome to the September edition of The Military Minute! We have a couple minor changes this month. Sadly, and through no fault of her own, Bailey will no longer be able to co-host this feature with me. As such, I’m looking for a co-host! If anyone is interested, please feel free to shoot me a message either via email or message (check on my contact tab!) For the time being, linkups will solely be posted on my site, but the feature will go on as normal! Today, I’m sharing my answer to the September prompt:
What are some of the best military resources that you’ve found or used? (Think: Tricare, etc.)
For all its less-than-stellar aspects like deployment, lack of consistency, etc., the military actually offers us some of the best military resources. Some have actual names, but some of them are just givens. Regardless, they all aid in lessening that burden and lightening the load that we bear as we deal with the everyday chaos called military life. What am I talking about, you ask?
Take, on-post/base housing, for example. This isn’t an actual program. Rather, it’s a resource that affords us the opportunity to have a house on post that’s secure, maintained and, often times, cheaper than off-post living. I mentioned in the August feature, we’ve lived both on- and off-post. Here in Washington, living on post is much cheaper, and we’ve actually saved a lot of money not paying exorbitant rent and utilities off post because, fun fact, utilities are actually free here.
There are some resources we’ve used, however, that have significantly helped us, as well, and these ones do have names:
SCRA Clause – I did a whole post on this one. We actually managed to get out of a bad housing situation without penalty for breaking our lease early due to Ryan’s deployment. This military clause applies to more than just housing leases though. It can apply to contracts (like phones, etc.), car leases, and more. Being protected by this resource was an unknown blessing that, without the military, we would have struggled.
Child Care Aware – I need to do a post on this one. For all those working mamas out there, you know that childcare rates are astronomical. Child Care Aware is a military fee subsidy program in which off-post/base daycare rates are lowered to be comparable with those of on-post/base rates. Since childcare on post is a) always full and b) often times less than stellar, Child Care Aware makes it financially possible for many military families to afford great childcare off post.
JAG/LAO – Legal help can cost an arm and a leg. Truly. When we were trying to navigate the process of breaking our lease off-post, I needed someone to look over our lease, tell me whether the SCRA applied to our situation, and help me work the system properly. Judge Advocate General (JAG) and the Legal Affairs Office (LAO) both offered me the insight and legal help I needed – free of charge – to take care of things stateside while Ryan was deployed.
Space-A – As some of you probably remember, we flew Space-A across the US to visit family last month! It was a crazy and eventful process, but it was also amazing on many levels. First and foremost, I didn’t have to pay more than $2k to fly to and from NH. Second, we got to experience a new type of travel that was actually a lot of fun. Third, we paid a grand total of $18 for our flight – and that was just for food on board. We didn’t have to pay for parking, and we didn’t have to pay to hop on a flight. Sure, we traded our time for that flight, but I’d say it was worth it!
Now it’s your turn! I’d love for you to join in on The Military Minute and share some of the best military resources you’ve found Whether you’re a new or seasoned military spouse, an active duty soldier or veteran (or heck, anything in between), The Military Minute is inclusive, and we want to hear from you. Drop your link below, and I’ll be sure to check it out!
