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Comment by mamawalrus on November 8, 2010 at 2:02pm

Mine is not leaving that exact date but is leaving Dec 8th. He can join the navy Credit Union at any time correct so that he can do all that after Boot?

Exxie-thanks for the info,,,I will look that up.

Comment by exxie on November 8, 2010 at 1:30pm

I googled "medical power of attorney" this morning and the very first link was a free copy-n-paste document in which one can fill blanks and enter specific limitations, etc. I notice that it includes authorization to RECEIVE information as well as to make decisions about healthcare. The only phrasing I noticed that I found questionable is that it says "This medical power of attorney takes effect if I become unable to make my own health care decisions and this fact is certified in writing by my physician.
Not sure that part about it being "my physician" will fly. Any thoughts??

Comment by Arwen on November 8, 2010 at 12:13pm

He can keep his local account, but having a Navy Federal account is valuable. They have branches around the world in places where the Navy frequents, so a sailor can handle his banking issues from anywhere s/he may be.

Comment by mamawalrus on November 8, 2010 at 2:25am

Arwen-can he keep his local bank here at least throught Boot?

Comment by Arwen on November 8, 2010 at 2:14am

EDIT -

Have your recruit pack two boxes full of what s/he will want/need at A school. One should have immediate-use stuff, like personal electronics (don't forget the chargers), a favorite alarm clock, a personal throw blanket (sometimes they need more than the single blanket issued), a nice big bath towel, and favorite personal hygiene items. Also, pack their favorite style of underwear. They can wear these as soon as they arrive at A school (and are very glad to shed the boot-camp issue stuff). This box can be shipped as soon as you have the address. If they are Grad and Go, you might be able to give it to your recruit in Chicago, either at their school or at the airport.

The second box would be full of the clothes s/he will want. They can have this box when they earn it at A school, usually 2-6 weeks after arrival. There is a lot of storage space in A school barracks, but don't overdo it. They will need spring andsummer weight clothes. Don't worry about coats, the Navy issues beautiful woolen pea coats that can be worn with civilian clothes.

Comment by Arwen on November 8, 2010 at 2:04am

He should bring a canceled check and direct deposit information with him to boot camp. When they do their pay paperwork (in the first few days) he turns it in with the paperwork. If he doesn't turn it in, they will create a new Navy Federal Credit Union or Armed Forces Bank account for him.

Navy Federal has been great to us for the last 25 years, but Armed Forces Bank has already caused my son all sorts of problems. He's changing banks as soon as he gets back to Sasebo.

Comment by mamawalrus on November 8, 2010 at 1:45am

Tomorrow marks the month till my son leaves.....I am starting to get nervous and anxious. In fact its 30 days 7 hours and 28 minutes. Its taking me back to kindergarten and seeing him walk the line with all the other little kids.. moms wiping their tears as teachers assured us they would be just fine....WELL here I am soon again needing to be told he will be just fine..... :(

Comment by mamawalrus on November 8, 2010 at 1:28am

How do I go about doing a POA and also who do we give the driect deposit information to?

Comment by Arwen on November 7, 2010 at 4:35am

Chris was told that he can NOT get a passport in Japan, and that it must be done in the US. As I understand it, they can renew an existing passport, but not apply for a new passport. I will see if I can find more about it.

Other things to think about... Talk about not only what to do if a family member is injured, ill or killed, but also what if it is a friend? The Navy does NOT grand compassionate leave for a best friend dieing while a recruit is in boot camp. One of the moms from my group had to deal with that, 3 of her recruit's four best friends died in a car accident while he was at Great Lakes, and the other was injured badly. She wanted to tell him, afraid that he would learn it from one of his other friends, but something that upsetting could badly derail his training. What about pets? The house burning down?

Make sure you watch the Navy Racks boot camp video and the Battlestations 21 CNN video with your recruit. It will help him/her with the idea of what s/he will be seeing soon, and give you some peace of mind seeing where your recruit will be and what s/he will be doing.

Have your recruit pack two boxes full of what s/he will want/need at A school. One should have immediate-use stuff, like personal electronics (don't forget the chargers), a favorite alarm clock, a personal blanket (sometimes they need more than the single blanket issued), and favorite personal hygiene items. This can be shipped as soon as you have the address, or if they are Grad and Go, you might be able to give it to them in Chicago, either at their school or at the airport. The second box would be full of the clothes s/he will want. There is a LOT of storage space in A school barracks. They will need spring and summer weight clothes in Great Lakes or New England A schools, or spring/summer clothes for schools in the south.

Comment by Purplemom (Ship 3 Div 084) on November 7, 2010 at 2:35am

We did all the POAs. I have been a military wife (Army) for almost 20 years and have seen the most incredible, bizzarest things happen the minute a service member goes out of the loop and is unable to attend to things on their own (ie. deployement, training). It is always better to make the provisions and not need them than to not do it and find out the hard way you should have. I was advised by a couple different recruiters from various services as well as a couple different military lawyers (JAG) that if nothing else is done every recruit should have a medical power of attorney. Once your child leaves they become the property of the military.Training accidents occur and are always unexpected hence being called accidents. If there is no medical POA the military does not have to recognize your right as a parent to make a decision for your child. Without the medical POA you are not even entiled to receive information about your childs medical condition if they end up in the hospital as they are now adults and owned by the military.

As for the passport. We live overseas and my sons is ready to expire so we had to get a new one or he would not be able to come back home. A servicemember (not the family) STATIONED overseas can travel to and from the US on their military ID for both duty and leave. However any travel between countries for leave purposes requires a passport. My son will need a passport to come home on leave to visit as he is not the one stationed here. I have seen many service members show up overseas without a passport and they quickly regret not getting one before coming because the opportunities for leisure travel abound. There is not a day that goes by that some trip or tour is not planned. Here in Europe the countries are small. I can be in several different countries in the span of a couple hours. It is easy to do a day trip and cross several boarders. Even in the US servicemembers need a passport to go to Canada, Mexico or the Bahamas. The only places a servicemember cannot travel outside the US on leave is any country that has not been banned or placed off limits. Believe me they will be quickly told if they request leave to go to someplace banned. It really is better for them to get the passport as soon as possible so they are prepared, but at the very least they should have one before being stationed overseas.

All military bases that house family members overseas are required to have a passport office. Servicemembers do not always realize this, but they can also purchase a regular travel passport at this office. The will just have to pay for it where as the issue the passports required for family members for free. Servicemembers can also go to the local US Embassy and purchase a passport there. It can be a hassle though and it they will experience a longer wait time for the passport to be returned.

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