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Comment by Anti M on May 23, 2017 at 3:08pm

You rock, Allison!

Comment by Allison on May 23, 2017 at 3:03pm

Last thing for now, but feel free to message me if you have more questions, I recommend having your sailor put in for special liberty to give you the time to get everything done and then celebrate a little. He will need one chit to sign out with you, and one chit to stay overnight with you if you will be getting married before phase 3. Chits are more likely to get approved if they don't require a duty swap, so if date isn't super important to you, avoid duty weekends...which will make sense when he gets there. I would expect the first two months to definitely be phases 1 and 2, but after that it is totally up in the air. He will have the most time either before ATT or A School during the period known as "holds" or during ATT (usually phase 1 during this time). He won't be able to skip A School days to get married, and the hours for both et/fc will be difficult to work with.Not only is it more time for you guys to get everything done for the wedding, but it will be easier for him to get everything updated in DEERs and apply for housing if you'll be moving there. A School is a stressful time.

Comment by Allison on May 23, 2017 at 2:50pm

http://www.19thcircuitcourt.state.il.us/1498/Babcox-Justice-Complex

This is were my husband and I were married, Babcox Justice Complex because we were able to get married on a Saturday this way. Get there early if you go this route! They will marry you in the order you arrived, and if they run out of time and have another case to address after 11, the will stop for the day. Bring cash, and to be on the safe side, pay exact change. 

If he wants to get married in uniform, he can go in either his nsu's (the black and khaki for him) or dress uniform, nsu's are the standard since courthouse attire is nice but not formal, but if you're wearing a wedding dress or would just prefer it, he can absolutely wear his dress uniform, both are approved since it's still a wedding. 

Comment by Allison on May 23, 2017 at 2:35pm

I want to clarify, if you get a certificate from the County Clerk in Lake County, you cannot get married in Chicago as it is in Cook County. 

Here is the website for the Lake County Clerk, Great Lakes is in Lake County, the office is probably 10-15 minutes from base https://www.lakecountyil.gov/383/Marriage-Licenses

Comment by Allison on May 23, 2017 at 2:30pm

mama1108, my husband and I did the courthouse wedding during A school since we were told having our wedding before he left would delay his ship date because I lived and worked in another country, which would slow down clearances, lots of paperwork, etc. Anyway, you will both need to appear in person at the county clerk office, which is open M-F, and it would be best to do this during ATT or earlier if you can since the training hours can make it difficult for him to get there before they close. After that, you can be married by any qualified person, religious or civil. If you have more time, there are lots of people willing to meet you for a couple hours somewhere in Lake County. I would recommend getting married in Lake County because it is easier to make it to the clerk for the certificate than getting all the way to Chicago (Cook County). There are some beautiful parks and hotels. Otherwise, you can appear at the courthouse during their wedding hours, but know that you'll most likely be sharing the moment with other couples. I personally didn't even notice the other couples, I was totally focused on my husband, but it did clearly bother some of the other couples and their families there. They just can't promise you a private affair, it depends how many people are getting married, and with all the Navy guys fresh out of bootcamp on top of the general population, there's A LOT of couples there. 

Comment by Allison on May 23, 2017 at 2:20pm

My husband never had to go back to base at night while we were married and living in Great Lakes, and the same with his fc counterparts, so as long as they are living there, he can come home to her as he will be either et or fc if I remember correctly from her post in another page on here. If she chooses not to live in IL with him, he can request special liberty at any phase with her. I signed my husband out as his liberty buddy during phase one, that is how we went out and got our license for IL and got married since we couldn't get married before he shipped. Our friend's sister stayed with us and was able to sign her brother out at phase two as his liberty buddy. All they need is a chit, phase doesn't really matter, it's all about timing for approval and if they are in good standing. The only benefit of waiting until phase three is that he won't have to also request special overnight liberty. However, if anyone wanted to visit during phases 1 or 2, he can fill out a chit for special overnight liberty with her or another family member. That's not to say it will be approved, but for that once in awhile visit, there is a good chance. 

Comment by Anti M on May 22, 2017 at 6:29pm

Hi mamh1108 ...

Liberty phases do vary a little, so it is impossible to give you a set of dates.  Usually the courthouse marriage is just the couple, and then when he takes leave after A school, you can have a ceremony for the families.  

Here is the liberty policy for Great Lakes:

https://www.facebook.com/notes/training-support-center-tsc-great-la...

Phase one can be two weeks, or it can be a full month.  It will depend on the individual school command.   He will be told the policies when he checks into A school.  Shorter A schools phase up quicker.   He will want to be in phase three, so he can have an overnight with you.

Did you find the link for the Lake County county clerk, for the license information?

Comment by mamh1108 on May 22, 2017 at 3:44pm

Hello everyone,

Lots of questions. My fiancé and I had a wedding planned during A school in our hometown, and we realized that the odds of our request being approved is slim to none. Now we're rerouting our plans to have a court wedding in Illinois. Do any of you have any advice? I don't even know where to start. How long will each phase last during A school so we can plan with our families?

Sorry I'm so new to this. I've never even been to Illinois. Haha

Comment by Anti M on May 18, 2017 at 10:48am

I was mostly on shore duty, and a 40 hr. work week was rare.  We worked 7 am to 4 pm, with an hour for lunch.  We also had duty days which were 24 hours.  In addition, we might put in extra hours if the command was tasked with providing security for base events.  We did not get extra days off if we had weekend duty.  We were all on call techs too, so if the gear went down, we went to work until the systems were up and running.  Days on end.  During typhoons, those of us who were "essential" stayed at the command until the all clear was called.  We didn't do organized PT, but some commands do, that's extra hours.  Sometimes training is within work hours, sometimes it is not.  

Other people at our command were on shift work, 2 day shifts, 2 evening shifts, 2 mid shifts, with days off after a cycle.  They did not stand duty like we did.  

Every command will be a little different, but do not expect a simple work week like civilians get.  He will always be busy, and it will suck on the days you want him around.  

Comment by abuon18 on May 18, 2017 at 9:39am

Hi OldAirForceSupporter, welcome to the Navy family!

After training, your Sailor's schedule will depend on his/her command but likely it will be more similar to what they are doing now than a 40-hr work week. They will still have duty days and watches, and these can be on weekends, and if so they do not get a weekday off to replace it (depending on the duty rotation, but for example, my husband sometimes works 13 days in a row while the ship is in port.) During the week they go in early and usually get out early (still an 8 hour day) but can be even longer depending on what needs to be done, if an emergency cropped up during the day, or some other last minute order, or if the person in charge is just in a bad mood honestly. Some days they will get out really early. Unless they have duty on the weekends they don't usually have to go in. Depending on what part of the deployment cycle the ship is in, they may be going out to sea a lot (if they are in a workup cycle, getting ready for deployment), or they may be home every day (if they are in the yards in a maintenance cycle).

If your Sailor is on shore duty, it's more like a 40 hour work week but they still have duty, even on weekends, and they still are at the discretion of the command - they don't have set hours. They go in to work in the am but can't leave at 8 hours. They leave when the person in charge releases them for the day. I'm sure others can chime in with more details, what I've said is really, really basic and general. It gets much more specific depending on where he/she is stationed, what their rate (job) is, etc. For example, on a ship, the whole ship does not get to leave at the same time. Each department gets released by their own supervisor when their supervisor says. My husband's job is always last to go.

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